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Editor's Choice

Cutting-Edge Roofing Solutions for 2025

The roofing industry places a premium on technology, safety and productivity with new product offerings for 2025

By Art Aisner
Roofing Contractor Editor's Choice 2025
All product images provided by their respective manufacturer
November 25, 2024
New Innovations Old Problems, New Solutions Technology Safety Keeping It Cool

The basic need for shelter, protection from the elements and stability in communities across North America isn’t going anywhere. Roofing contractors can rest a little easier knowing that; however, the methods and strategies to meet the demand – while still making a profit – are changing.

Roofers are learning to change along with emerging trends, rapidly in some segments of the industry, thanks to the development of new tools — both physical and digital — entering the marketplace.

Innovation was at a premium at the 2025 International Roofing Expo, and RC editors had a challenging time getting to all corners of the spacious show floor. Yet, as we do every year, we took a critical look at the latest products and service offerings on display to evaluate what could be potential game changers for roofing contractors in their respective markets.

We call it our Editor’s Choice, and while these choices may be selective, we believe they offer roofing contractors some of the best potential benefits in key areas of their business among the dozens of products released over the past year.

The items here represent state-of-the-art solutions recently introduced and currently available in the roofing and exteriors space. Though relatively new, some will be known to roofing contractors, particularly those in attendance at IRE in San Antonio. Some appeared in the Innovative Product Showcase and Awards in the main atrium of the Henry B. González Convention Center and earned awards after attendees cast votes for the People's Choice Award across eight different categories.

By recognizing the following products and services, we hope to inform, educate and inspire the continued development of solutions to problems encountered by roofing contractors. These innovations, while not for everyone industrywide, help drive roofing forward by providing contractors additional tools to enhance their business and encourage continued progress through more ingenuity. Here are our Editor’s Choice for 2025.

Back To Top

New Innovations

Timberline Solar ES 2

GAF Energy

In 2022, GAF Energy, the spin-off of the shingle-producing giant, unveiled its Timberline Solar shingle with much fanfare, as it was the only roof system at the time to directly integrate solar technology into a traditional roofing process. Audiences at both that year’s IRE and the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas left impressed, bearing witness to the world’s first nailable solar shingle, and looking forward to the next round of innovation.

That came during the 2025 IRE as GAF unveiled Timberline Solar ES 2. The latest version of the solar roof offers more power capabilities — a best-in-class efficiency rating with 57 watts per energy shingle — and sits flush with the roof deck so it can be nailed down safely. It also offers features for quicker installation and is now compatible with any GAF Timberline asphalt shingle.

DensDeck ProFast Prime Roof Board

Georgia-Pacific

Introduced at the IRE, the DensDeck ProFast Prime Roof Board is the latest cutting-edge innovation in gypsum-based cover boards, and Georgia-Pacific’s first new roof board product in a few years.

Its weight is designed to offer roofing contractors better efficiency on the job, not just in product movement, but by reducing the need for fasteners by 30%-50% on commercial roofing projects, company officials said. Years in development, the board is 3/8-inch thick and is about 20% lighter than the traditional DensDeck Prime. It also has enhanced features to combat fire, wind uplift, foot traffic and hail.

It also possesses strong resistance to punctures, offering roofing contractors a solution for facility owners keen on having a rooftop solar-ready now or in the near future.

OlyFill Foam Sealant

OMG Roofing Products

Over the years, OMG Roofing Products has developed products and tools that have helped roofing contractors keep commercial rooftops fastened and watertight. That’s still the case, but for 2025, the company’s research and development team added a little color.

OlyFill Foam Sealant is the company’s first foam sealant designed for commercial roofing that’s easy to cut and trim, and it comes in a very distinguishable purple. Roofers can use it for gap-filling and along any parapet walls or protrusions through the roof deck. It’s also good for sealing gaps between insulation boards, which is a common problem in cold-storage facilities and data centers that are growing in demand.

