Pod, Forecast, Advocacy and More

The latest edition of the From the Fabricator podcast is up and it’s got three dynamic and strong players on it.  This month I kick it off with Susan Stone from Ubiquitous Energy.  Susan was supposed to be on the opening session at BEC but had to cancel because of the insane weather her region was receiving at the time.  So it was a good chance to visit with her since so many were looking forward to hearing from her at the show.  Then on to Trent Thiry of Global Security Glazing/Isoclima- he’s somewhat new to our space but making inroads and I love his outlook and approach and his favorite food choice too… last this month Brandon Nicastro of GCS Glass.  Talent and success from the ground up and he does not stop grinding or running for  that matter.  With all three, great energy and insights so it was a super time overall.  Thank you for checking it out!!

VIDEO

AUDIO (And available on Apple, Spotify, Google etc.)

 

Elsewhere….

 

--  The latest Architectural Billings Index was released, and we went back down- so the possibility of it making a quick return to the positive was dashed and now with the current banking unrest I can’t see next month getting into plus territory either.  New inquiries did stay positive though and so that continues to provide hope that this will be a short-lived cycle.  Meanwhile there was good news from Dodge in that non-residential building starts were up last month.  However, areas we expect to be strong- institutional and healthcare struggled.  We knew this was going to be bumpy and it is playing out as such.

 

-- This week features Glass & Glazing Advocacy Days in Washington DC.  Kudos to my friends at the NGA and all of the member companies that sent representatives to this event to push and promote the important issues that we as an industry can positively disrupt. These days mean more than normal precisely because of the slowing markets- we need to be getting our materials in every possible scenario and if there’s an angle where legislation can assist- we need to be there.

 

--  From my pal Frank D’Aprile of KENPAT the news that Jim Jackson, Founder of Architectural Glass Services is retiring after an incredible 50-year career in contract glazing.  Jim built an amazing legacy and has put our industry in a great light thanks to his care and focus.  His efforts will surely be missed but obviously getting to go out on top and retire is huge- enjoy that next phase Jim and thank you Frank for the heads up!

 

--  Last week my lead story on Viracon’s new IGU identification program had a ton of reaction – all positive.  But as I noted this effort had been worked on previously and evidently both Interpane and View both offer it as well.  So no matter what this is a good thing for the installer base- one less thing to chase down!

 

--  Have you read this story on the failed company Katerra and chasing back the bonus that they gave their ex CFO?  The whole thing boggles my mind.  The pay, the bonus, and then the termination timing.  Very “Succession” like.  (Which in a side note- the latest season of Succession is back!)  

 

--  This is a good one to see- Women have gained more jobs than men for four straight months, including in January's hiring surge, pushing them to hold more than 49.8% of all nonfarm jobs. No idea how this relates to the glass world- but I am hopeful that trend does hit us too.  

--  Was THRILLED to see Brian Leizerowicz promoted to Vice President of Sales at Western Window Systems.  Brian is one of the good guys in our world.  Love seeing this move and Brian’s energy and drive will be good for Western and our industry as whole.  CONGRATS!

 

--  Last this week… kudos to friend Keith Daubmann of MyShowerDoor and D3 Glass for living out a dream that I think a  few of sports fans may have.  Throwing out the first pitch at his favorite major league baseball teams game.  Keith threw a beauty before the Boston Red Sox took on the Minnesota Twins and the whole thing was awesome to see.  Happy for and jealous of Keith!  BUT- no way could I throw one nicely like Keith… I’d throw it into the 10^throw.  Several year's ago at BEC, we had Jim Abbott- the great ex Yankee pitcher as our keynote.  He called me on stage to “have a catch” – I was a wreck and my throwing motion was an ugly mess and I barely got the ball there.  And that was only 5 feet away.  At 60 feet?  Yikes.  Anyway pumped for Keith and good to see him in the spotlight- he’s usually so shy, this could get him to break out of his shell.  Ha ha ha. See it here via FaceBook. 

