Business marks 150 years

Building manufacturer Benjamin Obdyke has adapted to market needs over the decades

Through an array of small and large changes in 150 years of business, Benjamin Obdyke has never failed to evolve and keep up with the changing times.

The building manufacturer and homebuilder business located on Babylon Road in Horsham is celebrating 150 years of business this year.

The company sells roofing and wall products and is known as an education resource for contractors and builders with its instructional videos and social media presence.

Benjamin Obdyke got its start in the roof drainage and metal and rain-carrying business in 1868, opened by the namesake.

The manufacturer has under 20 employees who operate in the main location and over 50 independent sales people selling products throughout the U.S. and in Canada.

“Even though we’re talking less than 20 [employees in Horsham], overall we have a pretty good sized presence in the marketplace,” said President David Campbell, whose grandfather bought Benjamin Obdyke in 1929.

In 1998, the company decided to sell its metal and rain-carrying business after being approached by a competitor in the same business and chose to focus on developing roof ventilation products.

“The metal and rain-carrying business had become a commodity-type business and very price driven,” he said. “Instead of being focused on manufacturing and trying to squeeze costs out of our operation because margins kept getting tighter… that allowed us to focus on value-added and innovative products.”

Campbell said he saw the company was more successful after selling its medal business and developing new products like the successful Roll Vent, a product that protects residential roofing from deteriorating forces like excess heat and moisture buildup.

Benjamin Obdyke has since been outsourcing its manufac-

turing with warehouses in the Pacific Northwest, the Chicago area and another in Pennsylvania, allowing the company to easily ship products around the U.S. and Canada. The company had previously only been selling through distribution in Pennsylvania and through upstate New York and was very “sales driven” in the metal business, Campbell said.

In the past 10 years, the company has made an effort to be more “market driven” by focusing on the end-markets and influencers like architects, builders and contractors, which is how the company began to focus on developing educational materials through digital marketing in the past five years, Campbell said.

“We’re finding that our target market isn’t going to sit down and read a manual or brochure on how to install our products, so we move more towards a visual video where we show that and show product comparisons,” he added.

Campbell said he prides his employees on not just understanding how their products work but being knowledgeable about building science and dealing with issues contractors and builders deal with on a day-to-day basis.

“You have people who do research and come up with moisture solutions to issues, and we try to take those solutions and develop products, but also educate builders so they know how to install products and be able to trust the information they’re getting from us,” he added.

Campbell’s personal philosophy: give people the opportunity to reach their full potential.

“A lot of the future will be about seeing what opportunities are out there and if we are prepared to take advantage of those opportunities,” he said. “For me, a lot of this is about the people in our organization and our customers and how we can help them grow their business and develop professionally and personally.”

Even though Benjamin Obdyke has evolved and changed over the past 150 years, it has not changed in terms of its values and culture, Campbell added.

“We’re very big on making sure people are enjoying work and the people they work with,” he said. “The culture of our business is a huge thing for us.”

“We’re very big on making sure people are enjoying work and the people they work with. The culture of our business is a huge thing for us.”

— David Campbell, president