From the Fabricator- Glass & Aluminum Insights

Will the trend be our friend?

2012-01-22T08:10:00.003-05:00

OK so the Architecture Billings Index (ABI) now has had two good months in a row. What exactly does that mean? As those of you who follow this blog, I follow and comment on it monthly and quite frankly I find it vexing. When I finally see it stabilizing it drops. When I think we’re in the midst of a free fall it pulls itself up. Seasonal logic makes no sense either. Architects were busy in December? A short month, at the tail end of budget planning? Obviously I am missing something, but regardless I am pleased with the progress. Now we wait 30 days to see how January plays out. If the ABI is up, it can be called officially a “trend” (3 months of something puts it into “trend” category) and as the great philosopher Roger “28” Collette once opined “the trend is your friend” especially when its positive. If that does happen, the projections of a solid 2012 will be looking much more possible.

Elsewhere…

-- Another positive trend… housing report from December showed its 3rd straight month of sales increases and we now have the lowest amount of housing inventory since 2005. As you can see by this article we’re not out of the woods yet, but the hopeful signs are coming into play. Gotta stay positive.

-- Once again I got a tremendous nugget of info from the twitter feed of Heather West. This time it was a critical rating of the effectiveness of building codes on the east and Gulf coasts. It was very, very interesting and surprising read. Check out here… but one comment, I am blown away that the great state of Texas scored so low and that South Carolina scored so high. Those ratings were shockers. In my limited experience I would’ve thought those ratings to be flip flopped. Anyway thank you Heather for the feed.

-- Great news internet wise this past week when the highly controversial SOPA and PIPA bills were yanked from the floor of congress. These bills were to put in tough federal laws against online piracy and copying of online intellectual property. Normally I would be 1000% behind something like these efforts. But the bills, as with most of what DC does, were loaded down with seriously intrusive measures and were just out of control in the desire to control free speech. The electronic community led by groups like Google and Wikipedia came together to flex muscle that overwrought measures like this won’t be accepted and won. No matter what, I do believe eventually these bills will come back but congress will have to take a more even keeled and fair approach as otherwise it will never work.

-- It was a combination of two sets of some of my favorite people when the gang from RavenBrick spoke at the Colorado Glazing Contractor Association meeting last week. Heard it was a lively and informative and everyone had a great time. It’s always good when the good word about advanced technology is getting out into the marketplace. The CGCA led by Rebecca Kaspari and with awesome members like Marty Richardson of Metropolitan Glass and the model like Cameron Scripture of Viracon really has the template down pat for well-run regional associations.

-- Thanks to GH for the quality proof read of this blog by the way. Brain sometimes freezes!

-- Last this week… great creative marketing play by Terry Newcomb and the folks at Thermal Windows… they gave away 1300 pounds of Grapefruit last week as a “thank you” to their Tulsa customers for three decades of support. Just a well-done effort and gesture… Now if they were giving away 1300 pounds of M&M’s I would’ve made the trip to Tulsa for that…. I guess M&M’s don’t grow on trees though. In any case, very nice work folks.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Did you happen to see the controversy on the High School rejecting the nickname “Cougars”? Really amazing that word is now offensive…

-- There will be beer served at the World Cup in Brazil… interesting since laws will have to be changed. Ah the power of “football” in our world.

The Sketcher Shape Up shoes are getting sued… I never saw the fascination with them or the value… and now it looks like they’ll be doing some explaining in court…

VIDEO of the WEEK

My brother is back on the prowl supplying videos… this one a classic slip of the tongue… he meant to say Hoosiers… and unfortunately that is not what came out…

Off and running

2012-01-15T09:58:00.002-05:00

Well that surely was an interesting week in our industry eh? I never thought that when I posted my blog last week that more acquisitions would be coming so fast and furious. Going forward the assumption should be that things will settle down but actually there have been rumblings from other concerns (not Grey Mountain) about some major moves about to take place. So 2012 is starting to look like the “year of the deal” and that should at least make things interesting! To me the bright spot in all of this is these are straight deals and not consolidations, which means there’s a confidence that money can be made. Which also means that maybe the worst of our malaise is over and we’re starting to consistently climb back.

Elsewhere…

-- As but for every piece of promise comes a piece of worry. This week the Associated Press ran this absolutely frightening article about the skyscraper boom in India and China and the effects on a possible massive downturn.

-- On the Glass Magazine site I know we were having some issues with the commenting feature. Hopefully it is fixed now. In any case the comments that were meant to be there were about Google+ and its value. There are more than a few people who are in agreement with me about it, questioning its future and value, so it was nice to see I am not alone. I'm still trying though, but can't get in the groove.

-- Speaking of social media… if you are on LinkedIn, please make sure you join the National Glass Association group. Always a good discussion or two going on there. LinkedIn has some great groups and sure it does have some serious duds but once you can optimize the experience it is really a worthwhile feature.

-- Guardian is becoming a “go to” place for our elected leaders to visit. In the last two weeks, they’ve had two pretty powerful U.S. Congressmen visit them and to me the more the merrier. Our industry has taken a beating in Washington over the years, so the more exposure we can get the better.

-- Did you happen to see the Elvis “Cirque” show in Las Vegas is done at the end of this year. I guess I gotta make sure I see it before that happens. Shame it didn’t take off, I can only wonder how it compared to the Beatles “Love” show which is the best show on the strip right now.

-- Sign we are all in the wrong business? That little energy drink “5 Hour Energy” sells 9 MILLION bottles a week. Just crazy.

-- I know this gets covered everywhere, but on the whole “glass falling epidemic” I have just one question… is the presence of the internet, now fueled by lighting fast informational wires like Twitter, making the issue more prevalent? And what I mean by that is are we having more breakage than historical normal or are we just hearing about it so much more? I just wonder if these issues have always been out there but just not covered so intently.

-- Last this week, Sorry to see the Tebow train end this weekend. That guy is a true blue American role model. Man I hate the Patriots…

LINKS of the WEEK

-- The new thing in traffic flows... “the roundabout”- I don’t know about you but I HATE them… look out though, they are coming more and more…

-- Must read story on the NFL ref diagnosed with cancer thanks to an on field fight. Some things really do happen for a reason…

-- The great Journey tune “Don’t Stop Believing” has always had a major mistake… that being there is no such thing as "South Detroit" and finally some background on why the group used it.

BONUS: Occupy Wall Street is over but the occupiers live on… and they have 300K in their bank account… maybe they’ll invest in the glass business?

VIDEO of the WEEK

Youtube and I have not been getting along. Here we try again with the top “fails” of 2011… hopefully it works!!

2012, great to see you!

2012-01-08T09:09:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year! Before we put 2011 in the books though I wanted to quickly take a look back. There is no doubt that the past year was challenging. But there were probably more bright spots than we either want to admit or were willing to notice. Regardless, I for one am thrilled that we have turned the calendar over. 2012 brings with it serious promise, on virtually every level. We have many companies poised to make moves with new locations, expanding products and cutting-edge technology. We have hopefully some political closure, no matter who wins in November, and we just have the “hope” that comes with a clean slate. So with that in mind, the onus is on us to make it a great one and I truly believe we’ll rise above the obstacles and roadblocks out there. Nothing is easy, but I am staying positive as it relates to our industry and world.

