Rough Week

We start this week some tough news. A few days ago, word came that Cliff Monroe passed away.  Cliff was a leading technical mind in our industry for many years, and held important roles at Arch Aluminum, Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope and eventually his own consulting company.  Cliff was also a main voice in the world of GANA and the technical committees there.   I am so gutted by this news of Cliff passing.  He was a great man and friend to me and my family.  He was loved by so many in our industry and truly was special.  Cliff had a biting sense of humor, sometime deprecating, sometimes sarcastic, but always on the mark and often always had a great smile on his face.   Most of all he legitimately cared about everyone he worked with and for.  An incredible quality.  I spent so much of my professional life over the years with Cliff, such a super person. He will be missed.  

 

Then from a national figure like Cliff to a local one for me.  Ed Williams, known lovingly in the Michigan glass and glazing market as “Uncle Ed” also passed away this week.  Ed was a legend in the Detroit area.  How much so?  He had a golf outing named in his honor for years… Yes, alive and well and every year you could play in the Ed Williams Invitational!  Now that’s amazing.  Ed was incredibly kind to me when I moved to Michigan in 1997 and always greeted with a smile.  Ed’s family is heavily entrenched in the glazing community here, so this is a big loss for sure.

 

Last, I am not sure when it happened, but heard that another ex-coworker of mine Richard Alvarez also passed on.  Richard was a great and caring guy, and along with Kirk Johnson really was a major force in the southern California fabricator market.  I always could count on Richard to drop me a note from time to time commenting on my blog, but more so, whether I was working with him or not, if I needed some insight or direction, Richard never failed me. And I know was not the only one that he never let down.   

 

So not the best of weeks recently that is for sure, 3 more excellent people and industry leaders pass on.  Thoughts and prayers to all of their family and friends. 

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  The ABI was released and it actually stayed relatively the same from the previous surprising month- this time coming in at 47.5.  So we are still under water but staying steady and we didn’t have that drop off I expected.  Love being wrong on that!  There was some good news though in that project inquiries really boosted up (59) and design contracts passed the 50 mark coming in at 51.7.  That is very hopeful stuff and we’ll keep watching it all and reporting back…

 

--  Nice and exciting news on a big-time player in our industry.  Kensington Glass Arts picked up a Subcontractor of the Year award from the ABC in Metro Washington & Virginia.  As I always note, it is so important when one of our companies win positive recognition, and these guys at KGa do it right.  So props to Jim Rathbone, Bill Wilson and everyone there on a much deserved award and honor!

 

--  Note- what is also nice on Kensington’s success is that they were also an early adopter of the NACC certification program.  Wins like this also shine a positive light on what I consider a truly important program that only makes our industry stronger and better.

 

--  Last this week.. only 5 more spots on my “Influential 15” and 2 will be taken now…. 

First up is Dr. Helen Sanders of Technoform.  Helen is pure brilliance.  I had her on my list and then when I heard her on John Wheaton’s excellent “Creating Structure” podcast it just reinforced my decision.  Helen was and is an amazingly influential player at the energy and code level.  She gets it.  She brought high performance and our needs to really understand it and push it to all levels of our industry.  She also was willing to share and volunteer, being all over the place, supporting events and committees with an incredible amount of selflessness.  I for one appreciate her commitment to our world, and without her, we’d be so much further behind in the daily code battles and efforts to get the word out about our products and performance.  Her efforts now are needed more than ever- go listen to the Wheaton pod to learn more about her personally (fascinating) and professionally (insanely impressive).

 

My other choice this week is Julie Schimmelpenningh.   Julie is without a doubt one of the most influential people we have seen in our world ever.  She was a huge key in making laminated glass the massive growth area that is today. She also (like I mentioned with Helen) was and is a huge volunteer of time and care in every technical aspect of our industry.  Julie also tells it like it is.  Always.  She doesn’t sugarcoat.  And never will.  And we all need this quality in our lives.  I have mentioned here previous, but this whole move to bird glazing that now is huge?  Julie was the initial lead voice alerting our industry that this is real.  I mean if noting a movement that many at the time (me included) thought was a joke is not influential I don’t know what is.  Personally I owe Julie a ton- she supported me when it probably wasn’t the popular thing to do, and always treated me a ton better than I deserved.  Last, Julie is also well known for being absolutely unstoppable once the meeting ends and recreation begins.  I have never experienced that because I’m in bed by 9 each night of a conference, but the legend of Julie there is also truly epic.  

