About Metalmaster Roofmaster
OUR STORY
A 49-year track record, built in McHenry
Metalmaster Roofmaster started in 1977 as a family business founded by George and Gloria Smeja. What began as a small operation has grown into one of the largest commercial roofing and architectural sheet metal contractors in North America.
Nearly five decades later, the company still runs from a single campus in McHenry, Illinois. Estimating, sales, drafting and engineering, project management, accounting, dispatch, inventory, fabrication, welding, and an in-house fleet shop all sit under one roof. That structure is the reason a project keeps moving instead of waiting on outside suppliers and middlemen.
The company holds Illinois roofing license 104.007929 and ranks among the country’s largest, listed No. 50 on Roofing Contractor’s 2023 Top 100.
OWNERSHIP
Employee-owned, with national backing
In 2025, Metalmaster Roofmaster became an employee-owned company through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan. At the same time, Wolkow Braker took on exclusive management of the business. Wolkow Braker has been the New York tri-state area’s premier roofing, sheet metal, and waterproofing contractor since 1944, and the two firms now serve clients from the East Coast to the Midwest.
The founding Smeja family was fully bought out and is no longer involved in the company. What has not changed is the work: the same local crews, the same union fabricators and installers, the same 100,000 square foot McHenry facility, and the same service standards. The partnership adds buying power and deeper engineering resources to capabilities that were already built here.
LEADERSHIP
Who runs Metalmaster Roofmaster
Executive leadership
Scott Wolkowitz
President and CEO
Leads Metalmaster Roofmaster and Wolkow Braker, bringing two family-built contractors together under one organization serving the East Coast and the Midwest.
Nate Martone
Chief Operating Officer
Runs day-to-day operations across estimating, project management, and field execution.
Tom Sabol
Vice President
Senior operations leader across the company’s commercial roofing and sheet metal work.
Khary Penebaker
Division President
Got his start in commercial roofing in the 1990s and has spent roughly three decades in roofing leadership. His approach is simple: help people become the best version of themselves.
Geri Gregor
Chief Financial Officer
Leads finance and accounting for the company.
Katie Love
Director of Human Resources
Leads hiring, onboarding, and employee programs.
Larry Passamonte
Safety Director
Owns the safety program behind the company’s EMR of 0.66 and its OSHA 10 and 30 trained crews.
Department leadership
Justin Bellows
Director of Service
Leads the service and emergency repair division.
Joe Dorfner
Director of Roofing
Leads commercial roofing operations and crews.
Mike Massaro
Director of Sheet Metal
Leads architectural sheet metal and the McHenry fabrication shop.
Kristena Blume
Controller
Oversees accounting and financial controls.
Shannon Pipkin
Human Resources
Supports hiring, onboarding, and employee relations.
WHY MMRM
What sets Metalmaster Roofmaster apart
In-house fabrication
A 100,000 square foot temperature-controlled, bonded, and insured facility in McHenry. The company stocks material and fabricates custom metal to exact specifications with its own forces, on projects of any size. No third-party supplier delays.
Self-performed union crews
Roofing and architectural sheet metal installed by the company’s own union fabricators and installers, not subcontracted out.
A safety record that holds up to a prequalification review
EMR of 0.66, with OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 trained crews.
Manufacturer standing most contractors never reach
A repeat winner of the Elevate Inner Circle of Quality Award, given to fewer than 32 contractors nationwide, along with the President’s Club, Master Contractor, and Platinum Council awards, and the Berridge Customer of Distinction Award.
Proven on the buildings that matter
Over 49 years the company has worked on Chicago landmarks and major commercial projects, including Navy Pier, Soldier Field, Willis Tower, and Saint Laurent, along with stadiums, museums, and high-rises.
Talk to us about your project
Whether you are putting a job out to bid or planning a reroof, the people who will run your project are the ones who answer the call. Request a quote and a member of the team will get back to you.
Emergency service, 24/7: 815-459-6415