See I am trying to turn over a new leaf… positive… kindler… gentler… oh my.

Elsewhere…

-- I have been doing this blog since 2005 and maybe once during that time did I take any extended time away from it until the last two weeks. It surely was bizarre not thinking about it. I missed it actually. So it’s great to be back. And as a reminder I actually post every Sunday, and it ends up in many people’s screens Tuesday as a part of the absolutely excellent e-glass weekly.

-- Some props to catch up on… Congrats to Kirk Johnson on his new position at Hartung Glass. Very happy that Kirk landed so well. And speaking of Hartung, kudos to their marketing genius Rich Porayko for the excellent choreographed set of announcements last week. Well done my friend. Congrats also to Alissa Schmidt who just picked up a nice promotion at Viracon. Wow the good guys get even better now! And also Congrats to the fine folks at Binswanger Glass who embark on a new journey, I’m excited for everyone there after the announcement of their purchase by Grey Mountain.

-- Grey Mountain also announced the acquisition of Global Security Glazing as well. As many of you know I have always been a fan of Grey and the way they do things. I lamented that they hadn’t gotten their chances in the past, so I am thrilled it has taken place now. That I believe is a positive for the industry for sure!

-- Did see the wild ruling that the Department of Defense will not be able to use any money to go through specific green building certifications. I am probably in the minority (I always am) but I think its great. Build to the spirit of it (like so many people do) because going sustainable is the right thing to do, but skip the process, save the cash (taxpayers cash anyway) and move on.

-- Saw on Twitter (are you using yet?) a great link from Heather West that predicted the 5 regions that will flourish in 2012. I should make you all go follow her on Twitter to find it, but here’s the link- interesting stuff.

-- Still on social media, anyone using Google+ much? I am trying to make an effort for 2012- just not sure if I get it yet.

-- BOOK of the WEEK: The Wizard of Lies by Diana Henriques. This book was the inside story about Bernie Madoff and his ponzi scam. Solid read overall, though maybe a tad too long. The key of the book for me was the blatant ineptitude of the SEC in their various investigations into Madoff. Many times they had him, and they just skipped a simple step and let him off the mat. It was like a TV cliffhanger leaving you thinking for sure the guy is done, and next week you watch the show and he survives. Just amazing stuff.

-- Last, this blog gets linked elsewhere but it is so good, I feel like I need to throw a connection out too. Kris Vockler compiled 9 business lessons from 2011. Very good, easy, and worthy read.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Start the year off with an absolutely great one… the job interview questions of the year. Some of these are really out there… makes you think!

-- If you are Facebook person and need a shower curtain, this is the product for you!

-- Wild piece here- 6 “true story” movies who’s happy endings really did not continue in real life.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Our submission for VIDEO of the WEEK this time is basically every video that my brother found and I didn’t show you all… and its compiled into one very handy video. The top “fails” of 2011. Check it out! (Bear with me- my link was bad and now Youtube is not cooperating- will update as soon as they allow me)

And that's a wrap!

2011-12-18T10:24:00.002-05:00

Well the year is almost done and what a year it has been. 2011 had more twists and turns than the Pacific Coast Highway. I for one will be extremely happy when it is over, put this whole adventure in the rear view mirror and focus on the positive that are coming in 2012 and beyond. I am confident that we are headed towards good things as an industry. Also this is a time to say thanks to my loyal blog readers for sticking with me and following the adventures here week after week. I appreciate that more than words can show. It continues to be great therapy for me to write these… Hope everyone reading this, and yes even my competition that lives to see what I write each week (so they can go cover the stories I find prominent) I hope you have a great set of holidays and a happy and healthy 2012!

-- Wow I have gotten kindler and gentler… shame that the woefully boring blog that used to take people (ex employees and friends mostly) out for lunches and write about em doesn’t do that anymore… I coulda been asked! Ha ha ha.

-- Yep… I guess I still have a tiny bit of an edge.

-- Over the next two weeks I may post a few things here, but I think I am going to take a little bit of a break. Not a Bill Stone break mind you (one blog every 6 months- C’mon Bill, don’t let the mainstream trade media hold you down!) but a couple of weeks to just catch my breath…

-- See this post is turning into a response for all the people who liked how I used to blog back in the day…. But this is one time only… I am mellow and have changed, though I will always enjoy any chance to tweak competition. Especially when they show they can’t handle it.

-- Ok enough…. What’s happening here reminds me of a great quote….

“A drunk mans words are a sober mans thoughts”

I’m not drunk, but if I keep going on here with no mental (or physical) editor… my oh my this would be pretty bad.

Before I go semi dark for the rest of 2011, some quick last minute thoughts:

-- There are still some super talented people in our industry looking for work. Sales and operations… smart companies will advance with the additions available. And my best hopes and wishes out to those looking.

-- I do like LSU in the BCS. So between the McCallister’s at Coral and Danik up at Walker (all big Bama fans) celebrations are now taking place.

-- My kid wanted a Tebow jersey but they are all sold out- everywhere and even on line. Crazy how popular. If Tebow makes the Superbowl it will be the biggest show ever.

-- Congrats to Apogee on their solid 3rd quarter. See I am telling you better times are ahead!

-- Same with kudos to Quanex on their good news. Lots of very good people that are apart of the Quanex team and deserve some positive vibes. Happy for them!

-- Last, on what the big deal of 2012 will be? I have no clue but I think I can confidently say I WON’T be in the middle of it!

Ok so put it in the books…. Happy and Healthy to all!!!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Howard Stern joining the judging panel of America’s Got Talent… I’ll have to defer to my brother who is the king of these talent shows on if this is a good move or not. Should be interesting though.

-- Why this is NOT getting more coverage is beyond me. Censorship on the web is in the offing and here are the details. Scary.

-- Girl threatens Santa if her wish list doesn’t get answered. This has to be fake right? If not… wow.

VIDEO of the WEEK

The video to end the year… a runaway cart bowling people over at a football game. You just have to watch it.

Code Insight

2011-12-11T10:02:00.002-05:00

The latest issue of Glass Magazine featured a tremendous column by Julie Ruth on the code process. Simply said, everyone should take a few minutes and read it. Thanks to efforts from people like Julie, our industry still has a voice, but she points out both how that voice could’ve been silenced and how sometimes our voice isn’t as strong as it needs to be. No matter how you feel about the codes or their facilitators (and those who know me, know I have passionate feelings here) they are a major player in our world, and will only grow more so. The moral here is no matter what vehicle you want to take through the code process (yourself, trade organization, suppliers, collaborative etc.) it’s important that you do.

Elsewhere…

-- Another year and another round of the Solutia World of Color Awards. As I noted when this was created, I loved the idea and overall concept. The jury was just announced and the team at Solutia did a great job identifying some super people. Programs like this and when YKK did a YouTube video contest are great and positive interest builders for our industry. Props to Aimee Davis and team and good luck with contest!

