Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal Celebrates 50 Years as Member of MRCA

MRCA logo

Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal Celebrates 50 Years as Member of MRCA

Mary McNamara and Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal are well known for being a leader in the Commercial Roofing industry, keeping up-to-date on the latest products and technology and maintaining a long-standing relationship with area industry organizations. One of which is the Midwest Roofing Contractors Association (MRCA).

Started in 1950 the MRCA was founded as an independent regional roofing contractors’ association with a mission to:

  • Assist member roofing contracting companies prosper by being a contractor advocate,
  • Acting as an industry spokesperson, circulating trade information via a bi-monthly newsletter,
  • Providing education through an annual conference, and
  • Being an active resource for members seeking advice in matters of business management, safety, technical and legal.

The MRCA seeks to develop and administer programs and services through its membership to help member companies build and thrive while continually working to progress the roofing industry as a whole.

This year Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal is proudly celebrating its own participation as member of 50 years! An impressive merit! Throughout this steady relationship with the MRCA, Cornell has gained much through its membership including training seminars and educational conferences, strong networking opportunities and helping to continue to stimulate growth in its own business.

Along with celebrating 50 years of membership with the MRCA, Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal also commemorates 90 years in business! Be sure to look for this article celebrating Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal’s 50 year anniversary with the Midwest Roofing Contractors Association in the upcoming issue of Midwest Roofer!

Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal at IRE 2017

IRE-logo

Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal at IRE 2017

The International Roofing Expo (IRE) is almost here, March 1-3, in Las Vegas, Nevada!  As a leader in the commercial roofing and sheet metal industry, Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal is sure to attend.

The IRE is “the preeminent roofing construction and maintenance event where roofing pros experience face-to-face interaction, product review, education and networking. The expansive show floor and extensive educational program provide the best opportunity to discover the latest trends, advances in technology and best practices for business growth. Formerly owned by NRCA, the show was sold to Hanley Wood Exhibitions in May 2004. Hanley Wood Exhibitions was acquired by Informa Exhibitions U.S. in December 2014.”

The expo will feature latest trend and technological advances in the roofing industry, along with plenty of opportunities to network and grow. Attendees will have the option to choose from 44 knowledge-building sessions specifically tailored to a variety of people in our industry. These include: commercial/residential/metal contractors, owners/CEOs/general managers, superintendents/foremen, architects/designers/consultants, salesmen/estimators, manufacturers/suppliers, and building owners/facility managers. There’s literally something for everyone in the commercial roofing industry. Many of the sessions have also been approved for continuing education hours, so get your hours in!

Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal is proud to attend. We’ll be sending our top-level management to gain this experience and expand our business first hand. The IRE brings all together the resources needed to help the Cornell team stay at the top of our game, like no other commercial roofing and sheet metal business in the KC metro.

To learn more about the International Roofing Expo, check out their website https://theroofingexpo.com/.

Mary McNamara at the Leadership exChange

Fountain in downtown Bentonville, Arkansas

Mary McNamara at the Leadership exChange

This past week, Owner and President of Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal, Mary McNamara, had the opportunity to take part in the Leadership exChange in Bentonville, Arkansas, along with other members of the Independence Economic Development Council. The group spent a total of two days learning from Bentonville city officials on how they have had their own success through a number of varying strategies and efforts to grow the city into what it is today.

This program was put on by the Independence EDC, a group Mary McNamara has been involved with for many years, presently serving as Chair of the Independence EDC. Established as a non-profit in the early 80s, the Independence EDC works to support the economic growth of Independence, Missouri, the home of Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal, along with over 130 other private sector investors.

As a dynamic member of the Independence community, Mary takes her involvement in groups like this seriously, continuously working to improve Cornell’s home community.  Which is exactly why she participated in the Leadership exChange program in Bentonville last week. The Leadership exChange itself is a separate program that seeks to empower the next generation of leaders and global citizens. It brings together like-minded communities to learn and share with each other.

And that’s just what happened in Bentonville, a mutual exchange of new and fresh ideas to improve Independence, over 40 local community leaders in attendance! Presentations included:

  • Downtown Redevelopment / Housing
  • Bentonville Parks and Recreation
  • Bentonville / Belle Vista Chamber of Commerce
  • Tourism
  • Downtown Bentonville, Inc.
  • RopeSwing Hospitality Group
  • Bentonville Public Schools Ignite program

There were also plenty of walking and bus tours, where participants could enjoy local culture and redevelopment projects, like the former Kraft plant currently being converted to a contemporary art space as well as downtown housing examples.

