Patriot Group Construction Takes a Military Approach to Business
As a young United States Air Force serviceman, Ryan Philbeck, never imagined one day he would own his own company. But, it was as he delivered goods and supplies on the Dover Air Force Base he began to develop a natural entrepreneurial ambition, coupled with a deep and abiding love of his country, that led him to formulate a plan that he fully realized in forming Patriot Group Construction in 2012.
“It is not an accident, or some marketing scheme that led me to call my company Patriot Group,” Philbeck, CEO of Patriot Group Construction, said. “I love my country and was proud to serve and want to provide opportunity and success for my employees. I believe in our free market system in the United States and enjoy the challenge of competing and succeeding in this competitive industry. I understand the need to have a strong plan of action and the resources it takes to get the job done—something that was drilled into me during my service in the Air Force.”
According to the State of Michigan, “A sizable professional trades shortage exists in Michigan and is expected to continue through 2024.” With decreasing numbers of skilled workers, and a rapidly changing roofing industry, Patriot Group is the answer to the industrial sector’s biggest problems. It was his background in the military, and a wealth of experience in the general contracting private sector, he set out to address the most burdensome issues plaguing the industrial sector—work force development.
“It is probably the toughest thing we deal with in finding good workers to join our company,” said Philbeck. “I imagine like almost any construction company today this is the biggest thing holding them back from pursuing more work. At Patriot Group have created a process in our roofing that allows us to do a project with less workers. It is a product that is safer and more durable and really eliminates the need for more time consuming and frankly dangerous roofing methods.”
When Ryan Philbeck decided to become a small business owner, he did not anticipate the incredible impact his young roofing company would have on the expansive industrial sector. With a focus on efficiency, innovation, and character, this Certified Veteran Enterprise has grown to ultimately provide the premier solution to some of the most problematic, and costly issues of the roofing industry.
“It became apparent to me after the economic downturn in 2008 that a fresh approach to building envelope maintenance was desperately needed for the automotive industry. It occurred to us that if a company had a cost-effective solution that could extend the life of existing roofing, without the need for costly tear off, they would be highly sought after in the market place. We decided to become that solution for the industry.”
As the premier provider of fluid-applied membrane technology in the United States, Patriot Group offers a variety of solutions to stop water infiltration. These alternatives include primarily polyureas and emulsions. Fluid applied solutions have proven to be advantageous in many interesting ways.
In an industry where eliminating safety risks and hazards is paramount, the application of these products allow for much safer means and methods compared to traditional approaches. Patriot’s fluid-applied technology reduces risk to laborers, as it eliminates most of the dangerous activity involved in traditional roofing procedures. This fluid-applied membrane is applied directly to the existing roof substrate, and cures into a monolithic barrier within minutes or even seconds. The membrane is waterproof, and flexible with elongation properties exceeding >1000% making it ideal to adapt to building expansion and contraction. With safety at the forefront of Patriot Group’s methods, they are able to retain a skilled roofing staff with years of on-site experience. Due to the efficient nature of fluid-applied technology, less manpower, and less risk is involved in Patriot Group’s roof restoration process.
“Safety is and continues to be my number one priority on the job,” said Philbeck.
“I feel a tremendous obligation to ensure that each one of my employees goes home safely to their families each day. Before we even bid a job, we are already determining what safety measures are needed and how we can eliminate or ‘design-out’ any potential hazards for our employees. It is not just the right thing to do, but also makes good business sense.”
Patriot’s fluid-applied technology is not only the solution to this manpower shortage, but also an economical approach to tight facility maintenance budgets. Patriot Group has found a niche in the automotive sector, as they are able to completely resurface large areas, while allowing production lines to continue at a normal pace. While using Patriot’s roofing services, automotive production lines have little to no disruption to ongoing operations and experienced zero minutes of downtime—a statistic highly desired in the fast-paced manufacturing sector. Many facility managers are thrilled to discover that they can extend the life of their roof, while staying under their constricted budget, and continuing production in the process. As opposed to traditional roofing, Patriot Group’s method promotes green building initiatives, as there is a significant reduction of waste in fluid-applied technology.
The advantages offered by fluid applied alternatives, spanning safety, schedule, and budget, demonstrate why it is the future of the roofing and waterproofing industry.
With great success in the industrial sector, Patriot has also had the distinction of servicing state, and federal governmental entities—a privilege that is highly sought-after in the roofing market. Patriot Group, whose name portrays Philbeck’s deep roots in the military, carries the status of a Certified Veteran Enterprise. This position provides Patriot Group with the unique capability to service military and government entities with the same expert technology as the private sector.