-- And speaking of kudos, also sending them north of the border to Danik Dancause and Matthew Christie on their new promotions at Walker Glass. I have known Danik for a while and aside from being the best-dressed guy in our industry he is an absolute talent. As for Matt, a very sharp guy that I met for the first time at GlassBuild. I can tell you that after we met he basically figured out that I am nuts- so that alone proves he has brains! Good luck gentlemen.

-- Who are you taking in the LSU-Alabama game? I just wish there was a playoff in college football. Can you imagine THOSE bracket contests? Wow.

-- For you folks who love architecture, how about this great blog post on 15 architects who changed our world. Really good stuff- even if you just look at only the pictures.

-- Last this week, back to the world of sports… those of you who may fans of Indiana University Basketball congrats on the return of your team to national prominence. IU upset #1 Kentucky on Saturday with a buzzer beater and looks to be headed in the right direction.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Evidently this was a big a few weeks back- a clerk at McDonald’s taking on some customers. Very wild video and story…

-- Something tells me that this story will be one that continues to grow… the argument of blogger vs. journalist. In some areas there’s not doubt between the two, then in others one of the two disciplines is so weak, that the other would cringe.

Interesting piece on colleges being proactive to protect themselves in an ever-changing web world…

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Ok this video has been making the rounds on the internet… was this anchorperson under the influence or was their something else at play? Take a look…

Better buildings and better for us!

2011-12-04T11:18:00.002-05:00

This past February when the President announced his Better Buildings Initiative, it did send a positive jolt through the industry. Now fast forwarding to the present, last Friday brought news of the next step- a Presidential Memorandum announcing the Better Building Challenge. This latest effort features a ton of very powerful companies and a lot of cash from them to add to the government’s commitment that really should push things in the right direction. The focus now has $2 billion to use on upgrading federal buildings, as well as another $2 billion of private money (from those powerful companies I hinted to above) for energy efficiency projects of existing buildings. The improvement of existing buildings is a biggie as it plays into the hot segment of retrofit and it fills the huge hole that we have as a society in that our older buildings suck a ton of energy thanks to outdated and underperforming products. Hopefully this initiative does not get bogged down or stuck in a game of political football. Too much good can come from it.

Elsewhere…

-- I got painfully lost last week and did not have my GPS. All I can say is the GPS is the greatest invention ever. Will never get into a car without it. Plus that means I’ll never get to do the TV show “The Amazing Race” because I have zero sense of direction.

-- The sale of Southwall to Solutia was formally completed this week. It will be fun to watch how this plays out. There’s potential for some great synergies to happen and combining of some very good people. Not sure of how it will work but teaming the likes of the awesome pair of Aimee Davis and Julie Schimmelpenningh of Solutia with top performers like Bruce Lang and Tom Marsh at Southwall and you have insane possibilities.

-- This past Thursday, the U.S. Senate passed the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act that contained an amendment to buy American made solar products. The Buy American Solar Amendment will ensure that "Buy American" requirements apply to all photovoltaic (PV) devices that supply power Department of Defense property or facilities. This will be big because the Department of Defense will be required to comply with this act and closes a previous loophole that amazingly allowed these properties to buy products from foreign entities. This could be a nice boon for the U.S. Solar segment and for the folks in the glass industry who are working in it.

-- Just a heads up on some fantastic technical resources available… Glass Magazine has some very helpful pieces available… click here for more details. All I can say is it never hurts to have the knowledge. The smarter you can be in this competitive landscape the better.

-- Thank you to all who checked in on my brother on his hospital adventures. He was just released and is now taking the road back to recovery. Slowly but surely he’ll be back at it and hopefully no more issues come up!

-- Normally this would be in the links section, but this piece was too good. A very interesting read on the great depression, the “banksters” and the guy who brought them to justice. Very ironic as some parts of history really do repeat!

-- Last this week- college football is winding down… and lost amongst the wild weekend of games was my alma mater Ohio U choking at their chance to win the MAC Championship. Brutal. Ohio had a 20-point lead at half, only to lose 23-20 at the gun. Fellow Bobcat and AGC Sales icon Rodger Ruff had to witness the carnage in person. Hopefully he’s recovering, because that was painful.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- OK- this is a great discussion point… guy comes in to rob your store- you have a gun… do you shoot him dead or do you first give him a warning shot? Read the article here and decide…

-- I guess one place a GPS doesn’t help is when you get lost in the woods searching for a Christmas tree. This family got lost and quite frankly got very lucky to get out.

-- OK now this will depress me… your printer, yes your printer can be susceptible to a virus or hackers. Wonderful.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Fast-forward to the one minute mark here- for a stunt that went very wrong at an event in Brazil. Good news is, the stuntman did survive and were actually BACK at work the next day!! Heck if I just rode the bike, I’d be in too much pain to work, let alone what happened here.

Recaps, Get Well Wishes, and Widgets- UPDATE

2011-11-27T10:28:00.003-05:00

UPDATE: Just heard the very sad news of the passing of Tommy Huskey CEO of Gardner Glass. Tommy was a tremendous man and will be truly missed by many. This is a very sad day for our industry. Condolences go to Tommy's family and his family at Gardner during this very difficult time.

This will be a shorter than normal post since we are coming off an abbreviated week (for at least the American readership). Hope everyone who celebrated had a great holiday! For my readers that only pick this blog up via e-glass weekly, please click HERE to catch up on last week’s post. Full of good stuff including a fabricator on the move making a great hire, a new twitter feed to follow, and most recent Architectural Billings Index.

As for this week…

-- It was not a great holiday for my brother Steve, as he spent the entire holiday in the hospital after complications from a recent surgery. He is still in the hospital and looks to be there for a while longer as he recovers. To make matters worse, no cable TV in his hospital room. For me that would be worse than being laid up in the first place! Anyway, sending positive thoughts to him to get well soon and getting back to doing all the good that he does.

-- PPG released their new Glass Configurator Widget. It’s a very cool little program that can run on any style of computer or smart phone. While geared for architects it does have value for the rest of us who just like to know what is available out there. Nice work.

-- Not glass related but interesting none the less. The hottest trend in school building is the removal of lockers from the design. Schools are deciding that lockers are more harm than good and designers are being told to leave them out. Pretty wild change… Can you imagine going to school without having a locker?

-- Last this week. The Fiscal Times listed the “Top 10 Places to Find a Job” and quite frankly this list was very surprising. Here goes:

1. Ft. Wayne, IN
2. Worcester, MA
3. San Jose, CA
4. Tulsa, OK
5. Houston, TX
6. Tucson, AZ
7. Dallas, TX
8. Akron, OH
9. Phoenix, AZ
10. Boise, ID

To me the surprises were Akron, San Jose and the two Arizona locations. Was not surprised by Texas, Oklahoma or Idaho.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Pretty interesting piece on commenters to blogs and websites and whether or not they are worth it. Personally, I think if someone takes the time, it’s worth it. Then again you have folks that create commenters to make their sites look well read/popular… comical.

-- ESPN had a fantastic documentary on Chris Herren a former pro basketball player who was a drug addict. He’s now recovered/recovering and a thanks to that amazing doc, he is a speaker in demand.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Hard to do a video of the week with my main video hook up (my brother) laid up in the hospital, but he did send me a few before he went down. This is a hockey celebration that started off wrong. Go to the 33 second mark and you’ll see what happens up close.

