Brian Moore, Ph.D., President and Treasurer of Schreiber Corporation in Wixom, Mich., said the company axiom starts with outstanding customer service as it nears 100 years in business.

Brian Moore, Ph.D., President and Treasurer of Schreiber Corporation in Wixom, Mich., said the company axiom starts with outstanding customer service as it nears 100 years in business.

Ezekiel Schreiber started Standard Waterproofing and Damp Proofing in New York City in the early 1900s. The company changed the name to Schreiber in 1916 and moved to Detroit to service the growing auto industry.

“Herbert Schreiber, Ezekiel’s great-grandson, was hired after graduating from the University of Michigan and eventually bought the company in 1961 and incorporated it under the name Schreiber Corporation,” Brian Moore recalled.

Herbert Schreiber passed away in 2006, leaving control of the company in the hands of his children, who were already involved in the management at Schreiber. The family also owns and operates a commercial roofing company: Schreiber Bros. LLC, located in Hamilton, Ontario.

“I came into the business when I met and then married my wife, Patrice Schreiber, who is now the CEO f the company,” Moore said. “I was the Director of Business Development at a biotechnology company in Washington, D.C., where Patrice was also employed. I was responsible for licensing out both real and intellectual property developed by our company or vice versa, acquiring real or intellectual property from Universities or other biotechnology companies. In 1997, when Patrice finished her MBA at Johns Hopkins University, we decided to move to Michigan to manage operations at Schreiber Corporation.”

Schreiber employs 16 office personnel and approximately 150 roofers and sheet metal men during peak operations. Schreiber is 100 percent commercial roofing.

“Schreiber is committed to providing the highest quality service and professional workmanship using our highly skilled union workforce,” Moore said. “We recognize that in many of the manufacturing plants that we roof, a single leak can interrupt or halt production inside the building, costing the company thousands of dollars an hour. Therefore, maintaining a complete water tight roof throughout installation, which may take months, is critically important to our customers.”

Schreiber prides itself in taking on the most complex and difficult projects. “Our overall business philosophy is conservative, remain stable and our strategy always considers the long term,” Moore said. “Schreiber has been in business for over 90 years and this longevity is a result of thinking and planning over the long run.”

Herbert Schreiber believed in maintaining a strong financial position in order to weather economic downturns that are inevitable in the marketplace. “Mr. Schreiber knew that by building a strong base, in terms of labor in the field, in the office, and financially, the company could survive recessions when they occur and that in doing so, the company would lead the way as the economy returned and business picked up again,” Moore said.

For many years, Schreiber Roofing has completed multiple roofing projects on some of the most secure nuclear sites in the United States. “Many of the sites pose particular difficulties including job staging, safety, access and possible radiation exposure,” Moore said.

Chuck Rosa, the longtime company president, retired after more than 35 years at Schreiber. “Herbert Schreiber hired Mr. Rosa in 1967 and Chuck always implemented Mr. Schreiber’s philosophy in managing the company, leaving it positioned with a stable customer base and a talented workforce in place to move the company forward,” Moore said. “That obviously has made my job much easier, and I will continue the tradition of providing the highest quality roofing installation and outstanding customer service through our 100th anniversary and beyond.”