Texas Roof Management Inc.

Catherine Awtrey says she never imagined her life would be the way it is today; 10 years ago Catherine suddenly became president of Texas Roof Management Inc. (TRM) and faced one of her most difficult challenges.
“When my husband, Wayne, passed away in 2003, I was left as a single parent with our 2-year-old son and high school-age daughter and the massive undertaking of managing TRM,” recalls Catherine. “Wayne founded TRM in 1996 and had been successfully operating the business for seven years.”
Fortunately, Catherine, who’d always been a hard worker, helped her husband do all of the Texas-based company’s marketing, forming connections with many clients. “Though it was challenging, I didn’t have a lot of time to think about what was actually happening; I had to jump right in,” she says.
Rising to the Challenge
And jump right in she did, with established contacts and a trusted team of loyal, long-term employees. “Knowing many clients through marketing helped me maintain key relationships,” explains Catherine.
While many in her situation would’ve given up, Catherine pushed ahead, learning the daily operations and other facets of TRM to continue her husband’s vision. Since 2003, Catherine has led TRM, making the commercial roofing company one of the most successful in the state.
“We’ve been in business for 17 years now,” says Catherine. “Our quality workmanship, continuity and integrity have allowed us to grow. Our impeccable reputation has generated most of our business through word-of-mouth from clients and consulting partners.”
TRM remains Dallas-based, but has the capability to cover ground throughout the Southwest. “We can go anywhere, we’ve even bid a job in Hawaii, but about 70 percent of our work is in Texas and surrounding states,” notes Catherine.
High-profile Projects
TRM specializes in difficult and intricate roofing projects that other companies shy away from. “We run the gamut when it comes to highly involved, challenging projects and we pull them off beautifully,” adds Catherine.
The company provides a wide range of reroofing, repair and maintenance services for commercial, retail, industrial and warehouse clients. “We frequently work with highly recognizable entities, including AT&T, the Campbell Soup Company, the Lockheed Martin Corporation, the city of Dallas and BNSF Railway Company, to name but a few,” notes Catherine.
TRM offers repair services, from leak repair and emergency service to preventive maintenance, cleaning and waterproofing. The company also provides detailed roof inspections and budgeting for property management firms.
Catherine is proud of how far the company has come and all of the outstanding projects the team has delivered over the years. “Every project completed is both memorable and rewarding,” she explains. “It would be extremely difficult to choose just one that stands out.”
Some of TRM’s accomplishments include the Dallas Museum of Art and the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW). “The Dallas Museum of Art reroof project was challenging in that we were working with over $600 million worth of art,” notes Catherine. “In 2012 we completed DFW and that was another extremely complex assignment where the TRM team served as the prime contractor for the roof-replacement requirements, while being responsible for the overall coordination of several trades involved, including a close working relationship with a structural engineering company.”
Catherine goes on to note that the project required working with several cellular providers during the installation of 42 cable tray supports and 31 antenna supports. “Work was performed at night only during this seven-month project, and making sure that none of the airport communications were disturbed was a prime focus,” she continues.
Over the years TRM has won numerous awards, including several Golden Hammer awards from the North Texas Roofing Contractors Association (NTRCA). “The most recent Golden Hammer Award was for our work on the Federal Reserve Bank in downtown Dallas,” shares Catherine. “We had to abide by tremendous security restrictions and be cautious with staging and setup.”
TRM has consistently been ranked highly among the largest Texas-headquartered private companies, largest north Texas women-owned businesses, largest Dallas-Fort Worth women-owned businesses and top 100 U.S. roofing contractors. Additionally, the company was the only roofing contractor ranked among the Dallas Top 100 Companies by Southern Methodist University’s Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship in 2010, and TRM made the Dallas Top 100 list again in 2013.
“We recently completed work at five of the Park Place Motors car dealerships in Dallas,” reveals Catherine. “The dealerships sell everything from Mercedes-Benz to Rolls Royce automobiles, some valued at more than $500,000. Thus, each of the five re-roof projects demanded nothing less than meticulous care and our highest level of performance.” Catherine adds that TRM’s ability to perform complicated and challenging jobs is a direct result of the skilled, experienced crew members who make up the TRM team.
Despite economic challenges, Catherine says TRM is growing leaps and bounds. “In 2012, we almost doubled our 2011 revenue,” she says. “We have great management and leaders in place, allowing me to focus on the big picture and see the opportunities at hand more clearly. Every year we’re adding new customers, while maintaining the great relationships we’ve had with clients for 15 years or more.”
Though she never pictured herself in this position 10 years ago, Catherine continues to proudly lead TRM. With a dedicated workforce, Texas Roof Management Inc. continues to deliver trusted, quality roofing throughout the southwest.