Roofing underlayment, discovered in the field.

As The founder of RENU Renovations LLC in 2014, and coming from A roofing installation company, our goal was to offer top level craftsmanship and materials. I was familiar with TITANIUM UDL 30. We did mostly roofing and since that was a top tier product, Manufactured by DEVrel Industries, and Marketed by the TITANIUM Brand. From the beginning I adopted that premium product as our underlayment of choice. The best grip and walkability in the industry. I wanted straight shingle lines, so we chalked a lot of lines. The Spin, fibrous surface of lesser quality underlayments only allow about 1/3 as many lines to be snapped per reel in, because the surface absorbs the chalk. It also has a very strong static cling that makes placing the shingles precisely, slower and more difficult. The average 25sq roof has 1600 shingles, when each one is fighting you not to be placed in it's correct location, the spun surface's lower cost up front soon gets eaten up in loss of momentum and therefore cost of labor time.

In 2016 the Titanium brand was purchased by Owen's Corning, they moved production to INDIA. Since the walk surface was patented, no one else was able to compete, and Devrel was left with a gaping hole in the production line. Because of the patent, TITANIUM did not need to compete with anyone on price point. After several years of price creep, combined with us doing less steeply inclined roofs, we switched to the TITANIUM UDL 25 since that line had improved the surface grip and walkability over the first generation UDL 25. It is a 120 GSM product instead of the heavier UDL30.

The first project we used it on, I liked it, but what I really wanted was the 120gsm, with the same surface as the UDL 30. We used the UDL25 for approximately two years, and again prices were creeping up and other walk surfaces at lower price points were tempting, but we stayed with UDL25 because of the benefits.

In the winter of 2026, I fulfilled a long time dream, attending the International Roofing Expo. The largest roofing show in the world, with over 700 roofing trade vendors. As I was walking along I spotted an Underlayment manufacture that had a product that was remarkably like the TITANIUM UDL 30. I suspiciously asked if that is what it was. After some interaction I discovered that since the TITANIUM patent had run out in the fall of 2025, the dormant tooling was brought back to life. The same product that had been TITANIUM UDL30 for many years was being taken to market by DEVREL, under the brand ARKint. With the "new" product being labeled ARMOUR 30. The thing that really made me excited was that I could purchase whatever material thickness I wanted. However this excitement ended rather abruptly when the discovery was made that the only way to purchase this product was in container quantity. Although I had set up the roofing business in a way that I could market construction products, I had only done it in limited quantity, and the resources to buy this kind of volume, 1200 rolls of something, at these price points, on something I had only seen a sample of, was more risk than I was willing to take. After a lot of negotiation I was able to get the quantity down to 150 rolls, and although there was still a lot of risk since I needed to pre-pay for, I forged ahead.

The first Project we used it on, we called our supplier and returned the remaining 1/2 skid of TITANIUM UDL 25, we certainly did not want to go back to the lesser surface that it has. UDL 25 is 120 GSM, but the Armour 120 weighs 11% more for just slightly more fastener tear-out resistance. The grip between the 120gsm ARMOUR 30, and the TITANIUM UDL 25 is not even in the same category. I soon realized I would need to purchase more, but with no other U.S. distributors, I was left with no choice but to be my own distributor. This would not be feasible unless I actually was a distributor to other contractors and retailers.

And so GEAR&BUILD was born, with the first product launch being ARMOUR 30 in 120 and 180 GSM. I spent countless hours representing ARMOUR 30 and talking to potential clients, hoping to pre-sell some, but when I had very little materials in my possession, not much was happening.

On July 11th 2026, I decided to take the plunge, I ordered a full container. It was a big investment with little place to go. I had other stock, I gave out test rolls, sent videos and followed up, Slowly the responses started coming, and when people used the product, the feedback was invariably positive. "I want 2 more skids" "I love the fact there is no static" "rolled out very nicely on roof deck". "The grip on the 120 is better than the Tyvek PROtec 120 we have been using."

I tested some thinner materials to compete against the likes of Rhino, Elephant Skin, Starwrap, Protector, and FT Solutions 90, but I do not want to use an Underlayment that is flimsy, and offers very little tear resistance.

I am still pushing ahead trying to get contractors and distributors the product that helps them be profitable, safe, and have the margins they need to survive. Each new contact, each new customer is an addition to my network as a contractor, and part of our story as well as my family's story.