The best holiday and glass under attack

2011-11-20T10:34:00.003-05:00

A very interesting series appeared on CBC last week on the condos in Toronto and some of the issues these structures are having. The blame was placed squarely on the glass and design. As I have written here before Toronto is going crazy with building and the liberal use of glass is exciting. However its pretty obvious from this piece, not everyone loves our products like we do. But I also think the article was very one sided and was disappointing that no other viewpoints (“pro” glass) were included. Plus they wiped our world with a very large brush, placing blame on so many components that it’s virtually impossible for one entity to defend. Not to mention, the buildings in Toronto are different than the condos in New York as they have more material from all over the world, just not North America, so some of the failures most likely are from a poor quality, non certified plant somewhere far far away. Believe me I can go on and on, but we’ll save you the banter. Bottom line is we as an industry never can put our guard down because around every corner lurks a critic.

Elsewhere

-- The Architectural Billings Index popped back up in October. That said I am really looking forward to seeing this coming summer how the predictions truly translated out. That will at least give us a feel for the accuracy of this entire study.

-- Congrats to good friend Mike Dishmon on his new gig at Virginia Glass. Mike is a fantastic guy and will make a great addition to a Virginia Glass team that is making some serious positive noise out there.

-- Went for early holiday shopping and I have to congratulate any parent who has to shop at stores like Hollister. I know the kids love the clothes, but the store is so dark and loud that trying to buy stuff is a challenge. Obviously though its working. Just amazed that it does. And these last few sentences mean I am really old…

-- This is an amazing story that includes breaking of tempered glass. A disgruntled customer rams her wheelchair into an entrance door breaking the glass and door. Worth the watch.

-- Pretty cool that the folks at Viracon jumped into the Twitter fray. You can find them at @ViraconGlass. They really “get it” and are already a must follow.

-- Good luck to Charles “Mickey” Michie of Southern Stretch Forming as he runs in the annual Dallas Turkey Trot with 30,000 of his closest friends. Sounds like fun though for me on that holiday the only running I want to do is to the dinner table!

-- Last this week… as most know I love Thanksgiving, and despite the tumult that I have run into the past two years around this holiday, it is still my favorite. There’s a lot to be thankful for and this is the time you start to reflect on that. As an industry we should be thankful for the technological advancements from the primaries and other manufacturers. That will only make our lives and businesses better. We should be thankful that is was probably a busier year on the commercial side then it looked to be back in February. Hopefully momentum will stay positive and we can keep riding the storms out. Finally, we should be thankful for the people that make up our industry. We have the whole mix, from intelligent to quirky, intense to mellow and everything in between. And yes, so many of us can’t get out of our own way some days, but we are what we are. Anyway, those traits are what make us special, different, and the best industry around. HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL!!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Interesting read on a South Pacific country that is in absolute peril thanks to climate change. 50 years left...

-- Get ready those low special tax exemptions are about to go away. I am not sure I feel too much sympathy though for a few people in this story.

-- The modern day "play with fire, your gonna get burned" story. Man tries to steal electric and gets zapped.

VIDEO of the WEEK

At the time of posting, Youtube was down. So we'll skip it for now... yes I know you are crushed!! Sorry.

Big Code News

2011-11-13T09:54:00.002-05:00

The big news of the week was from the International Green Construction Code (IgCC) meetings in Arizona. When the event was complete, the United States finally had for the first time a national green building code. Now obviously creating the code and getting acceptance and execution are another adventure but the groundwork has been formally laid. Overall like in any process there were positives and negatives with the final piece (the excellent Dr. Tom Culp taught me that) but I think overall the good will outweigh the bad. If anything it does continue to force us as an industry to keep evolving and moving the ball forward. And without question this is not the end of the process anyway, as the debates for the next cycle have already begun. End of the day I have always been pretty critical and focused on the code process over the years and will continue to stay on it.

Elsewhere….

-- Speaking of being critical. One of my major targets over the years has been the Department of Energy. Since the Solyndra adventure, DOE has been in a ton of people’s crosshairs and now the Inspector General is investigating them for more than 100 stimulus related issues. Here’s the link.

-- Last week on e-Weekly Bill Evans once again hit one out of the ballpark. Seriously love every time that guy writes. Classy and inspirational.

-- A major thank you to everyone who enjoyed the Twitter post from last week and jumped into following some of those awesome people. And thanks to the folks who decided to follow me, I am grateful.

-- Also from last week, I traded e-mails with Henry Gorry of Guardian. Henry is winding down his incredible career and I for one will miss him greatly. Henry is a tremendously eloquent speaker, one that mixes fact with a calm passion, while keeping discussions absolutely on track. (A stickler for protocol, there was no moving beyond a task without completion when Henry was in the mix!) He made every committee and organization that he was involved in better because of his presence, style and overall professionalism.

-- A happy belated birthday to this blog’s most important reader. My Mom. Without her, this blog doesn’t exist… and imagine what a loss to the world that would be? Ha ha. Anyway, Happy Birthday Mom from your 5th favorite kid out of 4.

-- This following blurb will be on the From The Fabricator site only and not on Glass Magazine as Glass Magazine continues to be the leader in class and professionalism and I appreciate that fact a ton. No need to bring them down to the level of their competition with the sniping back and forth. Last week a competing blog basically dedicated an entire post to me. I must say I am honored. I sincerely love that everything I write here elicits a reaction over there. (Heck if I didn’t post Sunday, they wouldn’t have anything to write about Monday!) Funny since I could dedicate an entire post every week to the comical things written across the street, but why waste the keystrokes? As for the competing post, it’s funny that I am accused of so many things yet; whatever I say sets the agenda and discussion for them to follow. Last week I noted here that the competing magazines and blogs refuse to run legitimate stories based on personal feelings and its true. And they HATE that. That’s why they react like they do. Where there’s smoke… Hey at the end of the day I have been doing this since 2005 and comically the people taking baseless and weak shots at me, loved it when I was doing it for them- even encouraged it- yet all of a sudden it’s a morality play! Very rich considering the way they are being journalistically irresponsible. So they try the whole “Character Assassination” route. I say, bring it on. My character has been shot at so many times in my career that my bio looks likes a piece of swiss cheese. I am not stupid, I know there’s some people who hate me, hate what I do, hate who I am, hate who I work for, hate who my friends are and so on. But I am what I am, I chose this path voluntarily and I will continue to do whatever I have to do to support my family, promote and protect the industry, and keep the dialogue lively.

And by the way, you watch, the moment the companies that the other organization ignored because of personal bias has any sort of negative news, THAT story will lead the coverage. Guaranteed. Hopefully the negative never happens- but if it does it will get massive focus.

-- Has anyone noticed that those new light bulbs (CFL ones with the curls) don’t last any longer than the old fashioned bulbs? I put them in hard to reach areas based on that whole “longer life” promise and bam, they burn out at same rate. Brutal.

