For our work on Steeple Square, Dubuque, Iowa, The Durable Slate Company was given this award for excellence in metal roofing and restoration by the International Federation for the Roofing Trade (IFD). We are the first American company in 67 years to receive this award; an impressive distinction, considering the many world-class, international projects considered. The awards ceremony itself featured 86 projects from almost a dozen countries.
Gary Howes, COO at The Durable Slate Company, said, “To be the first American company to win this award, it’s beyond my wildest dreams. European companies are the standard when it comes to metalwork and restoration. To be included in that realm shows why we are one of the best.”
“It was fantastic. It’s been a long-term vision and goal,” said John Chan, Executive Vice President. “It’s been in the back of our minds for over 20 years — to be recognized as a top roofing company internationally.”
The Durable Slate Company was awarded the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) Gold Circle Award in 2020, 2007, and 2006, with an honorable mentions in 2008 and 2005.
To qualify for the Gold Circle Award, a company must first be nominated by industry peers or community leaders. Once submitted, the NRCA votes and eventually selects the winning project. It is the highest roofing distinction within the United States. The 2020 Gold Circle Award honored Steeple Square, Dubuque, IA, in recognition of our Outstanding Workmanship and Innovative Solutions and is awarded to projects that exceed standard roofing practices.
The 2007 Gold Circle Award for Outstanding Workmanship honored the First Congregational Church, Akron, OH. In the 1970’s, the church’s slate roof had been replaced with asphalt and the decorative copper monitor, valleys, and ridges had been removed. Although the ridges and valleys had been eventually replaced, leaks resulted. We restored their roof’s timeless appearance using Evergreen Slate’s variegated purple slate, a new underlayment, and rebuilt copper valleys, ridges, box-gutter liners and finials.
Our work on First United Methodist Church, Lancaster, OH, was recognized for Outstanding Workmanship, earning us our first Gold Circle Award in 2006. The church had decided to replace their magnificent copper cuppola, a challenging job to be sure, made worse without access to any original plans. In spite of this, we were able to fabricate and install the complex copper structure.
The 2008 Honorable Mention was for All Saints Church, Keokuk, IA, and recognizes outstanding workmanship, especially for particularly challenging projects. Earlier in 2005, we earned an Honorable Mention for the First Christian Church, Springfield, OH, steeple restoration.
For its extraordinary use of copper, Steeple Square, Dubuque, IA, joined fifteen other exemplary buildings throughout the United States and Canada in winning 2019’s North American Copper in Architecture (NACIA) award.
“Historic copper work is a big part of what we do. Our coppersmiths are some of the best in the country and to receive this kind of recognition is a testament to their skill and attention to detail,” said Gary Howes, Durable Slate and Restoration’s Chief Operations Officer.
The NACIA awards program, organized by the Copper Development Association (CDA) and the Canadian Copper & Brass Development Association (CCBDA), has been recognizing and promoting building projects in the United States and Canada for their outstanding use of architectural copper and copper alloys since 2008. The annual awards program showcases a wide range of projects, all of which highlight craftsmanship, attention to detail and architectural vision.
“It’s always an honor and a privilege to be trusted with such an important architectural structure in the community,” Howes said. “It’s part of what makes their skyline special, and preserves the history of that community.”
In 2015 The American Council of Engineering Companies, Virginia, honored The Durable Slate Company for its work on St. Andrews Catholic Church. First Awarded for Engineering Excellence, we also received a Merit Award for Steeple and Masonry Rehabilitation. According to ACEC of Virginia, this project showed “good design, professionalism, and engineering excellence.”
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) awarded us the International Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics and Business Integrity Award, respectively. According to BBB, the International Torch Awards for Ethics honors companies that demonstrate best practices, leadership, social responsibility and high standards of organizational ethics that benefit their customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders and communities.
The Durable Slate and Restoration Companies received the Florida Preservation Award in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, for Old Bostwick School House, Amelia Island Lighthouse, Derby Street Chapel, and Historic Bryan House, respectively. Won for Outstanding Achievement in Field of Adaptive Reuse or Restoration Rehabilitation, this is the highest honor Florida gives for historic restoration.
The Durable Slate Company was given the 2008 Outstanding Project Award by the Dayton Business Journal in recognition of outstanding workmanship on Frank Lloyd Wright’s Westcott House, Springfield, OH, a complex and comprehensive restoration project completed alongside our sister company, The Durable Restoration Company.
In 2006, the NRCA honored our commitment to safety by recognizing our safety preparedness, execution, and review strategies throughout our work on First United Methodist Church, Lancaster, OH. Keeping our craftsmen safe, even 60 feet off the ground as this project required, was a top priority. To this day, we maintain an obsessive focus on safety.
In 2014, the city of Tampa, Florida, awarded us the Tampa Preservation Award for our work on their Old City Hall Historic Clock Tower. This is the highest honor the city bestows for restoration work. We removed and replaced the copper dome and innumerable decorative elements and the copper fluted siding around the base of the dome. We also structurally stabilized the area above the clock.