The following story appeared in the Times Reporter, Thursday, Jan. 30, 1997
edition.
On top of things: Hicks Roofing nails down 50 years in business
The company, which is now owned by Franks son Dennis, and his son, Mike, has grown steadily over the past 10 years.
"Our contract sales of over $4 million in 1996 makes us one of the major roofing contractors in northeast Ohio, which is no small task given the rural area we serve," said Mike Hicks. "Most of our sales occur in the private industry market located within a triangle formed between Tuscarawas, Wayne and Coshocton Counties. Founded in 1947 by Frank Hicks, Hicks Roofing Inc. of New Philadelphia has celebrated its 50th anniversary this year. This falls on the heels of a record-setting 1996.
Hicks Roofing had two projects in 1996 of which it is very proud. On Feb. 5, the Licking County Joint Vocational School at Newark underwent massive roof failure when 45,850 square feet of old membrane roof fractured into thousands of pieces during record cold temperatures.
"Zane Wachtel, a Newark architect we have worked with in the past, called to see if we could help," Hicks said. "I beat it down there right away to survey the situation and I'll tell you I have never seen anything like that roof in my life."
"Thousands of pieces of roofing material were just billowing in the breeze. If there had been snow on the roof or rain, this district would have suffered major losses of furnishings, curriculum and equipment."
"The following day we showed up on the site with 18 men and enough material to cover the affected area. Even to my surprise, we covered all 458 squares in a single day and by the second day we had the new membrane secured and watertight just before the bad weather set in."
Hicks was awarded a plaque by the board of education commending the firm's rapid response which averted a disaster.
Also in 1996, Hicks successfully completed two months ahead of schedule what they believe is the largest re-roofing project ever undertaken in Tuscarawas County.
After the failure of the original roof, which was not installed by Hicks Roofing, a majority of the roof at New Towne Mall needed to be replaced. Over the entire concourse and two anchor stores totaling 340,000 square feet, Hicks came in and removed the entire roofing system to the deck, made repairs to the deck and installed a complete new roof system.
This project, comprising more than 7.8 acres of roof, was three time larger than any project Hicks Roofing had done before and took nearly 13 months to complete. All this was done without a single interruption to the mall operations.
"Given the size of the project, Glimcher Properties could have easily elected to go with a large, nationally known firm, but we convinced them we could perform, and we did," said Mick Hicks. "This project has opened doors for us on other projects that we may not have been considered for in the past."
Another major accomplishment includes the earning of a top industry award. Hicks Roofing along with a handful of other national and international roofing firms, has received the "1997 Master Contractors" award from Firestone Building Products.
To earn the award a firm must be among the top Firestone Licensed contractors not only in volume but in perfect rated installations.
"This is a major award which includes recognition in several industry publications," Hicks said. "I think this award is really one that belongs to the employees. Without their commitment to doing the job right the first time, we could not have achieved this goal and I am very proud of the job our men have done all year."
"As a firm that tries very hard to maintain a very professional business standard, we offer a level of service and selection not available from any other local roofing firm. Rather that hire a bunch of laborers to slap down roofs during the summer, we try to keep a steady, trained work force busy throughout the year, and while our 36 employees do not make us one of the county's biggest employers, we play a major role in keeping businesses in Tuscarawas and the surrounding counties dry."
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