Glass IS good...

When Architect Magazine recently ran a story about the future of glass in buildings it surely hit a nerve for many in our industry. Glass for whatever reason suffers from some sort of inferiority complex, brought on by many factors. However I see the winds of change coming and our industry is getting stronger because our trade groups are better and we are making incredible strides from the technology side. I have always felt our technology has been under-rated, and while the misconception out there is "all glass is the same", it really isn’t and hasn’t been for a long time. Add into the dynamics, PV’s, thermo-reflectives, high efficiency low e’s, exotic coatings and tints and this is not your (or my) father’s industry anymore. So while some may say glass is in trouble, I believe end of the day that building will be clamoring for glass thanks to the products out now and in the pipeline.

Elsewhere…

-- When I mention better trade groups, I mean it as in the fact that the trades are now working together for the best interests of the industry like never before. It truly is momentous and clutch with the timing. Hopefully this new approach will keep the leeches off of us and as an industry we can keep growing the products and technology like listed above.

-- If you don’t get a knot in your stomach reading about the last glass to come off the line at Zeledyne, then you must not have any feelings at all. Very sad. Thoughts are with all of the people that are now jobless after the shutdown. In addition I know that a few of the Zeledyne sales and architectural people are still out there pounding the pavement and I am stunned no one has snapped them up. Some serious talent available folks… I know the economy is a nightmare as is our overall business model these days but someone smart is going to grab these folks and be very happy when the results come in.

-- It’s March Madness! This year takes special turn as my alma mater, the Bobcats of Ohio University have actually made the big dance… they play Thursday night vs the vaunted Hoyas of Georgetown… an upset there would be insanely epic.

-- By now your brackets should be filled out… here are my choices for the final four, so now you will know who WON’T win it (as my friends in Louisiana and Mississippi can attest to)… Final Four… Syracuse, Ohio State, Kentucky and Duke… with Duke beating Ohio State in the final… (and right now Jayhawk fan Carol Land is singing Hallelujah since I did pick her beloved Kansas squad )

-- Does it worry you that when congress needs to take draconian measures to pass a bill that maybe said bill isn’t good? Isn’t there some karmic law out there that we can point to? (yes I am talking about healthcare and if it is so bad that it can get passed through normal or traditional measures why go through these steps?)

-- Last, look for more news coming on “Bird Safe” buildings… yep with all we have to worry about, the safety of birds now is headed towards a specified item. I’ll never forget a few years ago when Julie Schimmelpenningh sent me a note on it- I thought it was an April Fools Day joke, but evidently it’s a serious problem and one that will soon be in front of all of us….

Off to the links…

Link chick really is a superwoman, she has a baby and never misses a beat… I get a hangnail and I want workmans comp and bed rest for 6 months…

-- Classic “take my ball home and not play” scenario here as Continental Airlines CEO says he’ll cancel flights instead of facing possible fines for delaying flights… ugh… this could be bad.

-- This is actually a very interesting story on the battle between “Exit” signs… trust me- worth the read…

-- A Pringles Can is a way to get Wi Fi… that alone would be interesting but now at least at one place, this odd combination is also illegal… surely bizarre…

Video of the Week:

Ok, I’ll be the only who cares about this week’s video… but it’s from the last time Ohio won a game in the NCAA’s.. 1983… Robert Tatum hits a buzzer beater… awesome baby!
Go Ohio..

O-H-I-O!