 

Julie and Helen- two strong, smart, and super women that our industry has been blessed to have!

 

--  Only three more people to go- two next week and then my last one who also happens to be in the running for my 2020 MVP which will be revealed on that same last scheduled post of the year in two weeks.  

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

This is not a joke… Parents throwing their kids over a gate when late for school…

 

My Canadian friends… is this true and happening? LOL!

 

Thumbs up or down on this wild looking home?  Some solid glass usage in there…

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

 

I gotta say my friend Tom O’Malley has done some incredible work with Clover Architectural but this project of the week may take the cake… Want to talk about being stopped in your tracks by an impressive structure?  This one is it.  It is not far from me here in Michigan and I can’t wait to see it person.  The screenwall (on top of the curtainwall) is what Tom and Clover manufactured and supplied and it just is awesome!  Great design from the iconic Yamasaki firm, with expert install from the gang at Modern Mirror and Glass. Great work there… and also props on the LinkedIn post mentioned Spectrum Metal Finishing (super people there) and Rice Engineering.  Congrats to Tom and the team on yet another fabulous job. 

 

Forecast Season Begins

The first of two major construction forecasts were released this previous week and leading off was the annual Dodge Data and Analytics Conference.  Going into this every previous forecast was basically saying we are headed into a dip but expect recovery into 2021 and beyond.  And all metrics always note that it’s assuming the virus issue is under some sort of control and we don’t backslide into lockdowns or other catastrophes. This one came in pretty similar but it was more sobering for some reason.  This forecast says the commercial sector for starts will finish down 23% this year and only gain back 5% of that in 2021.  That is a tough number for us because what we do lags starts quite a bit, so some of us probably haven’t even tasted any of that 23% reduction yet. The perk up of 5% is probably less than we all were expecting too.  Obviously a lot can and WILL change, so we just have to keep plugging away. (COMMUNICATE! DIVERSIFY!)  There was a ton more to this session and I am still going through it all- and am planning to share more insight on this in the coming weeks. Plus Construct Connect has their forecast this coming week and I want to see how they come in as well.  That all said the economic news wasn’t all negative or down… this blurb elsewhere online caught my eye:

 

Goldman Sachs sees a bull run in 2021. Expects a strong vaccine-led recovery w/global real GDP growth of 6%. Sees S&P 500 at 4300 by end-2021, 22% higher than today.

 

So we may have some short term pain but could have some long term gains coming.  No matter what it all hinges on a virus that has been pure misery so far and I am not sure is ready to give up haunting all of us yet.  

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  By the way the next Architectural Billings Index is coming this Wednesday.  I will be absolutely stunned if it is not down from last month. Last month was a doozy to me- and the over cautious tone from the analysts give me a feel like it was a fluke. We’ll see and hope for the best… I’ll obviously cover it all on my next post.

 

--  Big Thirsty Thursday this week on restoring glass surface blemishes.  This is a major issue in our world and NGA lined up two excellent speakers for this session.  For more details and how to get signed up (it is FREE) click HERE! 

 

--  Congrats to Rick Alexander of Tom Brown Inc.  for getting big time published with a paper on Pressure-Sensitive Glazing Tapes for Window Fabricationthat appears in Adhesives & Sealants Magazine (ASI) – Great piece that has been the lead story at that publication- I always love when our industry has people doing bright things and everything Rick does is brilliant so it fits the bill.  Nice work!