Back To Top

Old Problems, New Solutions

Gutter Protection Kits and the Claw

The Catch All

The former roofing contractors behind The Catch All continue to expand their lineup of products geared for home exterior protection and customer satisfaction. New to the arsenal are the Gutter Protection Kits, designed to fit 5-inch K-style gutters and protect them from the dings and debris that inevitably come with residential roofing projects.

Like The Catch All team’s other innovations, the kit acts as a shield that protects the home’s exterior features by fending off debris coming from the rooftop. But it also protects gutters from the other side, where ladders are known to leave dents, dings and scratches from weight shifts. The kits feature industrial-grade, injected-molded ladder docks that can transfer weight loads during the reroof process, and can be easily installed by hand.

If time is of the essence, roofing contractors can opt for The Claw, an expandable pole with a patented clasp designed to integrate with the Gutter Kit protection clips. Roofing contractors can cut down on installation time and never need to climb a ladder to set it up.

ColorGard 2.0 Snow Retention System

S-5!

Metal Roofing is growing in popularity in both residential and commercial roofing sectors for a number of reasons, but severe weather is undoubtedly a leading factor. While rain, hail and wind get much of the headlines and attention around much of the country, snow can be just as harsh on a rooftop and creates its own unique set of challenges.

After three decades of successfully diverting snow-related problems off the roof, S-5! developed the ColorGard 2.0 to offer roofing contractors more versatility, better assembly features and quicker installation overall.

Designed with a “lay-and-play” template, roofers no longer have to spend time cutting during installation, and don’t have to worry about pre-assembly before starting the job. The new, streamlined installation process can also reduce rooftop snow avalanches on standing seam, and exposed, fastened-metal roofs. It’s also built with an innovative internal splice that roofers can use to install the ColorGard 2.0 directly over S-5!’s line-up of roof clamps and brackets.

Back To Top

Technology

Roof Scout

Scout Technology Group

Roof Scout is a digital sales assistant that comes to life as a salesperson designed to close more roofing deals. Powered by a proprietary algorithm, the system uses artificial intelligence and behavioral science to assess a prospect's personality and adapt presentations to best make the sale. Not only will it improve sales outcomes, but being able to match the homeowner’s personality profile will lead to higher customer satisfaction and stronger referrals.

Roof Scout also enhances the customer experience by using real-time pricing in a media player, which increases engagement and retention during the sales process. The program earned the People’s Choice Award at IRE in the Business and Technology Software and Services category.

Instant Design

Hover, a leader in 3-D modeling in the residential space for nearly 10 years, unveiled Instant Design, an AI-powered visualizer that roofing contractors and homeowners can use collaboratively in real time on virtually any project.

Built from Hover’s database of millions of homes served across North America over the past decade, there’s virtually no roof shape, pitch, color or feature that a curious customer can’t see for themselves before signing the contract.

Hover’s design sentiment survey recently found that two-thirds of construction pros say homeowners have higher design expectations than they did just five years ago. Yet visualization tools are used in less than one-third of projects completed, said Kevin Sturm, Hover’s head of product and industry marketing.

The Instant Design program is easy to use, easier to explain, and should allow roofing contractors to talk less, show more and close sales faster, Sturm added. With a tool that has unlimited capabilities when it comes to inspiring homeowners to stretch their imaginations, roofers can set themselves apart and create a unique customer experience.

Back To Top

Safety

FT-1910 Safety Harness

FallTech

The FT-1910 harness is designed to directly meet a fall-protection standard issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration bearing its name, while offering unmatched support, durability and comfort. Built with UltraTech webbing that enhances durability, it’s 25% thicker than most harnesses and is antimicrobial, meaning it can help repel germs, moisture and grime roofers regularly encounter on a worksite. Within the webbing are stainless steel grommets for extended corrosion resistance, making it ideal for use in the heat.

The harness is also designed for comfort, featuring FallTech’s proprietary Comfort Legs lateral leg straps that remain flexible for movement in tight or awkward spaces. It’s also lightweight and has lanyard keepers positioned at hip level to limit tripping hazards.