Our own Independence area civic leaders got a first-hand look at growing a successful community, and then they brought that new knowledge home. All that’s left now is to wait and see how they utilize it to strategically plan exciting new developments in Independence for a future, bright with opportunity!

Leadership exChange logo     Independence EDC logo

 

Find Us at the NRCA Convention and Trade Show in Las Vegas

National Roofing Contractors Association

Find Us at the NRCA Convention and Trade Show in Las Vegas

This year, the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) will be hosting its 130th Convention and Trade Show in sunny Las Vegas, Nevada!  The NRCA has been the professional voice of its 3,600+ members in the roofing industry since 1886. NRCA is the leading authority in the roofing industry for information, education, technical assistance, advocacy, publications, programs and support that help businesses in this industry grow.

Members of the Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal team will also be attendance. During this week-long event there will be workshops and training for top staff; new products, equipment, and processes to review and much more! Cornell takes continuing education and certification seriously. As we celebrate our 90th Anniversary in 2017, we are dedicated to remain at the top as an industry innovator in the greater Kansas City area commercial roofing and sheet metal industry.

NRCA’s 130th Annual Convention will be held at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas Feb. 27-March 3, 2017, in conjunction with Informa’s 2017 International Roofing Expo® (IRE).

“It is the premier event for roofing professionals and industry leaders to learn new strategies, discover innovative solutions and share best practices. The convention and expo offer cutting-edge educational sessions, inspiring messages from keynote speakers, and an exposition featuring the latest roofing innovations and networking events where attendees have the opportunity to build valuable contacts.”

You can learn more about the NRCA and the perks of membership by visiting their website, http://www.nrca.net/.

Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal Celebrates 90 Years!

90th annivrsary

Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal Celebrates 90 Years!

It’s 2017! New year, new projects, new products, same Cornell tradition and pride in every job being done “The Cornell Way!” This year, Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal celebrates our 90th Anniversary in the Kansas City roofing and sheet metal industry! We’ve come a long way since the Cornell began in 1927, thanks to our team of hard working, trained and skilled professional craftsman, strong and dependable management, and of course, our great Cornell Roofing & Sheet Metal customers and suppliers.

Being in business for 90 years isn’t a cakewalk either. We’ve proven ourselves through our work on projects large and small, including new builds and replacements along with maintenance and repairs. Each job completed following our four guiding principles:

  • Integrity;
  • Dependability;
  • Quality;
  • Responsibility.

Our leadership team, headed by President Mary McNamara, continues to build on our momentum, ushering in some of the biggest projects in company history! Proving to our customers time and time again there’s a reason we’ve become one of the top roofing & sheet metal companies in the Kansas City metro area. As we say goodbye to 2016, we look forward to a year with even more exciting projects with new and returning customers alike!
We’ll continue to work hard to deliver on our promise on every commercial roofing project for many years to come! Happy 90th Anniversary to Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal, and a big thank you to our team, customers and everyone who helped us become the best in Kansas City!
Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal. Promises Made. Promises Kept.

Mary McNamara Completes Tuck-KC Executive Education Program

Tuck Exec Ed
Mary McNamara Completes Tuck-KC Executive Education Program

Our Executive Leadership team is always on the hunt for new opportunities to not only grow Cornell as a leader in the commercial roofing and sheet metal industry, but also to further their own continuing education. Just last month, Mary McNamara completed the inaugural Tuck-KC Education program entitled Strategy and Business Development for Minority Business Entrepreneurs. Burns & McDonnell, the City of Kansas City, Missouri, DST Systems, Hallmark Cards, Kansas City Power & Light and Sprint sponsored the program.

The Tuck Executive Education Programs at Dartmouth has hosted continuing learning programs around the nation since 1980 with over 7,000 minority executive, successful alumni. Tuck Executive Education offers classes that cover varying aspects of businesses and industries, including: Brand and Reputation, Growing the Minority Business Scale and Leading Innovation: From Idea to Impact.

This particular program of two and half days focused on the managerial tools to become more successful growing enterprises. Topics included: Strategy Overview, Finance and Accounting, Understanding the Value Chain, Organizational Development and Strategic Marketing. The two and half days was filled with discussions and presentations on small business covering each topic, giving participants insight to capitalize on opportunities at their own companies and organizations.

Over 25 local Kansas City business leaders attended the program, including our own Mary McNamara. Congrats to each and every one, and looking forward to continued success through the knowledge gained from this world-class program through Tuck Executive Education. Learn more about the Tuck Executive Education program here, http://exec.tuck.dartmouth.edu/.