 

LINKS of the WEEK

Owl vs Parrot

 

Wild story of art and family

This tech is promising (fight through the top half of the article to get to the point) but can it make it?  Can it go from lab to real???

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

Took me a while to get to this one but in the spotlight this week is Rhyno Glass in Florida.  They took an old CrossFit gym and transformed it into a very functional fabrication facility and office.

They used the SLIMPACT XL glazing system and SLIMPACT doors, among other materials and this unique project showcases all of Rhyno’s structural glazing fabrication and installation abilities. Great stuff.  Congrats to the Rhyno team on a job well done!!

 

 

A Needed Innovation

The big news for this blog dropped late in the week and I think it was hinted upon during my podcast with Garret Henson of Viracon.  The announcement that Viracon would be adding a code to each IGU that will identify the exact make-up of the unit is big big news in my opinion.  This is something that has been bandied about for years and some have tried on much smaller scales but to have something formal like this truly is a huge accomplishment.  Matching or replacing existing is already an adventure but even worse when you don’t exactly know what the product is- this move by Viracon – at least for their units- takes that guessing game out.  Excellent work to get that moving and now we’ll see how fast others will move to match.  Again it’s been a process that some have tried/done in small bursts, but now it’s a national play… congrats to the team at Viracon for pushing this out there and I’ll count this is as a mini scoop because on my podcast Garret noted something big was coming and I gotta assume this was it!

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  BEC may be over but that buzz continues and I love it.  One item that I want to share for those that did not attend was the “Top 10” list that I opened the show with.  I found this list that was presented 20 years ago at BEC and brought it back to show how much has changed and improved since 2003.  So here goes the Top 10 Industry Challenges for the Glazing Contractor in 2003. 

10 Lack of commitment and dealing with poor project coordination by general contractors;

9 Architects—lack of product knowledge;

8 Ramifications from the design/build process;

7 Inadequate architectural drawings and/or details;

6 Construction scheduling;

5 Project management;

4 Risk transfer or evaluation;

3 Bad documents and killer contracts;

2 Getting paid; 

and

1 Building a quality workforce.

And as I noted from the stage- isn’t great that we figured all of this out and fixed it?  

Truly is something to see it all in print that 20 years later this list is pretty much what it would be if we created it today.  Some things are being worked on more diligently than others but the challenge remains.  The big question is at the 2043 BEC when probably one of the Habers (from the latest generation who just attended their first BEC) is hosting it- will they bring this up again and will it be the same?

 

--  One more note on BEC- if you were not convinced Bird Friendly glazing was a real thing- you should be now.  The commitment is there.  The products options are there.  And the codes and standards will just keep coming.

 

--  The Architectural Billings Index gets released this week and will be a curious one to watch because last month almost was in the positive territory.  The analysts have felt that the softening in 2024 would be on the shorter side- so if that is true, we’ll either be close to positive or over.  Now obviously the same analysts did not expect a bizarre banking crisis either- though I am sure that is not factored in to this month’s index but could roil the next few.  And no doubt this banking issue may wreak serious havoc on our space and bears watching.

 

--  Before the banks went haywire, there was some optimism on the backlog side. The ABC Backlog indicator reversed past losses and had a good last report.  Historic high backlog is the headline and I know some reading this do NOT agree at all- but interesting to see and a good read here on the latest.

 

--  Last this week… the documentary series on Netflix “Pepsi, Where’s My Jet” is not only a fun and light watch but also the main guy in it worked in the glass industry in Seattle back in the day.  Briefly talking about cutting and installing glass but then more into being a window washer.  So at least it was a fun quick mention.  Aside from that, the story itself was interesting and also somewhat bizarre in that a pretty solid cash settlement was offered but the guy wanted a military jet.  You’ll have to watch it to get that whole thing- not a bad time passer for sure.

 

LINKS of the WEEK

On one end college education being less popular is a bad thing- but on another- especially and possibly in our world it could be a good thing. Some interesting takes in this one.

 

Worth clicking for the headline alone.  Yeesh.