-- Last this week, college football was depressing yesterday. Hated seeing Stanford lose, but really hated seeing Boise State lose. Love the underdog, and hated that they went down and went down with a missed kick. I feel for that poor kicker.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- The house within a house is something I think has potential, especially given the economy. Check this story out for how one builder is focusing on it.

-- Cool story about how Tennessee grabbed a kicker of his fraternity house couch to kick in a game a few hours later. Sadly the highlight of a bad year for the Vols.

-- I started this post about the codes and will finish it with this insane abuse of codes. Read this story and shake your head madly. Just mind blowing,

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Basically I think I am turning the Video section to my brother. He keeps finding really good ones- and this one is very cool and creative and for some reason he says this reminds him of our family growing up. Minus the talent I assume.

Tops at Twitter

2011-11-06T10:31:00.003-05:00

Back in mid 2009, I debuted the “Twitter Top 10” on my blog and since then I have spotlighted various “tweets” of the week. Well it is time to update the Twitter Top 10 since more and more people have gotten on it and it’s becoming a way of life and communication for many. This list is for industry related folks and companies. In the next few weeks we’ll bring out non-industry “must follows”
Twitter has also changed, it’s not as much used for personal updates but for the sharing of news and information. Some of those pieces normally would not see the light of day, so it’s become valuable.
So if you are on Twitter and you are not following these folks, it is time to do so. You will thank me later. If you are not on Twitter yet, well keep these folks in mind for when you do jump on in.

These are actually in no specific order except the 10+ you should be following.

1. @SouthwallTech – This feed is run by Bruce Lang of Southwall and he mixes in some super links with a daily news piece.
2. @JChaseGlass- The wonderful Jenni Chase (hey I mean it, even if she is my editor when the blog appears on e-Weekly.) runs this one and it’s a great way to stay up on the news as she posts when it happens.
3. @Glassandglazing- Run by Greg Carney. No secret here that I am fan of Greg, and his tweets, while more sporadic than usual lately, are always worthy.
4. @GlassBuild- The best way to stay ahead of news about the premier industry show. And from what I hear this feed will really be ramping up in the next few weeks to become very active.
5. @Glasslam- Run by Matt Hale, this is probably the most active, interesting and diverse feed on Twitter as it relates to our industry. Very rare that a story gets by Matt.
6. @RavenBrick and @Sage_Glass- Two of the powers of the Dynamic Glass world both have strong, growing and interesting Twitter feeds. And with both companies constantly making technical strides, Twitter is a usually a great outlet for that news.
7. @HeatherWestPR- Heather is a PR icon that I have mentioned here before and basically and her feed lives up to her stature. Tons of interesting links and stories. How she finds some of the stuff, which has great relevance to our world, is beyond me.
8. @ArleneOnEnergy- Arlene Stewart as I have noted on here before has made news with her feed and she also is very good from an information dissemination standpoint. She really uses the medium effectively.
9. @YKKAPAmerica- Very green news focused but mixes in fun links and pictures. Also a very conversational feed, not sure who is behind it at YKK but that person deserves a pat on the back.
10. @Enclos- One of the largest glaziers around runs a very sharp and effective feed. They use it well and the reader benefits.

Honorable Mentions… (And still worthy of a follow of course)

@DanPompeoAGS, @GGIGlass, @GuardianGlass, @ICDCoatings, @Kawneer, @GANATechnical, @PPGIndustries

Of course if you want to follow me- I am at @MaxPSoleSource. But I am nowhere as fun or interesting as any of the above. I save it for this blog!

Elsewhere…

-- The new Apple store design really is amazing. Not sure how the other glass geeks out there feel about it but I really dig it.

-- College football is getting interesting. Wild game with Alabama-LSU (Sorry gang at Coral- tough one) and now we head down the stretch with the last few games and conference championships. Gonna be fun to follow.

-- Last this week, Glass Magazine has their latest edition of “G3” out. This is where industry folks weigh in on a question and this month features three absolute heavyweights in David Petratis of Quanex, Lloyd Talbert of CRL, and Mark Silverberg of Technoform. 3 paragraphs from three interesting and well put together men. Check it out.

http://glassmagazine.com/article/commercial/g3-industry-insiders-talk-glass-119018

LINKS of the WEEK:

This is a great human interest story about a rich NFL owner paying for a school band to play in a parade. That part is good. But the parade is a part of an event commemorating the 70th anniversary of Pearl Harbor. Ummmm isn’t that a wee bit odd? We’re doing a parade? For Pearl Harbor?

Here’s the big controversy in Detroit… the band playing at the Thanksgiving Day game people don’t like. Oh the horror!!

Crazy blog here- very creative- but how much time does someone have to do this? My gosh. Movie posters organized by look- neat.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Once again my brother comes through with an awesome video. This one is a take off of the Jay Z song “New York State of Mind” but using Pittsburgh and all of its cool angles. This is a must watch for anyone from or living in Pittsburgh for sure.

How do you say it?

2011-10-30T10:06:00.003-04:00

This week I decided to start with something light. After the last few weeks of negativity, surely time for something different. So here it is. Last week I was watching the West Virginia-Syracuse football game. The announcers kept pronouncing “Syracuse” two different ways. One guy called it “SaRAH-Cuse” while the other was calling it “SEAR-a-Cuse”- slightly different but noticeable and annoying. Honestly I don’t know much about that town other than John Dwyer of Syracuse Glass is the Mayor there- so not sure what the right pronunciation is. But this did make me think of our industry and it the two most commonly mispronounced company names.

Example 1 is Viracon. Most people say (a)“V-EYE-ra-cahn.” But you still have many that call it (b)“Vear-ah-cahn”- So which one is right? I believe it’s (a).

Example 2 is tougher- its 50/50 out there. Tubelite. Is it (a) “Toob-light” or is it (b) “Toob-ah-light” – I also lean to (a) here but I am not as sure as the Viracon example.

Anyway these are major issues that I will get to the bottom of and report back if I ever find out!

Elsewhere…

-- Cover of Time Magazine this week was “The China Bubble” and it had some OK reading in it. The story inside was basically talking about how the success or failure in China will have a massive effect on the world. The scariest comment was the theme that China’s growth came “on an economy built on real estate mania and easy money… sound familiar?”

-- Ironically though, the month of October somehow was the best month on the stock market here in the U.S. since 1974. The analysts were calling it “Rock-tober”- so how come it didn’t feel that good to me? Best since 74? Really shouldn’t the mood and attitudes be better?

-- Book of the week- If you want a seriously non politically correct easy read, then check out Adam Carolla’s book “In Fifty Years We’ll All Be Chicks” Fun read, great pop culture but he is nowhere near politically correct on anything- gender, race, creed- nothing.

-- Congrats to my friends in St. Louis (mostly the Solutia troop) on the Cardinal win. What a wild series!

-- Massive snow in the Northeast this weekend. My gosh, Mother Nature is not happy with that region… earthquakes, floods and October blizzards… yikes.

-- Normally this would go in the links, but I had to include here because it’s about a guy who made more than $300,000 playing fantasy baseball last year! The football version of this guy I believe is Scott Surma.