Kansas City Business Journal Names Cornell in Fast 50 List

fast50

Kansas City Business Journal Names Cornell in Fast 50 List

Cornell Roofing and Sheet Metal keeps on moving on up, not only as an industry leader, but also among the Kansas City fastest growing companies. This year the Kansas City Business Journal listed Cornell in its list the Fast 50. The Fast 50 highlights the fifty fastest-growing Kansas City-area business, featuring companies with three-year average revenue growth ranging from 27 to 1,000 percent.

Cornell Roofing came in ahead of half the competition at number 22 on the list. The resurgence of the construction industry definitely helped to push Cornell to the top, with another 27 slots on the Fast 50 list occupied by companies in other building-related fields. But what really helped the most? President Mary McNamara said Cornell gained immense success when it received three excellent sheet metal projects recently to show off what our company can do.

These three projects helped to increase company growth by almost 50 percent in the past three years! A couple of the distinguishing projects include work on the KCP&L Cedar Point Safety & Training Center and one of the newest additions to the Kansas City skyline, One Light Tower apartments. Cornell hopes to continue this growth towards success through distinction in service and product in all of its future projects.

Women Build Nations with Our Girls Leading the Way

Women Build Nations

Women Build Nations with Our Girls Leading the Way

Women build nations. Well they better considering women make up half the population. Although the number of tradeswomen in the roofing and sheet metal industry remains far too low, the environment is certainly becoming more inclusive and growing to incorporate women in all sorts of positions ranging from business managers to presidents (like Cornell’s own Mary McNamara).

Women Build Nations is a conference that originally began in California in 2010 as a way of gathering like-minded industry women. Since then it has grown to a national level, this year breaking records in attendance and for the first time being hosted outside of California in the central meeting place of Chicago. Thus allowing professionals from 40 states, Canada, Nigeria and even the Philippines to attend.

And as an industry, woman-owned business leader, of course Cornell Roofing had a strong presence. This year Cornell sent two of its very own roofing ladies, these aspiring young women are looking to make a change and grow to success in this traditionally man-run realm. While attending this fervor of a weekend, our girls attended a multitude of speakers, workshops, seminars, caucuses, social gatherings and more. Bringing back to the Cornell table a vast expanse of knowledge gained, the Cornell ladies are ready to take on the roofing world.

And these women are anything but commonplace in this world. All 1,500 attendees were asked if they had ever been the sole woman on a job site. As you may have guessed (or if you live under a rock, to your surprise), every woman’s hand shot up. Women like our own not only attended to learn and expand in their chosen profession, but also to continue blazing the path for future generations of women who want to work with tools. The opportunities are there, and our women are leading the way, breaking down the barriers with Mary McNamara as a key inspiration. And it’s to everyone’s common interest to understand the industry is progressing and to be that change.

Cornell Roofing Listed as One of Ingram’s Top 100 Fastest-Growing Companies 0f 2016

2016-ingrams-list

Cornell Roofing Listed as One of Ingram’s Top 100 Fastest-Growing Companies 0f 2016

After acquiring the 80-year-old company back in 2007, Mary McNamara has sunk everything she has into getting Cornell Roofing on track to becoming a stronger, better and more profitable company. With nearly tripled revenue since 2012 and an average annual growth rate of over 60%, Cornell is on the pathway to success, now employing 50+ full time workers. And Mary shows no signs of stopping.

Known for commercial roofing and sheet metal work, Mary runs this fully woman-owned business with over 30 years of industry experience and in eight years, has put this company back on the map focusing on Commercial, Healthcare, Education and Government projects. A few notable projects include: One Light Tower apartment complex located in downtown Kansas City, the new Burns & McDonnell Headquarters Building and the Truman Medical Office Building. With strict environmental and safety policies, Cornell is plowing along to become an industry leader in the roofing and sheet metal world.

A true entrepreneur, when Mary saw the opportunity with Cornell Roofing, she jumped at the chance and put every last penny into making it happen. Since then she has been able to take an almost century old company, maintaining the values that have guided it for so long, and grow it into a frontrunner of its kind, all doing so in a very man-centric world. Cornell has since become WBE and DBE certified in Kansas City and WBE certified in the state of Missouri.

No matter how far this company can go, Cornell maintains the “Cornell Way.” Promises made. Promises Kept. A leader in roofing and sheet metal, guided by Integrity, Dependability, Quality and Responsibility.