Before I get to the AIA review and an update on the World
Cup of Glass, I have to lead off with the gigantic story that broke late
Thursday and posted first GlassMagazine.com.
Cardinal Glass Industries buying Catalina Tempering Inc. From a commercial side this is not big
news. From the residential side this is
earth shaking. Just a huge acquisition
for Cardinal and now the 2nd one in the last few months that has
really made waves (first being the acquisition of Northeast Laminated in late
April) Cardinal now has jumped in with 2 sharp, strategic moves and really
signals their intention to continue to be a force especially on the residential
glass world. Catalina was a homegrown
company that saw major success built by strategically placing plants near window
manufacturers to supply them custom tempered.
I don’t believe many people could have seen this sale coming; surely
there were no major indications of such. The bottom line here is that Cardinal
is making moves and companies once thought to be “off the market” may actually
not be…
Elsewhere…
Because of the size of the AIA recap- I am pushing Round 3
of the World Cup of Glass back a week…
-- AIA was a mixed bag.
Always great to see people and learn new things about the industry,
products, and services. However the show
itself was just not that good. Traffic
was inconsistent and very light in some areas of the floor and it’s pretty
apparent that the architects that were there just have too many things to see
and do during this show. Anyway, I know
some companies were pleased and others not so much. And no matter it does not dampen my
enthusiasm for the next big event in our world- GlassBuild America- as that
show is really coming along nicely with huge new exhibitors, innovation, and
probably the coolest education set up you can imagine.
As for the seen and visited part of the show… here goes…
-- It was good to visit Joe Erb while walking the floor; he’s
always got a great insight or 100.
Walker Textures is really an impressive company- I know I always comment
on their sartorial splendidness (Danik in a bow tie at this show- wow) but fact
of the matter this operation should be used as a case study for a group that
really “gets it.” They are always evolving and innovating. Plus it was super to get to chat with Ross
Christie of Walker while there. Speaking
of innovation, I was very impressed with the Viracon App. Really a strong tool and will be used the way
that medium was designed. It was a
pleasure to run into Jerry Schwabauer of Azon- had not seen him a while. Cool product that was not really our industry
was the home elevators from Savaria- they did feature beautiful glass doors
though. Now I don’t think I’ll ever need
or have a home elevator but if I get one- this is what I’ll buy!
-- Guardian was there in force and always so hospitable to
me. Amy Hennes is a class act and
getting to see the legend Brian Craft is always a pleasure. Brian’s healthy and looking great and led a
sold out seminar during the show. I knew
very little about Vetrotech Saint Gobain, but came away from their booth
impressed- getting hurricane resistant approvals is no easy task and they did
it with their product. Also impressive
the new unit glaze system from CRL/US Aluminum.
Really appreciate Paul Daniels giving me a quick demo. And I made a quick visit to see Sage and was
impressed by their new booth showing shapes, sizes, and new product
advancements.
-- A lot of foreign companies were on the floor trying to get a
foot in the market; hopefully they realize that doing AIA is only one part of
the mission to reach North America’s buyers.
PPG was there as always, got to chat with my favorite Jan Rogan and
visited with Glenn Miner as always. Rob
Struble happened to be there but I never got to talk with him as he was engaged
with someone every single time I swung by.
That to me may be my biggest regret of the show! You can always count on YKK to have a buzz
around their booth and this year was no different. I was very very impressed
with the team from tesa tape and their product.
They will be showing at GlassBuild for the first time this fall and I
think they will be a very popular destination for attendees to visit.
-- Random other thoughts… I blew it by not bringing my running
gear- the temps were perfect and so many places to run. I downloaded the app and took “Uber”
everywhere. The semi controversial car
sharing service was a godsend for me. I
know that those in the cab and transport industry hate them, but as a pure
consumer, in an event like this where getting around is such a pain- it was the
MVP of my time there.
-- Last this week; the World Cup of Soccer surely had our
country enthused. My wondering is what
happens in 4 years when the games are in Russia and the times of games aren’t
as convenient to watch live? Still it’s
been a fun tourney with still some great games to go.
LINKS of the WEEK
-- Homer Simpson designed a car in an episode in 1991.. and was ahead of his time!
-- How the World Cup is helping to drive traffic for newspapers
and others.
VIDEO of the WEEK
Ok I have 4 dogs… and not one of them could ever, ever, ever
do this. Riding a motorcycle…. Insane.
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