Preparing to compete on the world stage

By Dani Sheehan. 

Bridging the gap between American and European roofing practices, see how the U.S. teams are refining their skills and pushing through challenges ahead of the IFD World Championship. 

For the first time, the U.S. will take the stage in Austria this November at the International Federation for the Roofing Trades (IFD) World Championship competition. The best, young roofers from around the world will compete and show off their skills during this prestigious event. In a recent episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Megan Ellsworth sits down with Gary Howes, Steve Little and R.J. Radobenko to introduce the U.S. team and share the excitement and challenges of preparing for this competition.  

Gary, COO of the Durable Slate Company, shared some of the history behind this prestigious event, explaining, “The IFD was founded over 70 years ago. They have a meeting once a year on odd-numbered years and meet as a seminar type meeting with their members. And then the even-based year is a young roofer's competition, that brings their full membership organizations together to have their young roofers compete in several different disciplines. And we have a good fortune this year to be the first ones to go and participate in this competition.” 

His team is competing in the steep-slope category, and the host country chose natural clay tile as the material for installation. Gary points out some of the challenges facing his team: “The materials aren't the same materials we're accustomed to using. While we do clay tile here in the U.S., our clay tile that we use is much harder, so the density of the clay tile is hard to cut without a grinder or wet saw. But in Europe they use a much softer clay tile. And they don't use these grinders. They use a different hand tool. We've had to order that and get it shipped over.” 

R.J., CEO of Global Roofing Group, Global Wall Panel Group and Global Waterproofing Group, sees similar challenges in his team’s work on metal roofing and siding. Even something as simple as their measuring system will be challenging. He explains, “They have the metric system versus our imperial, so that’s inches versus centimeters. That’s a huge difference for how we measure things in the United States versus Europe.” Precise measurements are crucial in metal roofing, and they can’t afford to make any calculation mistakes in the conversions. 

Further, you’re navigating a language barrier and translation issue for installation details. R.J. continues, “They have different terminology for roofing details too, which is also challenging. We call something a barge and then they call it a turnip. So, they're all the same detail, they're just completely different names.” 

Steve Little, head coach of KPost Roofing and Waterproofing and founding partner of National Roofing Partners, shared some of the excitement in learning about these new materials and processes with his team. They’re competing in TPO, and while the Sika® Sarnafil product line is familiar, European standards differ. He shares, “Candidly, we freaked out a little bit at the beginning because the materials are different. The welder temperatures are different, the materials are different, the tools are different, metrics, it was all a huge change of thought process. But now they're settling in and they're starting to get excited about this. “ 

Competing at the IFD World Championship is not without its hurdles, but the U.S. teams are rising to the occasion. This competition is an exciting step forward for the U.S. roofing industry, one that promises to expand our approach to craftsmanship and elevate the standards across the country. 

Read the transcript or Listen to the podcast to get to know the U.S. teams and learn more about their journey to Austria next month!