Ladder Latch Pro

Roofing remains one of the deadliest occupations across the country, and it’s largely due to falls from heights that, in many cases, can be avoided with proper equipment and training. While training efforts continue at the company, state and regional roofing association level, ingenuity in product development is ongoing.

Ladder Latch Pro is a patent-pending bracket that secures and stabilizes any ladder at the gutter or façade level of the structure, preventing the ladder from sliding or falling. Designers built off of the success of the People’s Choice winner for safety and fall protection at the IRE 2024 Innovative Product Showcase, by expanding to fit box gutters. Now, roofing contractors can use the gutter-anchored system to fit all types of extension ladders for performance on both residential and commercial jobs. Attendees again named it the People’s Choice winner for safety and fall protection at the 2025 IRE.

By creating a secure, four-point connection at or near the rooftop level instead of the ground, roofers have a stable base to work from while on the ladder when necessary. Shaped with a handle made from high-impact plastic and stainless steel connectors, roofers can install it in seconds on either side of the ladder frame. It also works universally on all extension ladders as well as all gutters with or without gutter guards, and is non-corrosive.

AcuSaif Harness Cam

Smart Safety Solutions

Making its debut at IRE 2025, the AcuSaif Harness Cam drew interest from residential and commercial roofers looking for ways to improve employee buy-in when it comes to rooftop safety, said creator Paul Spies, CEO of Smart Safety Solutions. It’s an area he knows all too well as the owner of Ironhead Roofing in Oregon, where regular OSHA inspections — and associated fines — are the norm.

He developed the AcuSaif, a patent-pending harness camera that monitors whether workers are wearing their safety equipment properly, earning him the Roofing Technology Think Tank’s 2024 Innovator of the Year. It uses cutting-edge AI technology to ensure compliance with safety standards for fall protection, rope placement, worker location and more. With this wearable technology and extended battery life of nearly two weeks, roofing company owners and safety managers can monitor employee activity from anywhere in real-time.

Back To Top

Keeping It Cool

Cool Roof Tiles

Brava

Brava launched its innovative Cool Roof Tiles in San Antonio, showcasing a lineup designed for high solar reflectivity and thermal emissions. These tiles help reduce heat transfer and indoor temperatures while meeting California’s Title 24 and Title 31 standards, long considered the state’s “green” building code. The new Cool Roof offerings include CRRC-compliant Cedar Shake tiles, Slate Profiles, and Spanish Barrel tiles, available in a handful of fresh color options.

The innovation reflects the company’s commitment to sustainable roofing solutions that also enhance energy efficiency. Testing shows the tiles meet the thermal emittance threshold, the three-year aged reflectivity requirement and solar reflective index to reflect solar heat.

Bright White Roofing Membranes

Polyglass

The expanded Polyglass Bright White family of Kool Roof Solutions offers a broader range of products for roofing contractors to meet diverse project needs and stringent code requirements for energy use and output. Roofers now have innovative solutions to help reduce energy costs, improve building performance, and optimize a facility owner’s spend. Featured products in the lineup include Polyfresko G, Elastoflex S6 G, Polyflex G, and various coatings.

To complement the expanded cool roofing membrane solutions, Polyglass also introduced a broader selection of liquid-applied elastomeric roof coatings in bright white. In addition to extending roof life and improving reflectivity to meet energy-use goals, the advanced coatings offer weather resistance, UV protection, and long-term durability on restoration and maintenance projects. These versatile cool roof applications are available today.

KEYWORDS: 2025 adhesives and sealants AI (artificial intelligence) apps and software Brava Roof Tile Catch-All GAF Georgia-Pacific Hover IRE (International Roofing Expo) jobsite safety ladder safety OMG Roofing Products Polyglass roofing membrane S-5! Solutions solar roofing

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Artaisner

Art Aisner is Editor-in-Chief of Roofing Contractor and Roofing Supply Pro. He spent the bulk of his career as a multi-media journalist for newspapers and television stations before joining the RC team in 2015. He is the driving force behind the publication’s content development, editorial strategy and other initiatives that serve growing audiences in the roofing space.

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