With nearly a decade of specialized experience, Nicholas Bennett has gotten to know the roofing market near Denver, Colo., quite well. As time progressed, Bennett saw opportunities for expansion, and he is now reaping the benefits as the owner of Advanced Consulting (dba AC Inc. Roofing).
“We started out as kind of a support team for a lot of the majors in Denver,” Bennett said. “We were here to help with things like supplementing difficult claims, or providing build-design direction, when it came to difficult or unique projects for commercial. Over time, we’ve just naturally migrated toward completing those projects entirely by ourselves. We’ve been doing that since 2020.”
Denver is known for its unpredictable weather and destructive hailstorms, and Bennett prides his company on being ready and able to address those challenges — as well as others.
Having a Personal Touch
In watching some other companies, Bennett learned some hard lessons that he is applying to his own business. As he sees it, that means putting a priority on having the right crew members in place and not overextending their reach.
“One thing that we noticed with some of the larger companies is that as volume increases, quality decreases,” Bennett said. “For us, we wanted to make sure that we maintained a pace where we could control quality and keep talented individuals around.”
Be it small repairs or full replacements, Bennett’s contract company prioritizes being part of the local community. That means making end-to-end service critical.
“We want to be the face of a roofing company in Denver,” Bennett said. “When we were with some of these previous companies, there wasn’t always a face to check in or address any issues that may pop up. For us, I want somebody there to hold the customer’s hand through what is a pretty intrusive, loud, and very fast process. So one of the biggest things with our crews is just giving them proper direction and being there to support them through that project.”
As one example of their success, Bennett pointed to the job his team completed at the Barclay Towers condominium complex, which was featured in the September 2022 issue of CoatingsPro Magazine (“Environmentally Friendly Roofing Solution for a High-Profile High-Rise”).
On this job, the solution wasn’t merely applying the liquid coating system to the ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) ballasted roof. It was also working to minimize disruptions, particularly since the work was completed early in the COVID-19 pandemic.
“They were very pleased with the fact that we were very respectful entering and exiting the building and trying to keep our presence as low as possible,” Bennett said of the client.
Rehab vs. Replace
Going forward, in an era of rising costs and supply chain concerns, Bennett believes roofing contractors who understand coating technologies are in a strong position. “A lot of our owners are more mindful now that maybe they shouldn’t immediately look toward replacement,” he said. “Say there’s a roof that’s functioning at 75 percent. There’s some critical leaks, but there’s really only a small area that needs to be addressed. That’s where we can come in with these coating solutions… and rehabilitate a roof, rather than replace it.”
Bennett has seen that trend accelerate over the past decade, and contractors with coatings knowledge are offering efficient solutions.
“It gives everybody great peace of mind knowing there’s an energy-savings effect in there, especially if it’s a silicone,” said Bennett. “On top of that, we didn’t create all of that waste, which we would have in a replacement, as well as using all that new material. For us, if we’re looking toward some greener solutions, that’s really the place that we want to be, and those are the clients we want to work with.”
This article comes from a podcast interview with CoatingsPro Magazine. Listen to the full interview below.
This article was originally published in the November 2022 print issue of CoatingsPro Magazine. Republished with permission.