Midwest Roofing Co. Inc. takes pride in its safety record and has adopted protocols to keep employees and job sites accident-free.

Darren Tangen leads the team at Midwest Roofing Co. Inc., the company he started in 1999.

It’s impossible to determine which matters more to Darren Tangen—his Midwest Roofing Co. Inc. customers or his team. Posing the question to him is like asking a parent who their favorite child is.

He wants to do right by both and is willing to take the extra steps to do so.

The care, nurturing and commitment that Tangen provides for both his employees and his clients are among the reasons why the company is a leader in commercial and residential roofing in Los Angeles and the Southern California area.

Since 1999, when he started the company, Tangen has made it a priority to go above and beyond for his customers and to provide a safe, reliable workplace for his staff, which today includes 45 employees.

That team of roofing professionals based in Gardena, California, offers a range of roofing services, including installation, reroofing, repair and inspections. It also specializes in preventive maintenance, tear-off and haul-away services, and more. Midwest has the capacity to handle projects of all sizes, from standard repairs on small homes to large commercial complexes.

“Commercial clients have totally different needs than our residential clients, but we can—and do—provide services for both,” he says, noting that the bulk of Midwest’s business is based on commercial customers.

The company strives to make the entire process seamless for its commercial clients by securing permits and scheduling required inspections, which include checks both during and post construction. “We also ensure that your commercial facility remains as accessible and inviting as possible while we work on your roof,” Tangen says. “We do everything we can to minimize any disruption to the flow of business, maintaining customer and employee access as much as possible and taking extra measures to protect your property.”

Keeping Customers Happy

Midwest has built its reputation as a company that offers meticulous attention to detail and top-line craftsmanship, but that didn’t come by accident. Even before the business was launched, Tangen knew that those attributes were what he wanted his company to be known for; it’s one of the reasons why despite being a Southern California company, he put Midwest in the name.

“The Midwest represents honesty and integrity,” says Tangen, whose father grew up in the region. “People from the Midwest stress family values, consistency and steadiness, and that’s what our company stresses, too.”

Roofing customers appreciate those qualities, he says, which keep them coming back and provide the company with return and word-of-mouth business.

“Our punctuality, our professionalism, our service are what help us stand out,” Tangen says. “It’s the quality of our work, our ability to do jobs quickly and the pride in doing a job correctly—when we make a mistake, we make it right—that help Midwest stand out.”

Dedicated Employees

None of that could be achieved without having a skilled and experienced team in place, which is one reason why Tangen, who studied business finance and has a corporate background, has made employee retention a top priority.

The effort to keep his employees satisfied and safe has paid off, with Midwest experiencing little turnover and most employees nearing two decades of service. “We have a very good environment, and everyone gets along,” Tangen says. “Though lots of businesses say it, Midwest really is like a family.”

So despite a slowdown since the coronavirus pandemic, Tangen took steps to make sure that everyone kept working without any reduction in pay.

“Working people need that consistency to know the next paycheck is coming,” he says. “We will get through it.”

Tangen made a commitment that there would be no layoffs or pay cuts even as Midwest dealt with a 40 percent reduction in business since last year. He cut his own salary so that no one else on the team had to experience one. The dip in business is mostly attributed to the blow to the residential and commercial rental market, which means landlords aren’t spending money on roofing.

The diversity of Midwest’s customers and backlog of jobs has kept Tangen and his team working despite the hit from the rental sector.

Safety as Second Nature

While keeping employees working and engaged is crucial, so is keeping them safe.

Creating safe work environments and practices has become a fundamental aspect of business for Midwest Roofing.

“When I was younger and first working in construction, safety wasn’t a focus, but when we started this business, I knew I wanted to make it a priority,” says Tangen, who notes that in addition to a full-time safety manager, Midwest Roofing also uses outside safety consultants.

Having that external safety coordinator conveys to employees just how seriously Midwest takes it. It’s a way to reinforce the messages and protocols that keep people from injury. “We can’t afford to let people get too comfortable and relaxed and let their guards down in regards to safety,” Tangen says.

Midwest recognizes that staying safe begins with proper training. The company offers hands-on training for all roofers and requires that they earn and stay current on CPR certification. Fall protection is fundamental in the industry, and Midwest roofers are fully trained on fall protection guidelines thanks to monthly training.

“We want our folks to be thinking safety first from the time they step up on a ladder,” Tangen says. “All of these practices are in place to make safety and operating safely second nature.”

Also vital in keeping workers safe is outfitting them with appropriate safety equipment. “We want to keep our people safe, so we buy the best safety harnesses on the market,” Tangen says. “Each employee gets a cabled harness of their own.”

At many other roofing companies, a few harnesses are made available to crews, who can check them out when they feel like they need them, but for Midwest roofers, the harnesses—which can cost up to $600 each—are part of the everyday toolkit.

The emphasis on safety and training is working. One of the most reliable indications of a business’s commitment to safety is its Experience Modification Rate, a number determined by insurance companies to assess a company’s level of risk. The industry standard is 1.0; anything lower than that is a credit modification and results in lower insurance premiums. Midwest Roofing’s rate is 0.69, a figure Tangen is especially proud of and says is a testament to the company’s strict “safety first” policies.

It pays off for the employees, too, as safety bonuses are awarded to team leaders on a quarterly basis and are followed up by a yearly award to the top foreman.

“Our most important measure of success is the health and safety of our employees and clients,” Tangen says.