When evaluating the merits of roofing systems, specifiers generally consider a product's performance record, warranty, and the manufacturer's reputation before all other attributes, according to a recent survey of 300 designers, contractors, and building owner/developers by Reed Research Group, a sister company of Building Design & Construction.
More than 84% of respondents said product performance is an "extremely important" or "very important" trait (see table below). Nearly 80% said warranty was a crucial attribute, followed by the manufacturer's reputation (72%), customer support (66.3%), required maintenance (65.3%), and fire protection (57.7%). All respondents said they regularly purchase, specify, and/or recommend brands and types of roofing systems.
Surprisingly, environmental considerations ranked last on the list of key attributes. Just 44.3% of respondents said it was an extremely important or very important characteristic. Speed/ease of installation and appearance also ranked at the bottom of the list, with a little more than half of respondents designating them as crucial features.
While the three disciplines surveyed for this report (designers, contractors, owners/developers) generally agreed on the relative importance of various attributes, there were several discrepancies worth noting. Owners/developers ranked fire protection as the third most important attribute when specifying a roofing system, with 72% saying it's extremely important or very important. Just 56% of architects/engineers and 46.7% of contractors agreed.
Energy savings also ranked high with owners and developers (64%), but only half of designers and contractors surveyed said it was very or extremely important.
Architects/engineers ranked both ease to do business with and speed/ease of installation at the bottom of the list, with less than 44% saying they are very important traits. In contrast, more than 66% of contractors and 64% of owners/developers said they are key attributes.
When broken down by region, the relative importance of key attributes is generally the same, with a few exceptions. Survey respondents that reside in the South, for instance, place much more emphasis on energy savings than professionals in other regions. More than 60% of respondents from the South said energy savings is extremely important or very important, compared with just 45.3% from the Midwest, 49.4% from the Northeast, and 54.3% from the West.
Fire protection ranked alarmingly low with Midwest respondents, with less than 40% saying it was a key feature. Those surveyed in other regions ranked it as a top-five attribute, on average.
Those surveyed from the West placed much less emphasis on the manufacturer's reputation (51.4%) and warranty (68.6%) than those from the other regions. About 80% of respondents from the South, Midwest, and West said the warranty is a key attribute, and nearly 74% said the manufacturer's reputation is a vital trait.
When gathering general information about roofing products, respondents say they prefer to use manufacturers' websites and manufacturers' representatives before all other sources.
More than 30% of those surveyed chose manufacturers' websites as their top source for product information. Nineteen percent prefer manufacturers' representatives, followed by McGraw-Hill's Sweets catalog (12.2%), industry trade publications (11.6%), manufacturers' literature (8.8%), and distributors (7.8%).
Nearly 20% of respondents said they used a roofing consultant on their last roofing project.
Owner/developers are more likely to hire a roofing consultant than designers or contractors, according to the survey. More than a quarter of owner/developers surveyed hired a roofing consultant on their last project, compared to just 16% of contractors and 18% of architect/engineers.
Which roofing attributes do you consider to be 'very important'?
| Attribute | Total | Architect/engineer | Contractor | Owner/developer |
| Base: 300 Source: Reed Research Group, 11/05 A survey of 300 BD&C readers who regularly purchase, specify, and/or recommend brands and types of roofing systems shows that a product's performance record is the most crucial attribute when evaluating a roofing system. Nearly 85% of respondents said product performance is "very important," followed by warranty (79%), manufacturer's reputation (72%), and customer support (66.3%). |
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| Product performance record | 84.3% | 82.7% | 92.0% | 80.0% |
| Warranty | 79.0% | 76.0% | 82.7% | 81.3% |
| Manufacturer's reputation | 72.0% | 72.0% | 74.7% | 69.3% |
| Customer support | 66.3% | 62.7% | 70.7% | 69.3% |
| Required maintenance | 65.3% | 66.7% | 58.7% | 69.3% |
| Fire protection | 57.7% | 56.0% | 46.7% | 72.0% |
| East to do business with | 54.3% | 43.3% | 66.7% | 64.0% |
| Energy savings | 53.7% | 50.7% | 49.3% | 64.0% |
| Appearance | 53.3% | 48.0% | 57.3% | 60.0% |
| Ease of installation | 53.0% | 40.7% | 65.3% | 65.3% |
| Environmental considerations | 44.3% | 40.0% | 42.7% | 54.7% |