 

I don’t think Google Glasses are meant to be

  

PROJECT of the WEEK

The spotlight is on East Coast Metal Systems for the Howard County Circuit Courthouse.  Nice project that has a little of everything on it and it obviously turned out nicely!  According to their post on LinkedIn East Coast Metal Systems partnered with heavyweights Clark Construction, HOK, and Alliance Exterior Construction in completing this project- no mention on the glass (which looks great too) but obviously a winner for all.  CONGRATS! 

The BIG BEC Recap

Another BEC is in the books and what an event it was!  Once again so great to see so many wonderful leaders in our space and continue to learn and advance.  As is tradition, this will be a very long post recapping BEC but mostly noting the who’s who of the show for me.  Before I get into the people aspect, let’s talk about the event.  The education was epic.  A few things stood out.  The courage and class from Coleman Jones of Pioneer, Dave Ferret of Bagatelos and Matt Kamper of Woodbridge to share insights into the challenges on jobs.  Attendees were buzzing about this and particularly Matt’s project that I heard more than a few say “yeah that’s one monster I never want to see!”   The Jeff Dalaba (NACC/AGMT) led panel was a hit thanks to having an extremely conversational tone digging deep into the quality aspect, and the close of the show with Jeff Haber of W&W, Taylor Anderson of Anderson Aluminum and Joey Aragon of Aragon Construction was tremendous with so many shared details that many immediately were discussing on how to implement.  That’s only a few, there were great nuggets of inspiration throughout the event, and I think probably one of the best educational offerings from top to bottom in our 25 years of doing BEC.  Thank you to all!!

--  The vibe overall was positive but guarded.  The concern of interest rates surging was a big one, as was jobs on the books going poof.  2023 looks good still- 2024 is more murky and quite frustrating.  The folks worried about 2024 were using the time at this show to explore diversifying their offerings and strengthening relationships- very smart by them.  I’ll be hitting on this more in coming weeks.

--  Ok now on to the people.  For those of you new to this blog, after events like this I rundown a bunch of folks I run into at the event and what they may be up to.  I look at it like a “Seen and Heard” at the show sort of thing and have been doing this since I started this blog way back in 2005. 

--  BEC is for catching up with old friends, and past podcast guests!  Was great to see the most popular guy in our space Tom O’Malley of Clover Architectural Products- he was only able to come for a short time, but I am thrilled he did though I would’ve liked more than 10 seconds to visit with him.  Loved seeing the Quaker Window guys Chris Dickneite and Dusty Fick and of the one and only Joseph Holmes.  Great guys to visit with always.  Dan and Jodi Martinez were there and full credit to Dan for braving some serious bad weather to reach Vegas.  I only saw Will Pounds of TSI Corporations for a moment as he was running to a meeting, so I didn’t get to ask if his favorite food is still gas station sushi (podcast reference when he was a guest!)

 

--  Old friends always are fun for me.  The great Jeff Ziesche of JAZ Sales surprised me with an epic old glazing manual from the 1940’s- that alone was so cool to look at.  Rick Alexander of Tom Brown was dominating the weight room when I saw him first and just thrilled he attends every year.  My guy Ian Patlin of Phoenix Architectural Glass was there taking in as much knowledge as he can, but I seriously think he knows it all already. Seeing legends like Jim Stathopoulos of Ajay Glass, Omar Maalouf of Momentum, and Derek Losee of Steel Encounters was a blast for me.  So cool and talented.  Thanks also to them because I think my time with them and Derek bringing back food from the reception buffet was the only time I ate. And it’s not BEC for me without visiting with PJ Hilboldt of NGG.  Just an awesome guy.

 

--  New faces at BEC make me happy.  The contingent from Ubiquitous Energy were awesome and it’s a thrill that they could attend and participate.  I got to meet Evan Afenir of Double Play Glass in person, and he was as impressive as the work he does out in California. Steve Sletten of Larson Engineering stopped me to say hi and that was a day maker.  Fun seeing and watching Trent Thiry and Art Droste of Global Security Glazing/Isoclima being at their first ever BEC and trying to meet and greet as many people as they could. Tom Irvin of OldcastleBuilding Envelope may have attended in the past but was nice to see him at this one and the OBE case study was a really nice addition to the schedule. 

