Synthetic in the Southeast: A local perspective

By Emma Peterson.

Learn why synthetic roofing materials are growing so popular in this region.

Frank Bermudez is Brava Roof Tile’s Southeast regional manager. Brava is known for their high-performance synthetic roofing materials, with three profiles (a synthetic slate, a synthetic shake and a synthetic barrel tile). Over the last few years, Frank has watched as the synthetic market has grown, especially in his region. For this episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Frank sat down with Heidi J. Ellsworth to share some insights into why synthetic is growing popular in his area.  

Frank explained the current market for synthetic, saying, “Specifically in the Southeast part of the United States, but also the entire United States, this sector is growing drastically.” However, this wasn’t always the case. When Brava Roof Tile started manufacturing a few decades ago, the composite/synthetic market was far different. Frank shared, “20 years ago composite roofing wasn't the greatest. They were figuring it out. Today, it's come a long way. You know, trucks, decking and windows went through that same story.” Today, Frank estimates that 60-70% of windows are vinyl-composite and the exterior building envelope industries are incorporating more and more composite because they are more durable.  

This durability is one of the big reasons synthetic and composite are so popular in Frank’s region, where weather can be especially tough on homes. He explained, “We had several hundred jobs in the Sarasota market that were installed prior to the hurricane in 2024 and every one of them performed. We only lost one ridge cap in the entire hurricane.” In addition to performing well in severe weather conditions, Brava Roof Tiles also make day-to-day maintenance simpler. Frank shared, “Our products are withstanding the humidity, mold and mildew that come with the Southeast. And as the weather is changing, we have gotten more and more hail, and synthetic is able to sustain in those weather conditions.”

A prime example of the use of Brava Roof Tiles in the region is the ESPN Sports Complex at Disney. Frank elaborated, “It's had Brava Barrel Tile on for nearly 20 years. And if you go take a sample of our barrel tile today in the same pine green color, it looks almost exactly the same. There's a slight fade to it, but very little. You can't tell from the ground. It really shows how we are performing in this market, we don't have fade issues, we don't have breakage issues and we outperform a lot of other options on the market.”

Read the transcript or Listen to the full episode for more about the benefits of synthetic tiles.