 

--  Also nice work to Guardian Glass and a thank you to Alan Kinder there.  A few weeks ago, I had a super project of the week in North Carolina and no glass players were listed.  I asked who did this excellent work and Alan jumped in and gave me the details.  It was the Clayton Commercial Glazing job from my 10/25 post and Guardian Glass is the primary manufacturer with the fabrication done from the fine folks at TriStar Glass.  Great work everyone- thank you for passing the info along!

 

--  Also from the Guardian Glass world, they announced a new Low E with the release of SunGuard® SNE 50/25. From initial looks I really like the appearance and performance. Good new option for designers/energy models.   I like pushing new products as we have to keep overcoming objections out there about what we as an industry can do (or can’t do) and as we keep innovating and releasing new products, let’s celebrate it because it is good for our world as a whole.  Congrats to the team at Guardian Glass who worked on this one.

 

--  Now to my ongoing “Influential 15” and two more spots covered this week.  And since we’ve been on a Guardian run, it’s fitting that one of the spots goes to someone from there… or at least used to be there.  The late great Russ Ebeid is the choice on this one because both personally for me and professionally on this industry he did have an incredible influence.  For me personally, I have noted on here before that it was Russ that was a great sounding board when I was between jobs and his advice and insights were dead on. Industry wise, Russ was a tremendous leader and quite a few people who are still major players today came from the Russ tree. He was the smartest guy in the room during his time leading Guardian and so much of what he put into place remains today.  

 

--  My other spot this week goes to the head of the National Glass Association Nicole Harris.  I have had the honor of working with and for Nicole for many many years and have seen up close what she has done and how she thinks and leads on a totally higher level than anyone else out there.  It truly is amazing.  The saying that goes “We are all playing checkers while Nicole is playing Chess” is absolutely appropriate.  Her leadership has been crucial and now even more so in the time of Covid.  Nicole pushed her team to put out incredible amounts of resources to help companies through this and those efforts haven’t stopped, all the while making sure our technical interests are covered and we are not losing sight of the battles for the wall.   I live and love this industry and our products, but I don’t come close to doing what Nicole has done to make sure we are better tomorrow than we are today. So two more amazing people who are truly key to our world… only 5 more to go…

 

--  Last this week... no post next week… I’ll be back after US Thanksgiving- unless some sort of major news breaks (doubtful though you never know!) As those of you who know me, know my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving and this year will be a tough one with limits on gatherings and worries with regards to the virus, but I am still incredibly thankful for all- my family, friends, and all of you who read and support me and our industry.  Hope all of you have a happy and healthy thanksgiving and we’ll see you back here in a couple of weeks!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

--  Police vs a food truck- a wild story

 

--  Good work here on kids building their own classrooms- the whole higher education model has needed to change- stuff like this will speed that up

 

--  You could get pizza “insurance” from Dominoes… now for the holidays “Turkey Insurance”

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

This is an older one but when I saw it on LinkedIn I noted it because it is too cool not to share. This is 7 St Thomas Job in Toronto featuring amazing Bent Glass that just stops you in your tracks.  Standard Bent Glass did the fabricating (now lead in sales spot by old pal Jon Johnson) and Guardian Glass the raw glass.  (Wow- this post is almost like a paid ad for them- seriously it was not the plan, just worked out that way- all 3 people from Guardian who read this will at least like it. LOL) BV Glazing deserves massive props on the install.  Obviously the fabulous design from Hariri Pontarini is off the charts amazing.   Wonderful work everyone!!

The Battle Continues

It may have been forgotten or at least minimized in light of all else going on in our world, but our industry is still “battling” for the wall.  There continues to be movements out there for less glass and it is one that the NGA and it’s dream team of leaders and advocates are fighting at every front.  Last month the issues came up again during the ASHRAE 90.1 Virtual Meeting and thankfully the folks on our side were present and on top of things.  But this continues to bear watching and supporting when asked.  If you are not a member of the National Glass Association, put in the budget for 2021.  Then follow closely what the team is doing there to protect our interests.  Glass is too good to be minimized and it is worth the fight!

