Article and photos by Amy Howe
Cowin Construction specializes in commercial and residential roofing and copper and custom sheet metal work in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri. And while their focus is in the Four States, they serve customers all over the United States.
The company is rooted in family values and was started by Ken Cowin. Over 50 years ago, Ken lived in California and worked for various companies. Some of the companies he simply worked for and others he created and owned. His original interest was in roofing, and after years on the West coast, Ken moved to Arkansas with his wife and created Cowin Roofing.
“My wife drove those trucks right along with me,” said Ken. “She did as much work as any of us.” The family did that for some time while they raised their family and then in 2009, their son Daniel took over running the business. Cowin Roofing quickly became Cowin Construction when their expertise expanded beyond the roofing industry into residential and commercial builds.
Cowin Construction currently has three generations committed to customer service and quality workmanship. Their work ethic and strong family values are unmatched and can be seen in all aspects of the business, and they desire to help their customers with their projects and be there to help for generations to come.
While they each have their specialty and interest in the company, a unique design feature the company handles a lot of is copper. “My favorite detail to work with is copper,” said Daniel. “There’s an artistic approach I’m able to take when we add copper to a project.”
Some places you are able to view their copper craftsmanship is the dome on Crowder College in Neosho, Missouri, and a steeple on the First Lutheran Church in Fort Smith, Arkansas.
Daniel’s nephew, Levi, helps with most of the copper work and recently renovated the copper gutters on a historic home built in 1890 in Webb City. Daniel’s son, Matthew, is a third-generation roofer and has been the top salesman in the company the last three years with over $3.5 million in residential roofing sales with Owens Corning.
Customer service is very important at Cowin Construction. It’s their goal to exceed their customer’s expectations and adhere to strict guidelines to ensure they are providing exceptional service to the customer. Each team member at Cowin Consruction is hyper focused on their job. They train, study and work on their specialty to ensure the highest quality of work is done for the customer.
And if you think the camaraderie between the group is only from 8 am to 5 pm when they are working together, you’d be wrong. The Cowin family consists of 13 people, and they have dinner together every night. They truly enjoy each other’s company and respect the hard work each family member does.
If there’s one thing Cowin Construction would want you to know, it’s that they love their customers. “It doesn’t matter the size of the job,” said Daniel. “We love getting to meet new customers and handle any job they have for us. Nothing is too big or too small.”
See more photos for this story in the December 2021 issue.