-- Last this week, we’re headed into my favorite personal stretch of the year. Personal, surely not business! Though I am looking forward to my first non-news cycle Turkey Day in a few years! Starting with Halloween, to my birthday, to Thanksgiving, to the Chanukah/Christmas combo and finishing with New Years… it’s an awesome stretch. And while there’s ton of pressure and frustration out there, it’s this stretch that gives you pause and fills you with hope that things can be on the right track. So I say bring it on!

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- I know many in the industry fly through the airport at Kansas City. This week it had a power outage. Has to be the worst airport to be stranded at because of its layout and lack of amenities.

-- A real life hit taken out on an Ex… yep not going to work.

The group predicting the end of the world has scrubbed that prediction… we can all rest easy now.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Sorry, no video this week- my brother did of course send me one, and it was great but I am having connectivity issues. This will return next week.

Rough Reports

2011-10-23T09:15:00.002-04:00

Ok so two pieces of bad news last week. First the Architectural Billings Index took a nasty tumble. Then numbers from Canada on their non-residential building statistics came out lower than they have been. So it wasn’t exactly an uplifting few days. On the ABI, that continues to be a hard one to swallow, especially since our industry would see any effects from these lower totals middle of 2012. It will bear watching because if 2012 is solid or at least like 2011 has been for some patches of our industry it will blow the whole theory/report out of the water. As for the Canadian report, well all I could think of after reading it was the reaction of people in Toronto when you’d compliment them for being busy. They were seriously afraid that you’d jinx it… and gosh I wonder if I did… Here is the Canadian study by the way.

Elsewhere

-- Our industry has great new “APP” joining the excellent Glass Magazine APP that I mentioned last week. Guardian released their Sunguard application for Apple and I loaded it up and was very impressed. Very sharp, clean and easy to use. Major props to Chris Dolan and his team- a job well done. And if you want to download it, enter “Sunguard” in the search instead of Guardian- it will be easier to find.

-- I hated missing the GANA Fall Conference last week. I heard many good things and the worst part for me was missing a chance to hear the always intelligent and interesting Stanley Yee of The Façade Group. Stanley is as engaging as they come and a good guy for sure. Evidently his presentation on air leakage was a showstopper and I hated missing that and the rest of the event.

-- Had my 900th airport delay of the summer this past week but in a new airport for me. Cincinnati… and I must say, very nice airport- been stuck at much worse places.

-- Last week I linked to an article in Forbes about a possible water shortage and soon after my blog was published I got an e-mail from John Fallon of Water Treatment Technologies. John’s company does yeoman’s work in trying to get people to use and re-use water smartly and I am big fan of him and his company. Anyway, John pointed out that the Forbes piece is accurate (shocking to me in reality) and he went on to note the insane wastes of water from our industry. It is truly food for thought, if you are not recycling your water in your facility, you need to- it’s a no brainer and the right thing to do- and thanks again to John for getting my mind back on it.

-- Yes I am biased on this one because I like the product line and people involved but a great article HERE on how General Glass (GGI) produced the glass for the Harlem Hospital. (Installed by W&W and insulating by JE Berkowitz- what a high-powered group) Very intense stuff. Also interesting is that job is actually not complete yet even though it seems like the glass has been up for years.

-- Congrats to PPG on their awesome 3rd Quarter. As I have noted here before they have some awesome people that make a difference out there. Happy for all of those that worked so hard to achieve it.

-- Last this week, in my new life I have been running into other quality folks who call consulting their career- some great ones like Greg Carney and Arlene Stewart I knew, but I did not know Rick De La Guardia. Well now I do, the guy is a tremendous asset from engineering side and it’s pretty awesome to be in the same realm. Very neat things you learn when you find yourself in a new world that is for sure.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Wild story about a plane losing cabin pressure. I have never heard of the airline and I have a hard and fast rule, if I’ve never heard of the airline, I’m not flying on it.

-- When this link was sent to me, my friend said I should do this for a show I would attend… it would be easy- it would be 15 bald guys. Fun link.

I don’t know how I feel about this one. Company can’t find workers…. But really is also not offering much either. At least most in the glass industry offer benefits. Plus when this product "makes it" they'll go off shore to make the stuff. No doubt.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

So my brother has become addicted with finding me videos of the week. And people are noticing. Our good friend Cash called me this week and wondered if my bro was bored in his new gig…. Funny. (Trust me he's not) Anyway this week he found this awesome band performance from of all places, my Alma mater- Ohio University- and starting at the 1 minute mark, you’ll see why they are known as “the most exciting band in the land”

Decent news in a slow week

2011-10-16T09:15:00.002-04:00

Interesting report that Glass Magazine had linked to from FMI. It’s a detailed report surely worth the download and read. The key takeaway was that FMI is projecting 2012 to be like 2003. My memory is not great but 2003 wasn’t awful and if we’re headed that way; I’d be OK with that. The breakdown of industry segments and the growth or lack thereof was also something to digest. How much will the school/institutional construction be affected by current budget shortfalls and the battles in the government? That was one segment that had battled through the storms pretty well and remains the wildcard that no analyst really can accurately portray. Overall a good read- check it out.

Elsewhere…

-- After weeks and weeks of a pretty heavy news cycle, things finally calmed down last week. It was probably one of the slowest news weeks I have seen in a long time. As an industry, I think we deserved the breather! However there’s a lot of movement and news percolating in the background, so the cycle is going to start going full blast again soon.

-- Have you downloaded the Glass Magazine App yet? If not do so, really nice set up. Kudos again to the folks who put that together. A job well done!

-- Want to know what the realistic house of the future will look like? Check this story out… some of it I agree with but others I don’t. Especially on the sky lights, too much technology out there that the writer obviously hasn’t researched yet.

-- This week is the Solar Power International show in Dallas, TX. At one time a few years ago this show had a lot of desirable targets for our industry but you can tell that things have certainly changed and many of the folks that should/could be there are not. Good to see though that Konarka WILL be there and will benefit from the lack of competition on the floor. They deserve to stand out.

-- Forbes Magazine rang the alarm on what could be another crisis… a water shortage crisis… The article does get you to think but also seems so unlikely. In any case I still hate the fact we use up so much clean water for waste disposal. That one gets me crazy.

-- Last this week… Speaking of drinks, have you seen the new Dr. Pepper product geared for men only? The folks there feel like a “man” won’t want to be seen with a “Diet” drink, so they needed to create something new. Now I don’t think that’s a bad thing… a bad thing for a guy is having your favorite alcoholic drink being Malibu and Diet. Take it from me; you never hear the end of that.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- This family got lost in a corn maze attraction. The kicker, they had a 3 week old with them. Uh, who brings a three week old baby to a corn maze attraction?

-- Great read about two really stupid bank robbers. I bet you both of these guys thought their schemes totally through too!

-- The next frontier… a camera in the actual ball being used for sports. The perspective would be awesome!

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Once again my brother comes through in the clutch with a great Man vs. Glass video. This one is better than the last and shows the wonderful properties of tempered glass!