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  Congrats to old friend Chris Fronsoe on his new spot at Vitro Architectural.  Chris is a tremendous guy and passionate about our world, so it’s great to have him out there on the glass side again.  Plus the style he brings, especially with his choices in shoes, is a must to make up for people like me who wear the same pair of New Balance everywhere to everything! Congrats Chris and Vitro- Great combo!!

 

--  And speaking of Vitro, they also made news this week with their Steve Marino winning “Article of the Year” from Construction Specifier Magazine.  His article on diagnosing glass breakage in buildings was winner and I love when our industry stands out amongst all the other building product players in a competition like this.  Congrats Steve!

 

--  2 more spots on my 15 most influential being filled this week and its folks that truly blazed trails in their specific discipline.  First up the couple of Larry and Trisha Vockler of ICD Coatings.  The Vockler’s (along with daughter Kris as time went on) changed the world of spandrel.  Before they developed their product, smaller fabricators like my family business at the time could never truly compete in commercial work because of the spandrel space.  Larry and Trisha changed that with their product and their commitment to the industry too.  They recognized an area of need and groups of companies who could get behind it and started a major change.  Simply a huge positive developed by brilliant people.  In addition, they are pure class and great ambassadors for all we can do in our world.  The other spot this week goes to Michael Spellman of IGE Glass Technologies.  Same theme as the Vockler’s, Michael changed the way people bought glass fabrication equipment and moved an entire sector into a new and innovative space.  Michael’s efforts to find new products that could improve all we do were huge movements in improving overall efficiencies and bottom lines.  Obviously, that continues today and where I am excited is Michael now has his eyes on Vacuum Insulating Glass and trying to disrupt that like he did equipment- again it will be good for our world.  So… 2 more spots taken by folks who without their influence and direction our industry may be in the stone ages and surely not as advanced as we are now and will be going forward!

 

--  Last this week, part 2 of my interview with Patrick MacLeamy former CEO of HOK.  I will note that I was bummed by his answer on my glass question- obviously you all know me I want people to be over the top effusive in praise for our core product.  Patrick’s answer is great and true, but man I would’ve loved him to talk about glass like we all do!  In any case here’s part 2 and some excellent insights to be had!

 

MP: I have blogged a few times about the importance of executive coaching and that is something you embraced as you were climbing the ladder at HOK. How hard was it for you to truly take on those lessons and how much would you recommend it to executives now?

 

PM: I initially soured on leadership training from seminars where consultants conduct team-building exercises. I never saw quantifiable benefits afterward. In contrast, private coaching, which I called “charm school,” proved invaluable. It taught me to allow people room to voice their own thoughts—reinforcing the “careful listening” technique championed by HOK co-founder Gyo Obata. A second take-away from coaching is that people need to understand whysomething is important, not just what to do. This invests people in the problem-solving process and builds a stronger consensus. 

 

Executive coaching undoubtedly advanced my career. I’m indebted to HOK HR Director John Mahon, who took me to dinner and said that I could be the company’s next CEO—if I would accept private coaching to help develop a middle-ground approach between a relaxed atmosphere that encourages design creativity and the rigidity required to make a business profitable. I recommend executive coaching for any aspiring leader. 

 

Circling back to team-building, we found working together as volunteers more beneficial than consultant-conducted seminars. For example, 200 top HOK leaders helped a school in Mexico by building a classroom addition, assembling playground equipment, and planting a garden in conjunction with one of our periodic leadership retreats. This reinforced a foundational HOK philosophy: Collaboration inside is the best way to compete outside.

 

MP: My audience is glass and glazing.  I believe we play a massive role in the design.  What advice would you give to the glass industry to be better partners to the architectural community and advance our standing?

 

PM: The building industry suffers from fragmentation, with too many small players and a lack of true collaboration between the architect, contractor, and owner. Building Information Modeling (BIM) has become the digital platform to foster improved collaboration between all the different participants in the building industry—including providers of glass products. I helped found buildingSMART International in 1994 to promote open BIM standards for the building industry and continue to serve as international Chairman. The organization champions open-source software for everyone involved in the four phases of a building: design, procurement, construction (which I prefer to call building assembly), and operations. I encourage glass manufactures join with us and become full participants in shaping the future of the global building industry.

