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TAMKO: 80 Years in Business

 

Since 1944, the TAMKO story has been one of innovation, quality and long-standing customer relationships. In 2024, TAMKO celebrates 80 years in business, a historic anniversary made possible through three generations of family leadership, thousands of hardworking employees, and strong relationships with our communities, our customers and suppliers.

 
 
 
 

Quality Products
A lot has changed since we introduced our first shingle in 1945, but one thing remains the same: our commitment to constantly moving the industry forward with quality building products, including residential and commercial roofing, waterproofing products, and cements and coatings.

Continuous Improvement
Our first Continuous Improvement program started in the 1980s based on the practices of famed statistician Dr. W. Edwards Deming. Since that time, TAMKO has incorporated LEAN manufacturing techniques and a robust Six Sigma program to further drive out variation and waste from our processes and products.

Vertical Integration
We are a vertically integrated company, owning and operating many of our own raw materials plants. Maintaining greater control over the entire manufacturing process allows us to better deliver consistent supply of products to our customers.

Old TAMKO Heritage shingles

Core Values
TAMKO’s founding principles are simple: work hard, do your best, be fair and honest, and hire people you can trust to do the same. Years later, those principles were solidified into our company’s Core Values of “Honesty, Integrity and Compliance.”

TAMKO Asphalt Products - Employees Group Shot

Great Jobs
From one manufacturing location in Joplin, Missouri in 1944, TAMKO has grown into a truly national manufacturer with multiple locations across the U.S. employing thousands of hardworking people over our 80-year history. TAMKO employees enjoy some of the most competitive wages and benefits in the regions where our company operates.

Community Support
TAMKO is an important part of the communities around our locations, providing millions of dollars in support– everything from youth sports sponsorships to disaster recovery donations. In Missouri, where TAMKO began its operations, the company is projected to benefit the state’s economy by $4 billion over the next 25 years.

TAMKO Founders

 

E.L. Craig

E.L. Craig

In 1944, at the age of 69, E.L. Craig began a roofing business in an old streetcar barn in Joplin, Missouri. Before that, he was an entrepreneur who started and sold a variety of business ventures over the years, including a sausage-making business, a soup kitchen, boxing gym, building and construction business, military wrecking and salvage company and a frozen custard shop.

Mary Ethel Craig

Mary Ethel Craig

E.L.’s most trusted business advisor and confidante, his wife Mary Ethel Craig, named the couple’s new roofing company TAMKO — from the first letters of the five states the company anticipated as its sales territory: Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma. She later assumed the leadership of TAMKO in 1954 due to Mr. Craig's health.

Ethelmae Craig Humphreys

Ethelmae Humphreys

The Craigs’ daughter, Ethelmae, directed TAMKO's operations during the '50s, and was named TAMKO Chairman of the Board in 1972. In 2018, she celebrated her 70th anniversary with TAMKO. In 1960, Ethelmae's husband, J.P. (Jay) Humphreys, became TAMKO's president.

Jay Humphreys

Jay Humphreys

Over the next 33 years, Jay Humphreys led TAMKO's success with his entrepreneurial vision of growth for TAMKO with the addition of manufacturing plants in Phillipsburg, Kansas (1969); Tuscaloosa, Alabama (1975); Knoxville, Tennessee (1976); Frederick, Maryland (1978); and Dallas, Texas (1985). Mr. Humphreys set the course for TAMKO's continued success with his vision of quality process management built on the continuous quality improvement principles of Dr. W. Edwards Deming.

David C. Humphreys

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Following Jay's death in 1993, David Craig Humphreys (Jay and Ethelmae's eldest son) assumed TAMKO's leadership in 1994 — the same year the company name changed to TAMKO Roofing Products, Inc. to reflect the company's focus on roofing products. Since 1994, TAMKO's expansion has continued at a dramatic pace, expanding TAMKO's production capabilities for additional products.

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TAMKO Leadership

 
David C Humphreys

David C. Humphreys

Chairman, President and
Chief Executive Officer

Jeff Beyer

Jeffrey D. Beyer

Chief Operating Officer

Robert Keeling

Robert R. Keeling

Vice President of Operations and Supply Chain

Shannon Lenker

Shannon Lenker

Vice President of Manufacturing

Alex Hines

Alex Hines

Vice President of
Sales and Marketing


Rich Caron

Richard P. Caron

Vice President and Chief Information Officer

Prithvi (Prith) Gandhi

Prithvi (Prith) Gandhi

Vice President of Finance and Chief Financial Officer


Robert Carrol

Robert Carroll

General Counsel and Chief Legal Officer

Jennifer Oldvader

Jennifer Oldvader

Assistant General Counsel and Chief HR and EH&S Officer

Kent Blanchard

W. Kent Blanchard

Senior Vice President

Art Weiss

Arthur R. Weiss

Chief Compliance and Ethics Officer

Through the Years

 
timeline
TAMKO 80th Anniversary - color reverse

Building Products

 
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As TAMKO has continued to grow, so has our product line. On June 1, 2006, TAMKO Roofing Products changed its name to TAMKO Building Products to more accurately reflect that TAMKO manufactures more than just shingles.

We offer a complete line of accessories to help support our roofing products, as well as building materials that include waterproofing, window and door wraps, asphalt cements and coatings, insulation facer and many of our own raw materials, such as glass mat, dry felt, processed asphalt, paper cores, polyester mats and crushed limestone. From start to finish, TAMKO has the right products for any project.

Residential Roofing

 
Residential Roofing

TAMKO has come a long way in the roofing industry over the last seven decades. What started as a single line of asphalt shingles in Joplin, Missouri, has blossomed into a large-scale manufacturer of residential and commercial roofing products serving customers across the nation.

TAMKO laminated asphalt shingles are designed to complement the architecture of any home. Our residential product line includes a variety of styles and hues that bring beauty and color home. TAMKO also offers additional accessories that are designed to lie beneath the shingles. Together, TAMKO shingles and accessories help craft beautiful roofs for homes across the country.

Commercial Roofing

 
Commercial Roofing

TAMKO's line of commercial products can be used for a variety of low-slope roofing applications. We offer a wide variety of low-slope base and cap sheets that work together to help provide a framework for commercial roofs.

Waterproofing

 
Waterproofing

TAMKO offers a range of above- and below-grade SBS-modified waterproofing products. From foundations to balcony and breezeways, windows, doors and the roof, TAMKO has waterproofing products for every application.