b'A theled aConference in Grapevine, TX, MR President Randy tAnnualCA Adamsdiscuss on the state of the industry with the followion ing corporate leaders: Chris Barrow of EagleTechnologies,KelViewJosh ly of O R Products, Mike Petersen of Petersen Aluminum Corp., MGoofing Bob Seeley of Derbigum Americas,,Bob Wamboldt ofs Inc. andJohn ManvilleQM). Manufacturing and the lgCC Wamboldt said that he believes that real action on theernational IntGreen Construction Code (IgCC), greenilding,g roofing is 5 bu andreen y away. For now, we\'ll see achanges as municipalities begin earsfewto adopt the IgCC and sort out its intent. Hethat thefor ExcelsaidCenter lence in Roofing istoon thison tryingeducate contractorsfront. Others panel theagreed with Wamboldt\'s 5-year assessment and added that in today\'s economy, green buildingoften not cost-effective or practical. is Solar Roofing Most ofeagr that we are currently in "solar eady mode," th panelistseed-ralthoughindustries continueeye o ersources,as U.S.toth energysuch natural gas. "For solar itto what the government d ides in ,comes downecy,industerms of subsidies," Wamboldt said. "When subsidies go awa the try can go away overnight."agreed and saidat in Europe, the Seeleythsolar marketplaceonce"the shining star," but that wasconsideredwas beforege subsidies dried up and the market w O expressed hu aned.thers similar views, d pite having recentlywell-attended, impressive es attended solarshows. "Subsidies don\'teconomic sense right now," trademake seeingso ent-u expectatisaid Barrow. "We\'rethisrt of p pon. It\'s about to come.technologies are coming."for theeof(from left) Barrow, Ke. NewAsfutur potentialsolar energy, Kellyreading this truism at alar trade show: "The sun recalledsoisn\'t goingy." awa roofingpotential applicants can be improved through amongbetter Emerging Economiesmarketing efforts. Thests discu&5ed themarketplacehow em ng paneli globalandergi Technology andBarrow saidexpects some "dynamic changes" in roofing s e economies (including Brazil, Russia, India,China) affect U.S. manufactming.en said that China drives demand for metal andheoftwar in Peters the next 2Other panelists stressed thepoints: that as themarket slows, metal prices rise globally. He reminded at years.following U.S. Mobile and real-time technologies greatly improve produt dees that s aluminum is acommodity, prices rise when thectivity. en incetraded Companies should invest in k ing the lookof their dollar weakens. Wamboldt said thatomeuntries hoard raw materials.eep and content s co websites current. The C ese government,example, hoards rare earth metals hin forto Companies should back up data with cloud technology. saidJM Generational differences abound regarding the role that technolo-produce solar panels. Hethatships EPDM to Asia, where market prices are 20%er. high gies play in o jobs and daily urlives. Labor IssuesSocial Media Barrow emphasized that, from a technology perspective, the "simple daysKelly stressed thatmpanies must d lopcommunicate are gon Heressed that roofingntractors should learn about ne\\\'lco eve andguidelines e."st co toon the use of social m ia. "People som aren\'t aware m products and how they affect hiring practices. He noted\'employeesed etimes ore complexof thensequences of what they," he said. The pane sts agreed that that employees appreciate whenmpanies investt and softwareco say lico inoolstransparency isngingkand that keeping company news that help them do their jobs m e y, including measuring andcha wor practices orefficientl confidential can be difficult,not impossible, with social media. Barrow estimating programs. Heded that today\'s job applicants often have aif ad said thatapany\'s job interview questions are postedsites sense oftlement and ho unrealistic expectationsthe workplace.evencom on enti ldofsuch as www.glassd r.com, so companies n to reevaluate some of Meanwhile, Seeley predict that both theJobs Act of12doo eed edSTEM20 an their hiring practices. immigration reform will be passed. Kelly noted that theof perception 10www.mrca.org- MidRoofer west'