MP: Two sides of the coin question - Is there a trend now in architecture and design that excites you and is there anything that concerns you?

 

PM: Sustainability is the answer for both sides of that coin. Building construction and operations are responsible for 40%-50% of the world’s carbon emissions and 40%-50% of landfill waste, presenting an enormous challenge—and opportunity—for our industry. Open BIM and advanced software enable the design and construction of energy-efficient, sustainable buildings with significantly reduced construction waste. At HOK, we instituted the Smart Effort Curve (which the industry later called the “MacLeamy Curve”) to illustrate the advantages of front-loading efforts in the project design phase, preventing costly fixes in the concrete/steel/glass stage. The world needs more efficient, sustainable buildings, and we—designers, builders, and building product manufacturers—must work together to meet that urgent goal.

 

MP: You are still involved with your role at buildingSMART International. (Which you have been involved with from the start I believe) How is that going and why is it crucial that the architectural and building product world to embrace these efforts?

PM: BuildingSMART has become the leading creator of digital standards for the global building industry, with chapters in 23 countries and ongoing work to extend these standards to become more useful. In the past five years, buildingSMART has also become the standards body for the global infrastructure industry—roads, bridges, tunnels, railroads, airports, and more. I believe buildingSMART is the key driver of positive change in the design, procurement, construction, and operation of buildings and infrastructure around the world.

 

Thank you Patrick!  His book Designing a World-Class Architecture Firm is an excellent read and worth checking out. Click the title above to learn more. 

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

Blog was really long this week, so no links this time around… will be back next week!!

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

 Another one I stumbled on via LinkedIn.  This is Willow Grove YMCA in Pennsylvania and the glass just pops!  Love the look and layout- wish there was more glass (as always) but love what is there.   Great work on the fabrication by Glass Enterprises (where I spotted in online via the great feed of John Peirce) and installed by Eureka Metal and Glass. Architect was Kramer + Marks and float glass was by Vitro.  Great players all around combining on an excellent job.  Congrats to all involved

BOD, PR, and Q&A

A bit different of a post this week… two quick pieces, then part 1 of my interview with Patrick MacLeamy.  So here goes…

 

--  Great news from NGA this week with the announcement of 4 new members added to an already amazing Board of Directors.  Congrats to Courtney Little, Denise Baker, Silas Koonse, and most especially for me Chris Dolan.  As readers of this blog know I am huge fan of Chris and his “megatron” like skillset (an old reference to Chris being like the Calvin Johnson of the Glass Industry- a guy who can do anything at the highest level) and adding him to the board is absolutely awesome for our industry.  Very pumped for this group to keep growing what the NGA does to continue to help our industry!

 

--  This week I add one more person to my most influential 15… that would be the best PR person in the history of our industry- Heather West.  If you don’t work with PR people, your image of them is the “Hollywood” version of a fast-talking person selling and spinning.  Well that’s not very accurate in real life or our industry and it is surely not Heather.  No Heather is sharp and focused and there’s never “spin” just cold hard usually awesome facts that advance her clients and our industry a great deal.  When I look at Heather I see someone who set the PR bar impossibly high and I appreciate that because again, what she has done has advanced the appreciation and usage of glass and glazing.  Heather also happens to be a class act, so in addition to being an amazing influence she’s good people.  So on my list she goes!  I have 6 spots now filled 9 left to go… and I just feel so grateful that all of these people I am listing not only positively disrupted our industry but had a great influence on me and how I do things. 

 

Ok so I have written a few times on the book  Designing a World-Class Architecture Firm by Patrick MacLeamy former CEO of HOK.  I was lucky enough to get an e-mail interview with Patrick and here is Part 1.  You’ll see how his passion comes through here and the book was the same way.  

 

MP: Now that the book has been out a while, has anyone you worked with had any issues with you talking about some of the tougher times in the business like the cash flow challenges or branch politics etc.?  This was such a rare peek inside the halls of an organization everyone in our little world knows….

