Building trust and community on the RCAW show floor

By Emma Peterson. 

Tim Cossette shares insights into the value of RCAW, the power of networking and the importance of industry collaboration. 

A couple months ago, The Coffee Shops™ crew was at the Roofing Contractors Association of Washington (RCAW)’s 2026 trade show. This year’s show was bigger than ever, with more than three dozen booths on the expo floor, an entire Spanish-language education track and of course the ever-popular Fastest Shingle Competition! While there, we got the chance to catch up with professionals from all across the industry, like Tim Cossette from Owens Corning! 

Tim has been a proud member of RCAW for years now. He shared a bit about his experience, saying, “I've been on the board for two years and was previously the chairman of membership. And overall RCAW is just a fantastic organization with great networking events and a lot of value for professionals.” 

When we asked him about how this year's show was going, he emphasized how RCAW gives contractors and professionals a space to set aside the competition and learn together:  

Going to a show like this, professionals get to see a lot of things very quickly and talk with others that face similar pain points and challenges as they do... You can share best practices and know the people aren’t here to steal your ideas, they’re here to learn together.  

Not only does creating this supportive community help professionals grow their careers and businesses, but it also helps the image of the roofing industry on a whole. As Tim put it, “A big problem is the lack of trust between our industry and homeowners. By sharing best practices with each other in environments like RCAW’s show, we can raise the standard of the industry and work together to change homeowners’ perceptions.” 

Check out the whole interview with Tim to hear more about the 2026 RCAW show.