Young roofers test their skills

By Jesse Sanchez. 

As U.S. teams competed alongside international peers in Austria, the event became a living example of how respect, workforce development and global standards are shaping roofing’s next generation. 

From the competition floor at the Student Competition in Innsbruck, Austria, Heidi J. Ellsworth shared candid conversation with industry professionals from the International Federation of the Roofing Trade (IFD),  National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) and a first-time U.S. delegation backed by Durable Slate, KPost Roofing and Waterproofing and Global Roofing Group. 

Hosted by the International Federation of the Roofing Trade (IFD), the Student Competition brings young roofers from around the world together to test their skills against shared international standards across multiple roofing disciplines. For the first time, a U.S. delegation supported by NRCA and industry sponsors joined the field, stepping into a highly structured environment designed to measure not only technical ability but professionalism, organization and care for the worksite. 

Before anyone picked up a tool, the work was logistical, emotional and human. Flights, buses, schedules, coaches, sponsors and young competitors trying to sleep in a new country before an eight-hour day under judges who measure everything from precision to the way a workspace is kept. Jon spoke about the process, noting the complexity of bringing so many moving parts together. He shared, “At the end of the day I was, as I affectionately say, I was herding cats and they are the best cats in the world and we brought it all together and I breathed a big sigh of relief when everyone was tucked into bed Sunday night.” 

What he framed as humor pointed to something more practical. Bringing young roofers into a space like this takes intention, coordination and care, long before competition begins. By the time teams stepped onto the floor, the groundwork for learning, growth and comparison was already in place. 

From above, the competition moved steadily, with each task governed by clear rules and time limits. The U.S. teams rotated through low-slope, standing seam metal and slate and tile assemblies, often working with European tools and materials they had not used before. Jon watched the floor as teams worked at different speeds, all measured against the same standard. He shared, “Team USA's greatest skill we have courage and we are inquisitive and we are learning as we go.” 

By the second day, conversations around the competition began to shift. Between long hours on the floor and informal discussions off camera, Jon returned to a central reason NRCA chose to engage internationally through IFD: workforce development depends on how the trade is valued. For him, the competition was not just about skills, but about signaling what roofing can offer to the next generation. Jon shared, “Roofing respect; its seed bed is in the home. What do you want your children to be? They say, ‘we want them to be respected. Kids don't grow up to become roofers, they don't grow up saying I want to be a roofer.’ One of the reasons for that is we don’t respect our roofers as we should.” 

In Innsbruck, that idea took physical form. The competition showed what respect looks like when it is built into standards, expectations and shared craft, offering young roofers a clearer pathway and contractors a stronger model for attracting and keeping talent. 

Watch our interviews to learn more about how NRCA and IFD are using international competition to build workforce pathways and raise roofing respect in the U.S.