I enjoy whole range of
podcasts and our industry has a brand new one from the guys from Edify
Studios. Brad Walker and Brad Glauser of
Edify do a great job with it and to date have had some very interesting guests
and topics. This week’s edition is close
to my heart as it’s a special edition about Mercedes Benz Stadium and features
Tom O’Malley of Clover Architectural, Court Reece of Oldcastle
BuildingEnvelope. They give a great
inside story to the glass and glazing products on this amazing structure. Well worth the watch/listen. You can download in podcast form via Apple or
Android or for an easy watch and listen- here it is on YouTube.
Elsewhere…
-- Remember only a few more
days to go to get entered in the VIP Tour of Mercedes Benz Stadium. So if you have not registered for GlassBuild yet,
do it now to be eligible. Aside from the
awesome glass and glazing you’ll also see all the great pieces of the stadium
including locker rooms and field! This is
a tremendous opportunity and experience!
-- The Dodge Momentum Index
was up nicely for June and that surely calmed some nerves with the way things
had been trending both with this index and the ABI. We are still slower pace and performance wise
than last year and there are still signs of soft times coming in the 2nd
half of the year but we’ll take a positive report like this any time.
-- Loving a new list... top15 vacation spots in US and there’s some stunners on here… here’s top 10 though
10- Honolulu- Higher on
list if you see my main man Lyle Shimazu or the great Earnest Thompson
9- Austin, TX- For the
weird in you
8- Asheville, NC- I have
never been. Guess I need to!
7- Nashville, TN-
Incredibly hot now- BEC there in 2020 proves it right?
6- Chicago, IL- To me this
is overrated- Sorry my pals from the Windy City….
5- New York City- I can
see it, so much to do etc. So much
energy.
4- Savannah, GA- I like it
but is it really 4th best??
3- New Orleans, LA-
Nope. Not for me.
2- Santa Fe, NM- Wow- help
me out anyone who’s gone- is this really that good?
1-Charleston, SC- Love it,
great place… Is it #1 though???
But for me… how is San
Diego not in top 10?? I’d make it #1
probably.
Big 3 Interview
Eric Fortin, General Manager, Northwestern Glass
Fab
I only recently got to
meet Eric Fortin and immediately I said to myself “this would be a great
interview” and sure enough it was. As
you can see below Eric has got it together!
I love that this is someone that was from outside the industry and has
now come in and made a serious difference.
Talent like what Eric possesses is crucial for our well-being and growth
as an industry and I look forward to getting to know him better and also seeing
him at the various industry events!
I have to start with your time in the United States
Army. You were a Troop Commander with
some serious responsibilities. What was
that time like for you and how often do you use the lessons and experiences
gained there in your daily work at Northwestern Glass Fab?
I
have to first give kudos to mentors. I met a very influential gentlemen during
college who helped me understand what leadership is all about. He was the first
real leader I had ever met. This gentlemen’s name is Mr. Wilbur Wolf III. Mr.
Wolf helped me to determine that joining the Army as an active duty officer was
the right thing for me to learn about myself, leadership and how to lead
people. Once I was in the Army it was a dream of mine to one day lead a cavalry
troop. Over the years I worked my tail off and positioned myself to make that
dream come true. I was fortunate to be a troop commander for a unit that was
resetting from a previous deployment to again deploy. I say fortunate because
the timing was such that I took command of the unit in Colorado and immediately
prepared to deploy. As the commander the other leaders and I trained, deployed
and then returned the unit to Colorado. In my opinion, if you are going to lead
soldiers, this is the perfect scenario and challenge. The responsibilities as a
commander are significant. As a commander of a deployed unit, you are truly
responsible for people’s lives.
My
apologies, but before I respond to your question I have to again be
appreciative to mentors who helped me take what I learned from the Army as a
leader and to apply it to the business and manufacturing environment. I was
extremely fortunate to be invited to be a part of an absolute world class
company in the glass business. This company has a history of taking ex-military
leaders and helping them make the transition to manufacturing. The experiences
they provided helped me to establish a foundation of what “right looks like” in
successful business organizations. Without two mentors who offered me this
opportunity, I more than likely would not be in the glass industry. That
company is Cardinal Glass and those two gentlemen are Dave Pinder and Mike
Arntson. Like the military, I tap into my experiences with Dave and Mike at
Cardinal every single day.
The
largest lesson that I learned from my time in the military and that I apply
daily is perspective. As stressful as some days can be, a tough day at work
today isn’t really that bad. It could be always be worse. In general, everyone
will go home to their friends and families at the end of each day. I also apply
the lessons of patience, but decisiveness, to maintain flexibility because most
things change and do not go the way you want or planned. Also, to let leaders
lead. As often as I can I try to give my leaders my intent and then let them
lead their teams. This allows them to be creative in accomplishing the
goal. Everyone learns a ton when leaders
are given the freedom to own and accomplish an objective with their teams. Lastly,
I learned about taking care of people. We are all in the people business. If
you take care of people, they will take care of you.
Your company (Northwestern Glass Fab) could be
considered a “start up” still with only being 3 years old. What are the advantages and disadvantages of
being so “new” to the marketplace? I
also ask this, as I know you have “start up” experience in your past, so this
was not your first adventure.
I want to start with how lucky I am to be a part of the
Brin Glass companies. This is such a fantastic bunch of people. I truly have
the very best boss in Bill Sullivan. Anyone who knows Bill understands what I
mean when I say this. Northwestern Glass Fab as a part of Brin Glass has been
around since 1912. Three years ago NWGF separated from the Brin Glass Company
to once again be known simply as Northwestern Glass Fab, instead of Brin
Northwestern. This meant moving to a new standalone location and to establish
itself as a standalone profit and loss division. A lot of the changes made
since I’ve joined the company were very much in order to start over. What used
to work very well no longer works. We hit reset and I believe we are now
postured for growth and another 100 years of success. I’m so very proud of my
team during the past 16 months. Change and culture change is not easy. Our
success is truly due to the team for having an open mind, patience and the will
to fight through adversity.
Fun one… what is your all time favorite movie… or
movies if you can’t just choose one and why?
I was a business and history major in college and I am
kind of a space geek. With that, my favorite movies are Apollo 13 and the
recent Apollo 11. I am always impressed with what it took to put humans in
space and on the moon. It took fantastic teamwork, dedication and a constant
fight against adversity. The people who accomplished these wonderful feats were
so smart and committed. It always impresses me when I watch those movies.
Before I die I hope to one day truly understand what a black hole truly is.
LINKS of the WEEK
This is great to see...
Renewables where it can really be used!
It is amazing that she
thought that this was a good idea.
Surviving Niagara Falls!
VIDEO of the WEEK
Has to be the video of the
Edify Podcast mentioned above! Check it
out!
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