After 30 years in the roofing, Brian Zajicek had become frustrated how he repeated the same cycle: homeowners who replace three roofs in five years, the insurers pay entitlement to claims and asphalt shingles who looked good for hailstorms, but collapsed months later under the stress of the freezed.
“Homeowners are fed up,” said Zajicek, founder of Rasa Roof Tiles in Denver.
Concrete tiles lasted for decades – but it is too heavy and expensive for most houses. This dilemma triggered its breakthrough: a way to bring the durability of concrete in shingles that could install roofers as easily as asphalt.
Fifteen years ago, Zajick said he stared at a lunch tray in restaurants and had a wild thought: What if this could keep concrete – and could be nailed on a roof? Zajicek saw potential where others saw crazy. The idea stuck and triggered a vision to merge the expansion of concrete with asphalt simple installation.
Today, at 53, Zajicek has put everything on this vision – to do his job, use his 401 (K) and to develop what it develops for the first true “concrete shingle” of the roof industry, which is built for the duration of the roof industry, which was built for the roof industry, but install like an asphalt shingle.
Zajicek's patent-like design focuses on what it names as a “endoskeleton”-a specially constructed support, embedded with concrete and how a traditional shingle can be nailed. The result is a three-tab shingle in which everything that is exposed to the elements is concrete, but can install roofers such as asphalt shingles.
“When I tell people that it is a concrete, nailable shingle, they all think that they will nail through the concrete,” said Zajicek. “But they nail through the endoskeleton, and that's what my patent is – this endoskeleton in which I embed the concrete.”
The design includes a decisive heading function that creates a two -layer protection system that defines a shingle. In contrast to concrete tiles, which rely on under remote for water seal, the concrete shingles of Zajicek deliver their own water barrier.
Colorado sees significant hail damage every year and Zajicek has developed its product especially for these conditions. His concrete shingles weigh around £ 750 per square – heavier than asphalt, but easier than conventional concrete tiles.
“The majority of the hail we receive in Colorado is a quarter-sized or less. My product will never damage that-it will simply not go out at enough speed,” said Zajicek. “And baseball and softball size, I think I will also record it pretty well because it is a concrete face.”
The product is designed in such a way that it fits FM 4473, whereby the test standard is used to evaluate the impact resistance of rigid roof materials such as wood shaking, slate and metal roof against hail. This is in contrast to the UL 2218 test, which is used for asphalt shingles that fall on products and measures steel balls.
Zajicek believes that the market conditions are finally suitable for its innovation. When he started with the roof in 1996, the three-tab shingles cost $ 16 per square and dimensions $ 20. Today's higher prices have created space for premium alternatives, and contractors are more open to new technologies.
“I have the feeling that there are only a limited number of people who are willing to spend this upper money for your product. If you see how high asphalt shingles have come, there are now a number of synthetic products that people buy,” he said.
Insurance companies also change, as they are fed up, to pay for repeated roof replacement for the same properties. Zajicek predicts that you finally need hard surface materials in hail -rich areas.
Zajicek recently received his first stack of 1,000 parts and plans to cover his own garage as an initial test case. After sending samples for wind and hailst tests at Haag Engineering, he starts with a soft rollout to contractors from the Denver region, who have already asked for rehearsal boards.
The entrepreneur is looking for corporate partners or investors to scale production, especially to make its patented endoskeleton components more efficient. Its current individual form can generate a piece per minute, but larger shapes can drastically increase performance and reduce the costs.
One of the most important insights from Zajicek comes from his aluminum: The installation of the concrete tiles usually takes four to five days, even with large crews, the special knowledge and careful weight distribution. Its specific shingles can be installed by any crew that is familiar with asphalt shingles in the same period.
“If you know asphalt shingles, you will know my product,” he said. “You don't need a special team – it's just another roof that the boys do.”
With his final approval and examination, which is planned for September, Zajicek will be targeting a full market launch in early 2026.
“I really have the feeling that I invented a real hail shingle,” said Zajicek.