As a Cooperative Purchasing contractor, TEMA Roofing Services helped the Youngstown City School District save money on the roof of East Middle School at P. Ross Berry Campus in Youngstown, OH.

TEMA Roofing Services is a family affair for three generations of roofing contractors.

When Tom Froelich, of Youngstown, Ohio, started working as a roofer while still in high school, he just wanted to make some extra money. He never dreamed he would discover his calling. But the trade he learned 40 years ago at his father-in-law’s side is now the foundation of his family’s multimillion-dollar business, TEMA Roofing Services (TEMA).

“We were working for Roth Bros., Inc., of Youngstown, Ohio,” Tom says. “We had the experience of doing very large projects all across the country, and that developed our history and experience.” When his father-in-law, Bill Charles, retired, Tom took over his position as head of the company’s roofing division. Eventually, he bought the company.

It was a family affair with Tom’s four sons following in his footsteps. They worked on projects across the country before selling Roth Bros. in 2011. The break from the roofing business was brief. “I knew I was not ready to retire,” Tom says. “Besides, my sons were eager to rinse and repeat what we had created in Roth Bros. at TEMA Roofing Services. And so, we did!”

In 2016, Tom’s son Justin left his real estate career in Florida and moved his wife and twin boys back to his hometown of Youngstown. He is now a TEMA Vice President along with brothers Adam, Scott and Tommy. “I was just so confident in my dad’s ability, his vision and his business history and intellect in the field that I knew it would work,” Justin says. That confidence paid off.

Different by Design

Tom credits the company’s success to a focused approach on commercial and industrial roof design, as well as installation. He says, “It’s our experience that there are some good firms out there that can design a quality roof system; but then what happens is it’s put out to bid and many times that results in a bad experience. Too often, there’s a disconnect between the intent and desire of the original design and what the contractor’s skill set and abilities are.”

Tom stresses that, for TEMA, design refers not just to how good a roof looks but also to how well it works. “We design the functionality as well as meet every changing building code requirement.”

Justin adds, “There are two types of contractor: contractors that are told what to do with a spec sheet and then there are contractors who design their own solutions and get that design warranted and specified—and that’s us.”

Specific Solutions

AML Industries, Inc. in Warren, Ohio, called TEMA after a severe storm ripped off a third of the roof from its 45,000-square-foot factory that manufactures lubricants for the steel and aluminum forging industry. The building needed immediate emergency repairs. AML’s CEO David Gurska says, after years of patches and leaks, they needed a long-term solution for a complete roof replacement that wouldn’t require a shutdown. “We had to continue working underneath, so they had to put some protective things in place; and as they’re taking this roof off, it just goes down to the steel decking and you see holes. Dust and debris were going to fall down, and I had equipment in there, so they had to make sure they had that all covered. They did an amazing job. I was very pleased.”

David also appreciates TEMA’s efforts to educate building owners. “They’re big on preventative maintenance and annual checkups—things you can catch early that will be a ten-dollar fix instead of thousands down the road if you let it go,” adds David.

While TEMA’s maintenance programs can help save money after roof construction, its position as a Cooperative Purchasing contractor helps some clients save before jobs begin. Tom says cooperative purchasing allows schools, governments and nonprofits, which often have strict contract requirements, to streamline the construction process and save money. “It’s already been pre-negotiated against a lot of competition to get the very best pricing. There’s significant monies to be saved for the building owner to use cooperative purchasing programs, as opposed to the traditional design-bid-build method,” Tom says.

Essential and Iconic

In addition to protecting essential structures like schools in Northeast Ohio, TEMA has a hand in preserving iconic buildings, too. The company replaced the roof atop one of the most recognizable buildings in the heart of Youngstown—the nearly century-old 20 Federal Place, home of the former Strouss’ Department Store. The job required special safety measures eight stories above busy downtown in the middle of the frigid 2020 winter. It was no simple task. “It’s a sense of pride that we’re able to take on these projects and deliver a quality product that the building and the occupants really need,” Tom says.

TEMA Team

The Froelichs say they’re able to tackle those challenging projects because of their experienced team of office staff and field crews. Some of their 45 employees have worked with the family for 30 years. They point to trust as the key. “We have to trust each other that we’ve been properly trained, that we know what we’re supposed to do, that everybody does their job—then we’ll have a successful project. And in order for everybody to do their job, they have to be trusted. So that trust is given to our team employees to execute their scopes of work,” Tom says.

The value Tom places on his team is even reflected in the company name, which combines his and his wife’s initials: T.E. for Thomas Edmund and M.A. for Margaret Ann, TEMA’s majority owner. “It was a little bit of a play on words for TEMA with team, so we settled on going with the initials. We’re all about team, and we’re all about working together and transparency and cooperation to get the job done,” he says.

Connection to Community

Though TEMA Roofing Services completes projects nationwide, the firm’s primary focus on clients in Northeast Ohio and Western Pennsylvania creates a connection to community. Justin heads the company’s marketing, public relations and community outreach, which includes partnering with the United Way of Trumbull County. TEMA provides landscaping services to local homeowners, works with a food bank, the local Chamber of Commerce and The Salvation Army, and hopes to one day help put roofs over the heads of needy families. “If you want to have a successful company you have to give back to the community that provides your living. It’s all about serving the greater need above your own personal interests, and I love it,” Justin says.

Foundation and Future

Forty years after first setting foot on a roof, Tom Froelich is now the bridge between three generations of family roofers. “We’ve been very blessed and very successful in my father-in-law’s career, and now I’ve experienced the same blessings and good fortune that only America offers.”

Tom works alongside his sons daily, and his father-in-law still consults on big projects from time to time. With 10 grandchildren (so far), Tom dreams of maybe having a fourth generation join them on the roof someday. “I would love to see it, but that’s down the road.”