I had a feeling the issue of bird protective glazing was
going to be a big one this year and it surely has. And now with the latest news, our industry
has to be even more prepared to deal with some of the blowback. Before I get into the latest part, I will
admit that I struggled last year with the process and intentions on some of the
bird related issues surrounding the Minnesota football stadium. In the end I surely misread the situation and
the objectives of the people involved who wanted consideration for the bird
population that will be effected by the structure. So it’s been a learning experience for sure.
Now fast forward to this past week and where our industry
now has to be prepared. At Duke
University, one of the “green” buildings on campus is being blamed for the 85
bird deaths during three migration periods in the last year. There’s many ways I can go with this story but
I’ll just say this. There are options
for bird friendly glazing. And it’s time
for the focus to go from the glass being an issue to the glass being a
solution. The owner/architect needs to
be on some of the hooks here- the materials are there and the designer needs to
take into account bird migration paths and design accordingly. So while you’ll see in the linked article
that glass is listed as the bad guy, I sincerely hope that we as an industry
can stand up and note that it simply shouldn’t be all on us.
Elsewhere…
-- By the way I have to think Julie Schimmelpenningh who
brought the issue of bird protection up years and years ago at GANA meeting to
mostly giggles has to be shaking her head right now and saying “I told you so…”
-- An interesting new market study was just released about the
glass industry. According the a blurb
from a study by Grand View Research Inc. the global flat glass market will
register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.1% over the next 7
years. It noted “High performance flat
glass will drive the market” Wow.
-- So I am trying to raise my level of organization. I have cleaned my desk with the goal of it
looking like Russ Ebeid’s. (His desk, perfectly
clear- with me, it will never happen but I will try) I am also trying to go
“Inbox Zero” with my emails. Slowly but
surely I am getting there. I know a few
of you are doing the “Inbox Zero” thing so any other tips are welcomed.
-- Just wrapping up my search for someone in the industry with
Apple Watch. Tom Lee of Lee & Cates
hit me up on Twitter that he had one… so he’s the visionary! I’m looking forward to hopefully seeing him
at GlassBuild to see how it is still going.
Meanwhile I did hear through the grapevine that my good friend Kris
Vockler also has one- that does not surprise me as Kris is always on the
cutting edge of everything.
-- Last this week… Gas prices are going back up… my guess is $4
in most places by mid July. I know that
the low prices had some negative effects on the economy but man I enjoyed it
personally.
LINKS of the WEEK
-- A very long but interesting and thorough look at PTSD.
-- For the tech geeks how there- how the Beats headphones aremade. Pretty cool on the weight
additions…
-- A robotic grocery store.
This will be one to watch for sure…
VIDEO of the WEEK
I did see the Jurassic World movie and enjoyed it- but this
trailer is a hoot. Some people have the
great mix of talent, creativity, and time… and they can do a take off like
this. Funny stuff.
1 comment:
You were and are bang on with bird friendly glass. People still roll their eyes and call it 'bird glass'. The shockingly powerful American Bird Conservatory and its supporters aren't going anywhere. I can empathize. I cringe when I see trees and gardens in atriums behind vision glass or any reflective substrate near trees. It really is a murder zone for birds.
Ironically, I've noticed a trend where designers not-yet-in-the-know are incorporating images of trees and nature into the exterior façade. Interesting to see how that will play out.
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