Greenbuild Recap

2011-10-09T08:52:00.003-04:00

Greenbuild last week may have hit its plateau after a rough outing in Toronto. Traffic was down, which was shocking considering the location being the first time in Canada and all. Worse yet was the layout of the show floor. There were two halls separated by a 15-minute walk. Most attendees went to the one hall closest to the street and didn’t make it to the other. The other question was would more decision makers fill the floor and that answer was a resounding no. Younger associates and students still were in the major majority. The show moves to San Francisco next year so it will be very interesting to see if that site, which excites many, brings in the crowds.

Other Greenbuild musings…

-- The city of Toronto is very busy building wise. Something like 131 high rises are in various phases of construction there and there’s these things called “Cranes” all over town. (Haven’t seen many of those since 2006/07!) Funny though when you compliment someone from our industry who works the Toronto market, they get all sheepish- look down and don’t want to acknowledge it out of fear of maybe jinxing their positive fortune right now.

-- On the floor… Dorma’s booth was epic, good to see Rich Albright there- he is always on the ball. I liked Southwall’s booth, I was impressed by their R-20 window. Spotted Tom O’Malley of Doralco from afar, but never got to catch up with him- just too popular. Speaking of popular, the folks at Viracon, were in typical high demand. Got to see the always awesome Farrah Hoffman, and watched Garret Henson do several media sessions, I now wonder how long until Garret has his own PR team. Visited with Tom Herron of NFRC and Kerry Haglund of the Efficient Windows Collaborative and both were very nice to me- much appreciated… they are class folks. And I got to meet in person for the first time, an industry PR legend in Heather West. That was cool.

-- Not cool? This devastating and depressing tidbit… I made my annual stop by the PPG booth and was greeted rudely and shunned. I guess the guy working the booth must not read the blog (stunning I know) or realize I’m a fan of the company. Hopefully Mr. Miserable treated the other attendees better than me. PPG deserves better.

-- Last note on the show and town… Toronto has the worst traffic ever. Simply miserable trying to get anywhere quick. I have a whole new respect for my friends that live there.

Elsewhere

-- The news Friday that Solutia was buying Southwall was very interesting. Solutia is a very good company and very shrewd. Obviously the details are pretty preliminary at this point so this will be a deal to watch going forward.

-- As those who know me know I love the Rocky movies. They are my favorites. So I tell you with great excitement that the new movie “Real Steel” has some serious Rocky like qualities. It’s almost like the “Rocky” for the new century. Great flick.

-- Last this week, congratulations to Greg Landry on his new gig at Agalite in Anaheim, CA. Great guy with great company, sounds like a nice marriage!

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Absolutely wild and interesting story about a baby crying so loudly that he and his mother get kicked off the public bus they were riding because the driver couldn’t focus. Plus this was late at night and in an isolated area. Wow.

-- Pretty cool story- hidden operations all around us- hiding in plain site.

-- OK check out this story- this couple avoided restaurants and grocery stores for a whole year- just ate off the land. Interesting, but I’d love to know what they do for income- because feeding yourself sounds like a full time job!

BONUS: You know I like Twitter, but you have always be careful what you write…

VIDEO of the WEEK

My brother sent me to a treasure trove of videos. This one is the classic- Man vs. Glass variety. Look on right side of the screen. Oooof!

Next Up

2011-10-02T09:03:00.002-04:00

We’ve gone from GlassBuild season to the onset of Greenbuild this week. Should be a very interesting show in that it’s in Toronto and attracting potentially a much different audience and demographic than in years past. Also will be watching to see if this crowd is still dominated by youth or if the more seasoned professionals are breaking down and joining the green revolution. Lastly, fast forward to a month from now when all of the American exhibitors and attendees get their cell phone bills and they are racked by their carrier for the international calls! Yep that could be the everlasting memory of this event! In any case, next week in this space I’ll have the breakdown of the latest gathering in our world.

Elsewhere…

-- Lost in the excitement of GlassBuild and all of the news in our industry in the last few months was the announcement that Glassweek is no more and being replaced by an Annual Conference. Plus this conference will stand-alone and not be connected to BEC like it was for the last few years. It’s a move that some had wanted for a while and others who didn’t like the connection to BEC really wanted. It is something to watch as adding another travel need in already tight budgets will be a challenge but the technical work so many do at GANA surely will be a factor in the decision to attend. Will it eat into the BEC attendance? Possibly. Anyway you slice it, this is a bold move by the gang at GANA to evolve.

-- My gosh is the DOE getting skewered like crazy or what on Solyndra? Even at my worst I don’t think I beat them up this bad… I’m almost feeling bad for the guys there… almost.

-- Congrats to John Bush on his new appointment at GGI. I have known John for years starting from the days on the board at GANA and know that he is a tremendous talent. It’s a coup for sure for GGI getting him on board full time.

-- I know there are several proud University of Michigan graduates and huge fans that read this, along with a lot of people that were involved in the remodel of the Michigan football stadium. This past weekend I was lucky enough to go to a game at the refurbished stadium- tremendous work done there architecturally and the atmosphere was second to none. So to the folks who had a part in the rebuild, congrats and the folks who are grads and fans- man you are lucky. Great time and the team looks super!

-- Last this week… kudos to the gang at SAGE on the launch of their new website. It’s at www.Sageglass.com and it is a very slick, clean, and impressive site. Sorry Earnest Thompson, Chris Dolan and the folks at Guardian, you have been knocked off the perch for best industry site now. These are heady times for the dynamic glass world and we’re just at the start. Soladigm is gearing up with their new plant, Pleotint is making deals, and obviously I have tremendous faith and confidence in the folks at RavenBrick to be a force. Add that to the positive forecasts about this industry segment and things look very bright. But now we as an industry have a new website to try and knock off the top!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Amazingly sad. A manual from the labor department making fun of previously sickened workers.

-- You actually see this style of story often but it never gets old. Player get injured, unfairly, but that injury allows doctors to catch something that could’ve led to death. So all ends well. Good read as always.

-- Man brings a 9month old baby to the bar… yep this is not ending well…

BONUS LINK: The Sexy Chicken controversy…. At this point you want to tell PETA to focus their energies on legitimate issues of animal mistreatment…. When you read this story you’ll see why that group takes 3 steps back for every one step forward. Yeesh.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Will be hard to top the treadmill fail from last week, that got more comments to me than any video I have ran in a while! I think this one has potential… inside the Washington Monument during the earthquake from last month. Fast forward to the 1:42 mark… wild!

Good news in the middle of the mess

2011-09-25T09:12:00.002-04:00

Lost in the massive malaise of the depressing run on Wall Street last week, along with the continued pathetic performances coming from Washington DC, the AIA released some positive news with the Architectural Building Index. The ABI actually bounced back, shocking analysts and on lookers alike. The biggest surprise was the leap in new projects on the board. There’s two ways to look at that- one it’s about time, we were due for this and it does mean next summer the building segment will be strong. The other is that these projects are pie in the sky efforts that will never get the financing and the study is skewed. My opinion is it’s a little of both. I do think better times are ahead and I continue to discount the ABI for the most part, but I also don’t think massive jumps are in the offing. A steady positive run will be the play here. Bottom line, this was some good news to grab ahold of in the middle of a very volatile week.

