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DeWitt sells some products it has been making since 1931 when McClellan's grandfather started the business. In the cavernous, 50,000-square-foot building where the company has been located since 1939, experienced crews continue to load 55-gallon drums with black sealants based on petroleum derivatives like asphalt.
"There's still a market for the old products, but demand is not as great as before," said McClellan, 56.
The solution has been to add new products without eliminating the old standbys. DeWitt now carries more than 70 products.
"You're always looking to see what you can change to keep abreast of the market," McClellan said.
In recent years the traditional method of building up a roof with three or four coats has largely been superseded by single-ply roofing material that comes in rolls and requires less labor. DeWitt's older products cannot be used to recoat this new industry standard because solvents cause the single-ply sheets to bubble.
So DeWitt has come up with a new product, Instacoat, a water-based, modified asphalt emulsion mixed with rubber that is sprayed on to create a seamless membrane roof covering. There's a patent pending on this labor-saving product that is good for both new construction and roof repairs.
New roofing technology usually comes as a surprise to building owners, according to Bob Hoffman, president of Wimsatt Building Materials Corp. in Wayne.
"Most people buy a roof every 15 to 25 years, and by then the products have changed and the process has changed, so a new education has to happen," Hoffman said.
McClellan said it will be hard to get customers to change if there are problems with the new product. So DeWitt gives contractors a full day of training and then sends a company representative to monitor the first installation.
"If it's not installed properly, word will get around," McClellan said. "Bad news travels faster than good news."
In recent years the company has introduced other water-based sealants like Instacoat to comply with tighter government regulations on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in petroleum-based sealers.
"They're known for being innovative and keeping up with the times," said Joe Hobson, director of communications for the Roof Coating Manufacturers Association in Washington, D.C.
For decades DeWitt followed Henry Ford's famous dictum about the Model T -- customers could have any color they wanted so long as it was black. The company now has silver and white coatings for aluminum and white roofs.
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