 

--  Obviously, I always love any chance to visit with Michael and Carolyn Spellman.  They treat me great, and I am fan.  Between VIG and the massive need for automation out there, those two along with Manny Borda of IGE were quite busy. Still thrilled that Cameron Scripture of Viracon always makes time for me.  Such a good person.  I enjoyed catching up with Art Huard and Dr Charlie Boyer and not only hearing about the Vacu-Gasket growth but all else on their minds. Leigh Anne Mays is back on our side of the industry at Naverra and she was absolutely everywhere at this meeting spreading the gospel on her new company. And I got a nice amount of time to talk with Troy Johnson of Harmon and he is a hopeful target for me to have on the podcast- classy and sharp- that’s a guy who gets it.  

 

--  Shout out to the great state of Texas!  Loved seeing Rick Newnom of Hou-Tex Glass as well as Kyle Lamb of Universal Glass.  The Country Glass duo of Brian Risinger and Joe Lambertson were everywhere (in that awesome gear of course) and they always are open to network- which is appreciated.  Kyle Sharp of Sharp Glass was great to catch up with as well- and I look forward to seeing all these folks and more at TEXpo in May.

 

--  It was nice to see Eric Mayka of Millet- that’s a busy guy.  Also very busy was the duo of Juan Gallego and Daniella Fernandez of Trust Seal.  I met Juan for the first time at the 2020 BEC and he still wanted to see me this time!  LOL.  Good folks and both excited with Trust Seal now having a place in South Florida.  Always nice to see Andy Russo of Glass & Metalcraft, and I am pumped he’ll be going to DC to represent the interests of Michiganders at Glass and Glazing Advocacy Days.  He’ll be great at that.  Dan Sutton of Vitro Architectural has no idea how to take me, but I love the guy- smart and so well spoken on the hottest products out there. And speaking of Vitro, seeing old pal Jemssy Alvarez was simply splendid.  It’s not really a BEC if I don’t see Jerry Moser of RA Kennedy or Joe Clabbers of National Glass and Metal.  I did- and that was clutch- great guys always supporting the cause. 

 

--  I mentioned Joey Aragon above and it was very epic to see more of that crew including dad Joe, brother Matt and of course the one and only Drew Forester.  Having the legacy folks back was something else.  Pat Rome continues to be an icon even though he’s moved on from our space.  Andy Gum being back was incredible and I hope he’ll be a regular again.  Kevin Roth of Privacy Glass is not only a regular but is like one of the most popular guys at the event.  I could say I knew him when he was leery of attending!  Now I don’t think he’ll miss another. Dapper Dan Reinhart of Salem was there and he now wears the crown of best dressed in our space.   The gang from Glass 3 in Canada never miss, and this show had Josh Aknin and Seth Maretz.  Great and energetic guys who not only know their stuff but will be important pieces in our world for years to come.  Did I say energy and Canada in the same sentence?  Then it’s time to mention Goldray Glass.  Loved catching up with Laura Little, Mike Saroka, and Kevin McMahon. Hanging with them makes me feel like the “cool kid” in class. 

 

--  I was impressed with Guardian Glass showing- their sample viewing station was cool and Jake Kasbrick is a really impressive player.  Also has great hair.  I’m jealous.  I’m also jealous that Alan Kinder from Guardian can speak flawlessly for 5 minutes straight about bird friendly glass.  It’s a subject that many are into and can be a challenge to explain and he nailed it.  Though Mark Jacobsen from Kuraray bringing out a “live demo” of how bird friendly works will be a memory for a while!  Nice work.  And I’d be really missing it if I did not mention two incredible stars in our space that I love seeing each BEC- the best PR player in the biz Heather West and one of the best to ever do the sales game- Shelly Farmer of Sightline Commercial Solutions.