 

PM: None whatsoever—transparency was at the root of HOK’s emergence from those challenges, and that openness helped influence Designing a World-Class Architecture Firm. Honest communication allowed HOK to identify its flaws and create solutions. As one example, after HOK’s accounting system was simplified so everyone in the company could understand it, we opened the books. Each office could see how the others were performing, increasing positive peer pressure and collaboration. HOK is owned by employee shareholders, and company-wide support was offered to offices that weren’t meeting goals. Also, my annual visits to each office included Ask Me Anything sessions for all staff. So, transparency is part of HOK’s DNA. It played a vital role in reclaiming financial stability and a collaborative culture (which we call HOK Culture).

 

MP: You were in charge of HOK from 2003 to 2016. You navigated the company through a bunch of very pivotal issues that could’ve taken a wrong turn somewhere. Of every victory you had though- which one is the one you appreciate the most? For me it had to be paying off the BOA loan. (HOK had a line of credit with Bank of America that had become a pain point for a few different reasons)  That scotch afterwards had to taste extra good!

 

PM: That was probably the most satisfying extrication. Everyone in the company made sacrifices to pay off HOK’s line of credit. The experience prompted me to include insights on relationships with banks in Designing a World-Class Architecture Firm. Firms should seek out banks that view clients as partners, not just revenue sources.

 

MP: HOK and sports and the adventures you had in that space was the biggest surprise for me in the book.  You eventually handled everything and came out ahead but I have think it was a heck of challenge given the strong imaging the brand had not only in the building product world but even with the everyday consumer who looked at HOK as the premier designer of all of these great new stadiums. How tough were those times and if you could do anything different what would you have done?

 

PM: In 1983 HOK hired four architects in Kansas City with specialized sports design experience. These designers transformed stadiums into multi-functional event centers by adding luxury suites, retail, and other amenities. Along the way they grew the small office into a hugely successful practice that became HOK Sport. The timing was perfect—many professional teams’ stadium leases were set to expire in the 1980s and 1990s, and HOK Sport subsequently designed Camden Yards for the Baltimore Orioles, MetLife Stadium for the Jets and Giants, United Center where the Bulls play in Chicago, and numerous others. 

 

HOK Sport became one of the firm’s primary profit centers. That division’s revenue covered shortfalls in other areas—which led to growing pains and HOK having to re-assess its accounting and bonus programs. In retrospect, HOK Sport’s merger with Lobb (which specialized in sports architecture in the UK and Australia) wasn’t a seamless fit. HOK should have demanded that Lobb assimilate into HOK’s London office instead of retaining their existing London location. It created a rift between HOK Sport and the rest of the company. HOK’s core culture was one of collaboration, and HOK Sport had operated autonomously from the beginning. We ultimately sold HOK Sport to its leaders and relaunched the division, re-aligning operations with the rest of the company. The new HOK Sports + Recreation + Entertainment was an instant success, with projects including Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Hard Rock Stadium’s modernization in Miami, and others.

Next week- Where glass fits in, Coaching, BuildingSMART and more....  

LINKS of the WEEK

 

OK noted if I ever become Walter White of Breaking Bad, insurance won’t cover my mess.

 

AirBNB in the world of COVID.  

 

This will be a Netflix Doc eventually I am sure

PROJECT of the WEEK

This week we go to the decorative side of things… Nathan Allan Glass Studios had this one LinkedIn and the picture stopped me cold.  I think their write-up on it is better than what I could say so here it is… NICE WORK folks!

Two large walls were installed with our Custom Sawtooth Glass. Panels measured 64” x 62” (1626mm x 1575mm). The front panel is 3/4″ (19mm) Low Iron glass, with our Custom Sawtooth pattern. Each Custom Sawtooth Glass panel is laminated to a separate, low iron, flat glass panel. The laminated panels provided extra strength to each panel set and create a safety glass, which passed building code requirements.
Custom Sawtooth Glass Partitions
Installation by Genesis Architectural
Interior Design by KPF, NYC
55 HUDSON YARDS, NYC