NSA Exhibits at the IRE

2024 IRE Show in Vegas

The 2024 International Roofing Expo was held at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is attended by over 15,000 roofing professionals and has over 500 suppliers/vendors. The National Slate Association’s booth was #8849 and did a solid job representing the slate industry making sure attendees know the material is readily available.
Greg Davis, Brian Chalsma, Tom Stortz, Brad Walters, and John Chan working the NSA Booth

Greg Davis, Brian Chalsma, Tom Stortz, Brad Walters, and John Chan working the NSA Booth

NSA – SRCA Meeting

A meeting of the slate minds took place within the convention center on Tuesday morning, 2/6/24. The National Slate Association and Slate Roofing Contractors Association boards got together to share ideas on industry improvements. The meeting started with a discussion on the NRCA ProCertification Slate program which has now officially launched. Meaningful dialogue took place about the SRCA developing a ProCert specific training course with the idea not to only help the installer pass the test, but to understand concepts seen on the roof. The NSA’s involvement is to tackle finding qualified installers to take the exam. This being a significant investment from the industry, it’s critical this is a priority among the associations.
Slate representatives gathered in a meeting room

Slate representatives gathered in a meeting room

Other discussion points were an industry specific promotional video. This video can be geared towards target audiences (homeowners, design professionals, contractors) and broken down into chapters. Highlighting the material life cycle costs and product benefits, as well as telling our story is a project that should not be overlooked as other industries have hi-jacked the distinguished reputation of the word slate. Involving a younger generation through social media could also be accomplished through this project as the content can easily be shared. A final note was the NSA using the newly finalized CAD drawings and exhibiting at the AIA show in June.

A woven valley completed by Dominic of the SRCA

The meeting was opened up to members after an hour and ideas were brought up on how to combat the Solar Reflective Index issue that is hampering slate in certain states. The concern is that if the material doesn’t pass in one state, it will spread. Next it was brought up whether synthetic slate was taking natural slate’s market share. Attacking synthetics and clarifying the differences between the two is a future agenda item.
30+ members attended this meeting and it was agreed to continue holding meetings in this format once a year as attendance was a bright spot. It was wonderful to see so many interested parties and hopefully next meeting we can see 50+.

NRCA ProCertification

The NRCA had a ProCert booth where Korby Grist and Orion Jenkins of the SRCA slated a mock up. This was a great introduction to what an installer will likely see on the ProCert exam. Not only is it beneficial in garnering interest for the ProCert exam, but it’s a great representation of craftsmen in the slate industry. This program aims to create a test for slate installation which qualifies the installer to help reduce poor slate projects and keep the quality of the industry high.

 

The Future

The natural slate industry has its challenges with material lead times, product knock offs, installation standards, and many more just like any other industry. This is a tight knit group of prideful people who understand that slate is an excellent roofing material. Helping people understand their investment in a slate roof is a lifelong investment that serves future generations is a paramount value. It’s exciting that we all are able to come together and share our stories as it can only help us move forward.

Want to support the natural slate industry and share your thoughts moving forward? Join the NSA today!

Join Now

QR code

National Slate Association’s Mobile Field Guide

mobile.slateassociation.org is available free of charge via an internet browser on your smart-phone* or tablet when an internet connection is available.Or you may also scan the QR code here with your QR reader.

Click here to download the Mobile Field Guide press release.

*The NSA Mobile Field Guide is best viewed on iPhones, iPads and the newer Android phones. Windows® smart phones are not supported at this time. The mobile site is not intended or formatted for desktop computers or laptops.

Mobile Field Guide

REQUEST INFORMATION

National Slate Association
Subscribe to our Newsletter

Business Address

National Slate Association. 65 East Main Street, Falconer, NY 14733

Working Hours

Monday – Friday, 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM
Saturday – Sunday: Closed

CONTACT
Join Now