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Raising the roof
STRUTHERS
Simon Roofing has served as a family- owned business, a community supporter and a staple in the Mahoning Valley since it was founded in 1900.
“We’re part of the community,” Anthony Vross, co-owner of Simon Roofing, said.
But the commercial roofer’s chemical plant at 276 State St. also has taken root within the company and the community.
Simon Roofing, which is based in Boardman, opened the 42,000-square-foot facility in Struthers in 2010. The company’s other manufacturing facilities are in Cleveland and Charlotte, N.C.
The chemical plant produces about 85 products including coatings, cements and adhesives, and operates as part of Simon Products, the sister company of Simon Roofing.
“It’s really no different than working in a kitchen,” said Mike Dohar, chief operating officer of Simon Roofing. “The assembly line of our materials go into a big kettle.”
Dohar joined as the plant’s general manager in 2008 with the task to design and build the chemical plant, which was delayed because of the recession.
But Dohar still had to finish building the company’s contribution to the community – a sports complex located at the plant site.
The complex includes facilities for baseball and soccer, both of which are passions of Vross and his partners, Alex Simon and Jamie Simon, grandsons of the original owner, James Simon.
The complex features an indoor dome, batting cages and a baseball field used by a youth team. Local schools and organizations use the complex’s soccer field for free.
Since the plant went into operation, sales continue to grow for Simon Roofing. In 2009, the company recorded $70 million in total sales, according to Vindicator files.
In 2014, the company’s recorded total sales were $77.7 million, said Sue Stricklin, vice president of marketing for Simon Roofing.
Last year also brought another milestone. Simon Roofing was named the 10th-largest roofing contractor in the nation by Roofing Contractor magazine as part of its 2014 Top 100 Roofing Contractors list.
Simon Roofing has 499 employees and 64 service locations nationwide. The company employs 15 people at the chemical plant, and 168 employees in the Valley, Stricklin said.
The plant is part of Simon Roofing’s evolution from its roots as a contractor.
“In the ’90s, we went to the next level to control more of the value chain,” Vross said.
The company decided to handle both the materials and labor components of the industry, which includes the manufacturing, distribution, consultation and installation.
“It’s a real paradigm shift to the market,” Vross said.
The shift was mostly because of the “finger pointing” that occurred between the manufacturers, distributors and installers whenever an issue came up with a client’s roof, he said.
The company also started to become more geographically diversified by serving all parts of the country in order to balance out the seasonal challenges in the roofing business.
Simon also shifted away from the market’s slant toward replacing roofs and flooring, and does more restorations and repairs.
Replacements make up less than 25 percent of the business, Vross said.
Simon Roofing also has embraced the use of technology, including the use of mobile devices such as tablets, throughout their work. Vross said this brings efficiency, consistency and objectivity when working on any particular roof.
Even when designing the chemical plant, Dohar said he wanted as much automation as possible because it improves the safety, productivity and quality of the work.
The company is focused on expanding the business by introducing different products either from research and development or acquisition, Vross said.
“We have a pipeline of R&D projects on the books,” Dohar said. “It’s a list of about 12 to 18 projects.”