Tillotson Enterprises Reduces Risk and Adds Value

Picking a contractor is not easy. Just because a contractor has been in business for a long time or is the lowest bid doesn’t necessarily make them the best. Below is a list of things that the average person may not consider when picking the right contractor.

Warranties
Warranties can be misleading.  Warranties can be broken down into three main types: contractor warranties, joint warranties, and system warranties.  Each warranty can usually be broken down into two main categories: material and labor.

Contractor Warranties: A contractor warranty is when the contractor gives you a warranty, not the manufacturer.   These warranties, covering materials, may or may not be backed up with warranty papers received from the manufacturer.   If you don’t get a material warranty from the manufacturer, then the warranty is contractual between the contractor and the manufacturer.  This material warranty from the manufacturer would simply state that the warranty covers only material defects from the manufacturer.   Most people assume the material warranty covers problems with the materials even if the materials weren’t applied correctly by the contractor.  Almost all coating companies offer standard 10 year warranties. If longer warranties are offered, usually the contractor is in an elite group or is a master contractor for that manufacturer or they are applying more material to achieve longer material warranties.  The labor portion is always covered by the contractor.

Joint warranties:  A joint warranty is when the contractor and the manufacturer join together to offer a warranty.   These types of warranties almost always have an additional cost associated with them. The cost usually ranges from 5-15 cents per square foot and have a minimum cost and sometimes a minimum square footage the roof has to meet to qualify.   With these warranties the contractor has to follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for coating thickness and application rates.

System warranties:  These warranties are covered by the manufacturer for both material and labor.  Again, these warranties usually have a greater cost and require a minimum square footage of roof to qualify.   This type of warranty also usually require a pre-start roof inspection and always require a post-completion roof inspection done buy the material manufacturer’s representative at a cost to the building owner. With these warranties, the contractor has to follow manufacturer guidelines for coating thickness and application rates.
Finally, the thing to remember is the warranties written by the contractor or the manufacturer are written in their best interests, not yours.

Workman’s Comp
Nebraska State Law requires all employers to have Workman’s Compensation coverage on their employees, but you would be surprised to find that some established companies don’t carry it. You might ask yourself why you should care if a contractor carries workman’s compensation coverage.  Well, if one of the contractor’s employees gets injured while working on your project, you could get stuck with the bill through your Workman’s Compensation insurance company or your building owners insurance policy.

You can check to see if the contractor you are considering having work on your project is covered for yourself by going to www.dol.state.ne.us form the home page click on Labor/Safety laws, then click on listing of registered contractors and subcontractors.

Sales Tax
All contractors performing construction services in Nebraska are required to be on the www.revenue.ne.gov data base.  To see if contractors are in this data base, go to revenue.ne.gov and click on revenue contractor data base on the home page and again on the next pop up page. Then enter the contractors name and city.

Contracts
Contracts that are written with vague language are poor contracts. Example:  “spray apply elastomeric top coat to roof.”  This contract doesn’t mention what type of material is being used, what rate, and what is the ending thickness of the material.  Watch out for contractors using brochures from one manufacturer and using materials from a different manufacturer. 

Watch foam contractors that say they are putting down certain foam thickness and don’t. Rule of thumb if you don’t see the foam crew probing the foam you are not getting the foam thickness you pay for.  One inch is minimum foam thickness over smooth surface.  Since foam thicknesses will very ¼ from high’s to low to get one inch everywhere you need at least 1 ¼ inch thick foam spec because foam should not be shot at less than ½ inch per passes.  Along the same lines 1 ½ is minimum over an irregular surface and 2-3 inches is needed to stop condensation.

The reason for the last paragraph is because as we gotten to work on other contractors foam roofs by recoating them due to hail damage.  When we probe them most of the time they are less than one inch.  We even had on client who contract said 1 ½ inches and the foam thickness was 3/8-3/4 thick.
 
Materials
Some of the most important physical properties you should look for in materials are:   elongation, tensile strength, flexibility, weathering, and hardness. When applied over polyurethane foam, the tensile strength  gives you a good feel for how the coating will stand up to hail.  Look for the tensile strength to be 400 psi or greater.
The following is a short list of coatings used around the Tri-cities area, and as you can see, about 50% is a normal Solid/Volume.  Therefore, 2 gallons of 50% solids/volume will yield 16 dry mils.  Most manufacturers require their coatings be applied at a minimum of 24 mils to as much as 40 mils thickness.  In layman’s terms, your average coating thickness should be around the thickness of a credit card or greater, unless you are using silicone, which should be about ½ the thickness of a credit card or about 15 mils.  

*Products we use

Workers
How experienced is the crew working on your job? Unfortunately, you may not know the answer to this question until it is too late.

Education
Does the contractor and their crew go to advanced education classes on the materials they are using in addition to the on the job training given by the employer? 

Recognition
SPFA (Spray Polyurethane Foam Alliance):  The SPFA is the organization which sets standards for the spray foam industry.  We are one of two companies in Nebraska and among only 25 elite contractors in the United States that are SPFA Certified Contractors.   In order to become certified by the SPFA, a contractor has to go through several classes and have completed roofs verified by third party inspectors. 

Alpha: The Alpha Program was originally developed in the mid 1990’s to assist a high performing roofing manufacturer by identifying techniques to differentiate offerings and reduce risk to all parties. This program has shifted into an all-encompassing continuous improvement program through Arizona State University and Neogard.  Go to:  www.alpha.pbsrg.com and click on qualified contractors and then scroll down to Tillotson Enterprises and click on performance line. Again TEI is one of only 12 companies in this elite group.

Master Contractor: Tillotson Enterprises is again one of about 60 contractors in Conklin’s Master Contractor group. Due to purchasing volume, we are usually in the top five.

Past Work
Sometimes contractors attempt to take on projects that are much larger than they’ve ever done before. They may typically do projects that are 10,000 sq. ft and then try to take on a job that is over 100,000 sq. ft.   Usually, this does not work too well.  TEI has done projects that range from 100 sq. feet to 250,000 sq feet. We have also completed projects in which the cost was over $350,000 in one contract.
 
Performance Line
This is a measurement of a contractor’s past performance.  This is evaluated by an impartial, third party company and is measured by sending surveys to the contractor’s past clients. My past performance can be viewed by going to www.alpha.pbsrg.com .   Click on “qualified contractors” and then scroll down to Tillotson Enterprises and click on “performance line”.  Do the other contractors you are considering have a performance line? 

References
Reference lists are only good up to a point, because a contractor can remove bad references from their list.

General Liability
You should request a copy of this policy and make sure it is sent by the insurance company not the contractor.  If the company is performing roofing work, as an example, you want to make sure they are classified as a roof contractor not as a painting contractor.    If you don’t ask for the policy in writing, at least get the phone number for their agent so you can make sure they have coverage.

OSHA:
Ask to see their OSHA compliance booklet and MSDS sheets on the material being used.

Price:
In summary, you want to consider more than just price when choosing the contractor to do your work.  Some of the items on this list may seem insignificant, but are important and can save you money in the long run.