 

Obviously, I can go on and on… but before I end just kudos to the team at NGA who worked tirelessly to pull this off.  Trust me, it was not easy.  Lots of moving parts and pieces but the team led by Sara Neiswanger (who had a VERY memorable BEC) and Katy Devlin absolutely rocked it.  I’ll have more over the next few weeks but for now that’s your rundown.  BEC next year is back in Nashville and combined with GPAD.  THAT will be an absolute must attend.  Can’t wait!

 

No LINKS or PROJECT of the week due to how long this was- both will be back next week!

BEC Begins

It’s here!  BEC week is upon us, and I am onsite in Las Vegas with hundreds of industry leaders.  Next week I’ll have my usual “who’s who” recap of this event but the overall vibe once again is one of positivity and hope.  I think we all have the concern over the economy and metrics.  We’ve all either seen or experienced (or experiencing) some softness.  But the one consistent aspect is that it is not holding people back.  Innovation is happening, expansions are taking place, and a thirst to get diverse (both in products and workforce) is sincere.  Loving it all.  BEC will always have a special place in my heart as the event that I got my first opportunity at so many years ago and I look forward to always being here and amongst the best of the best!  

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  In case you missed it, my latest podcast is up, and it does have a very heavy BEC flavor to it. Everyone on it this month (Garret Henson Viracon, Nicole Mann, Glass Vegas, Michael Spellman, Art Huard, and Dr. Charlie Boyer, Vacu-Gask) are all expected to be in Vegas for BEC (haven’t seen everyone yet) so that will be fun. Initial feedback has been awesome.  Garret’s history and path into the industry has had people scrambling down memory lane unaware of his connection to a past giant in our space.  Nicole’s energy was infectious, and the invention by Michael/Art/Charlie delivered a lot of “wow VIG is FOR REAL” comments.  Cool stuff.  Thank you for checking it out and supporting!

VIDEO

AUDIO – and anywhere you get your podcasts, Apple, Spotify, Google etc.

 

--  Congrats to Tom Donovan and the team at the newly branded Thompson Innovative Glass.  Tremendous initial launch of the new brand and message and with more to come including a new website, great things are surely ahead.  These guys are always making inroads and I like the push into more sophisticated options.  Nice work Tom and team!

 

--  Very important piece here on high performance glazing, benefits from the government and your chance to have a voice in Washington DC.  Glass & Glazing Advocacy Days are coming, it is worth it to you to get involved and get involved in a big and important way!

 

--  As some of you in the specific school safety space are aware, there is a new standard (thankfully) available.  However, it doesn’t come without its issues.  Evidently the cost to test to this new standard is considered to be quite exorbitant leading some to possibly not go down that path.  That aspect is not a good one.  We need good standards (this by all indications is and it’s MUCH better than the standard before) but if they become an issue in testing to meet it, then that is a problem.  Will bear watching and also will affect the costs out there too- which means we as an industry will lose product to other materials. 

 

--  Last this week… Rolling Stone did a rundown of Top TV Themes of all time and once again I think they are way off.  But it is great for fun arguments…. I’ll say “The Jeffersons” at #1 works because “Moving on up” is a classic.  But Friends at 8 is too low, as is the Sopranos at 19.  Miami Vice at 32 is a crime and my wife and daughter will kill me if I don’t note that having the Gilmore Girls at #45 is simply insane. (Very catchy tune that I have only heard a million times because that show plays constantly in my home)  Interesting list though and brings back a ton of memories.  Check it out!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

Brave little toddler here and interesting story.

 

Not sure this a real story but the headline did make me laugh

 

If it’s a dog adoption story – I am there. 

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

This one may be a bit older but it’s a beauty and was glazed by some of the best people in our space- DM Products.  This is the Tower Two Sixty at the Gardens in Pittsburgh and it’s got everything going for it.  Beautiful glass and system and LEED certified too.  Congrats to Dick and Mike Macurak at DM on this awesome effort and kudos to United Architctural on the metal system and Viracon on the glass.  Nice work!