Ahead of the IFD World Championship of Young Roofer finals November, which will take place in Innsbruck, Austria, NFRC were delighted to catch up with Joe Gallagher from I H Gallagher Ltd and Tyler Norris from Karl Terry Roofing Contractors Ltd.
Representing the UK on an international stage is no small feat, but Joe and Tyler impressed judges throughout a tough skills challenge where they were tasked with completing a roofing specification they had no prior experience with. To help them prepare, NFRC provided expert mentorship from Matt Timby, and installed a brand new rig at CoRE Hereford.
To give them the best chance in the finals, Joe and Tyler will complete a series of training sessions with their mentor to make sure their knowledge and workmanship meets the high standards set by the competition.
Megan Poole, Digital Marketing Executive at NFRC had the chance to ask Joe and Tyler a little more about their roofing journey so far, and what it meant to them to make it to the prestigious IFD World Championship.
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Hi Joe. Congratulations on making it to the final. Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us! To start with, could you tell us how you got into roofing?
My dad runs a roofing firm and when he offered a position in the firm I accepted.
Nice. It must be a huge benefit having someone in your family able to teach you the trade. How has your career progressed so far?
Really fast. I’ve learned a lot more than the average trainee roofer would have given the position I have within the family business.
I bet! What has been a standout moment of your career so far?
Being selected to go to the IFD World Championship!
Definitely a huge achievement to be proud of. What advice would you give to anyone considering a career in roofing?
Start with a small firm as you’ll have more 1-2-1 time, which in turn develops your experience and abilities.
Great advice. What would you say is the best part of the job?
The end product!
Thanks, Joe! We wish you all the best at the finals in November and we look forward to cheering for you and Taylor to bring home 1st place!
Hi Tyler. Congratulations on making it to the final! Let’s get started with an easy one. How did you get into roofing, is this a career you always fancied?
I left school wanting to be a bricklayer due to the training I had in school with bricks and mortar, and it really interested me learning how to build things.
When I left school I couldn’t find any apprenticeships in bricklaying but I managed to find one in carpentry, so I had decided to give that a go as I had interest due to taking woodwork as an option at school.
After a year of carpentry on site I was always watching the roofer on the buildings next to us, and always thought it looked fun and a lot more fast paced than carpentry.
How interesting, so you didn’t originally consider yourself a roofer but it presented itself to you in a working environment. When did you eventually decide to take it up?
I got into roofing at the age of 17 working with my brother in law on commercial sites. I loved the change from carpentry to roofing straight away! Always working up high and outside was a selling point for me. Unfortunately, after a few years I noticed that things on site were changing. We were up against other trades and not working together efficiently and after challenge after challenge it began to take the love for roofing away from me.
That’s such a shame, particularly when it got off to such a good start for you and you chose this path over others. How did things change?
I found another company called Karl Terry Roofing that was quite local to me. I looked through his website and saw their amazing portfolio and all the listed buildings he had worked on. It looked like a breath of fresh air! So much more attention to detail and not one roof was the same. I picked up the phone and gave him a call and he came out and interviewed me the same day.
During the interview I mentioned that one day, after the years of training with him, I would end up leaving his firm to establish my own roofing company. Either that, or I’d take over his business if he’d let me!
That’s some real ambition, and very confident of you to say during an interview! How did he take that?
Luckily for me he took it positively! He took no offence and he respected my honesty and drive for progression within the roofing world.
Within a week I had left my previous job and began working for Karl. To this day, I have never looked back.
How brilliant that things turned around for you. And you really never considered yourself to be a roofer before this?
I knew I wanted to be in a trade from a young age but over the years my future has sort of sculpted itself in front of me from watching other trades and learning bits of each that I like.
Nine years into working with Karl I am now in the running to take over the business.
Wow! So you really are a man of your word and manifested what you said to be true! How are things looking for you now?
We have a three year plan from now to train me up into a director role, then start buying him out of his business so that I’m the new owner.
That’s so impressive! We’re so glad you found an employer ready to invest in new talent to prepare for handing over the reins.
Obviously, your career has progressed significantly. How would you describe those nine years so far?
Throughout these years I have started from the bottom and worked my way up through the ranks being taught by pretty much all of Karl’s gangs. This has helped me a lot seeing everyone’s own personal techniques and I was able to adopt and adapt these to my own.
I’ve been running a gang of my own for four years now and I love running my own jobs as well as being a team leader and teaching my own two work friends (labourers) the trade. Watching them progress under me is a great, rewarding feeling.
And of course, I’m now on the ladder to take over the business for Karl within the next three years!
What a career so far! If you could pick one, what would be the highlight or standout moment of your roofing journey so far?
When I had the conversation with Karl four years ago and told him I am ready to leave my gang and start my own team and running jobs for myself? This was a massive step in my career and made me realise just how far I have come and how much I really know about the job!
That’s certainly something to be proud of. What advice would you give to anybody considering a career in roofing?
If you want a job where no two days are the same and you love moving around the country then heritage roofing is for you! It can be a heavy, dirty, hard working job but if you thrive off a challenge then give it a go and if you’re willing to put in the graft you will become a master of the trade.
Sound advice for sure. Do you have a favourite part of the job?
Working on the most beautiful old properties with so much history and the beautiful landscapes, and forever working outside in the fresh air!
Being able to take a heritage building that is in a really poor state and make it look the smartest it has ever looked with a pristine roof.
Always working outside in the glorious Kentish countryside on stunning properties with a view!
Well, you’ve certainly sold it to us. Where do we sign up?
It’s been a pleasure chatting with you, Taylor, and it’s clear that roofing is a passion of yours that you’ll always give your best to. We wish you success in taking over the business and look forward to seeing how far you’ve progressed in the years to come.
You can follow Joe and Tyler's progress on NFRC social media channels. The IFD World Championship of Young Roofers takes place from 13-15 November 2024 and we wish the best of luck to our competitors.
NFRC would like to thank judges Andy Rowlands, Bob Coutts and Matt Timby as well as CoRE for hosting the event.
We would also like to give special thanks to Recticel Insulation for their generous support in sponsoring the UK Team.
With additional thanks to NFRC Supplier Members for donating materials:
Additional thanks to Ecological Building Systems