Elsewhere…

-- Last week’s blog by the brilliant Bill Evans to me shows that he is a great voice of the glass shop and glazier. He is pure money and I am in awe. When I met Bill at GlassBuild he mentioned he was amazed I write my blog 52 weeks a year, and how do I come up with stuff. I told him what I do and write about is nowhere near the weight and importance that he brings and last week proved that point. Bill’ s work was a tremendous and powerful read and it’s an honor to share a page with him.

-- Was honored yet again to return to Colorado and speak at the Colorado Glazing Contractors Association. I have been a huge fan of the CGCA for years and consider it the model that every regional trade group should follow. Rebecca Kaspari, along with this year’s President Marty Richardson of Metro Glass just do an awesome job.

-- By the way comically when I got to the hotel at the CGCA event was at, I asked the front desk where they were having the speech. They sent me to a room where I started to set up but I recognized no one. I was really spooked; I mean I figured I’d see the ultra classy Cameron Scripture of Viracon at a minimum- and no Rebecca or Marty? What was going on here? So I’m quietly trying to get organized when I asked someone there if this was the CGCA meeting…. And I was then told it was a benefit for orphaned animals in Rwanda. The funny thing is no one there was stopping me from setting up….I should’ve spoken there too!

-- Time for a list… recently Trust in America came out with the “Fattest States” list and here is your top 10…

10. Michigan- Wow we can’t even win this one. But we are fattest in the North!
9. Arkansas
8. South Carolina
7. Oklahoma
6. Kentucky
5. Louisiana
4. Tennessee
3. West Virginia
2. Alabama
1. Mississippi

Amazing comparison, Mississippi a few months ago was noted as the “unhappiest” state by another poll. So that doesn’t jive for me, isn’t the term “Fat and Happy”?

-- The fight in Vegas over the Harmon building at CityCenter rolls on. I’m telling you some day someone will do a book on the entire process, from the birth and concept of that structure, to construction mode with all of its issues, through the lawsuits and eventual conclusion. It will be riveting.

-- Last this week, the Dynamic Glass world surely did get positive momentum with the marketing agreement between PPG and Pleotint. PPG putting its credibility behind a product brings a lot of value and I believe this move benefits all of the technologies in that segment. End of the day new technology in our industry will be the difference maker we need going forward.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Wild story on a fake pilot trying to beat security at an airport. A dumb prank with deep repercussions.

-- Well since I live in the 10th fattest state and I myself am in a fat state right now, maybe this amazing new mp3 imbedded jogging suit is my next purchase!

-- Ah forget it, I’d rather eat these triple stack deep fried Oreos… I’m sure they’re low fat! LOL

VIDEO of the WEEK

Well may as keep with the Fat and workout theme, with a comical video of a treadmill FAIL. Wonder what the guy was planning on doing in taping himself on there….

Putting GBA 2011 in the books

2011-09-18T11:01:00.002-04:00

The 2011 GlassBuild is now history and what a wild and enjoyable time it was. Surely great to see everyone and the show continues to cement its place as THE networking event to be at. In case you missed my other recaps, you can find day 2 HERE and Day 3 HERE. Fun stuff in both, especially the incredible hair on one of our industries most talented guys… who knew Fabio was a consultant? Some concluding thoughts of GBA…

- Machinery dominated the floor and had the most interest. I spent a lot of time at Erdman booth and even was lucky enough to get a private tour at the GED booth where the awesome Bill Briese and Dan Reinhart showed me just mind-blowing technology.

- The news of people trying to steal intellectual property was a part of the buzz at the show and should be taken seriously. Sadly other trade media chose to make light of this incredibly serious, immoral, unethical, and basically criminal situation. People work way too hard to create and build products and giving crooks that are trying to steal IP a forum is despicable.

- Chris Mammen was elected as the new Chairman of the NGA and he will do a tremendous job. Chris is the owner of M3 Technologies and just a class guy through and through. He will be a wonderful leader for the organization.

- In case you missed it, Glass Magazine did release an “App” for Apple (and now on Android as well) for the magazine. Very very sharp stuff here. So go to your various “App” store and download it. I have and it really is very cool.

- Last for the show stuff, this year I had the absolute honor of getting to work with the GBA organizers. For years I was an exhibitor and/or attendee and took a lot of things for granted. And I even took some unfair shots too. Well all I can say is when you get in the middle of it; you are blown away about how it all gets done and comes together. Putting on an event to take care of thousands of people and hundreds of exhibitors takes time, precision, care and talent- and the folks at GBA showed all of those skills and more. Thank you for letting me get a taste of it!

Elsewhere…

-- A major congrats to Jennifer Duemler Donahue on the birth of her son Henry Steven. Jennifer is a PR and writing goddess, and one of my favorite folks around. I’m very happy for her and the expanding empire at the Donahue World HQ.

-- The Solyndra solar story has been pretty prominent in the national media now, but those of us who were following the solar world for a while were not surprised. This company had been taking heat from the solar community for a long time. I give them credit for trying to buck some systems, but shame on the DOE and those who kept on approving cash here because the signs were very clear that this was not anywhere near a slam dunk that deserved a half a billion in funding.
Another positive forecast about the flat glass industry hit the streets last week as well. This report is calling for a 9.1% surge in demand thanks to emerging technologies and recovery from the recession. Hopefully this one is on target.

-- Next up show wise is Greenbuild in Toronto in just a few weeks. That show continues to grow- but this edition will be very interesting to see two things. How will the mix of attendance be with the event in Canada for the first time, and will the older more seasoned architects be more in attendance than in the past.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This is a great example of a frivolous lawsuit. Guy suing fast food chain because he can’t fit in the booths they have. Seriously. And its not like he’s not getting in there because of a disability (that would be a worthy suit)

-- Fun piece here… Top 10 resume bloopers. Yikes!

-- The coolest idea I have seen in a long time! Let’s get these out there!

VIDEO of the WEEK

Because of the show and the ton of video coverage from various news sources, I am video’d out right now. So we’ll skip the video this week from me- sorry gang. We’ll surely be back with one next week.

GlassBuild Day 3

2011-09-14T21:56:00.001-04:00

Day 3 at the show… I’ll be short here because I am whipped and because I’ll have the big recap on Sunday.

As most expected the traffic was lighter on Day 3- but the machinery side was jumping. If there’s a storyline here, it’s the machinery booths seem to have solid to awesome traffic throughout.

A fun video about the show will be up on GlassBuildAmerica.com soon and it does feature a certain well-dressed Canadian showing off his dance moves. Also I did see Greg “Fabio” Carney and he was not pleased with me. Love the hair no matter what.

With the shorter day I missed a few folks in getting back around to them. The fine folks at Technoform- I was there for a heartbeat on Monday and just never made it back. Was great seeing the always awesome Milind Jhaveri, even it was only for a second. Also missed hooking up with Chad Simkins of Soladigm- saw him a few times for a few seconds each, but never could connect. He’s a busy dude growing that product line.

I did get around though to several booths and saw some great things- the equipment at Erdman was awesome, as was the machinery at GED. Loved seeing the new technology at 3M and some wild stuff at Zircon. For all intents, this show really brought out the best in the exhibitor.

The full recap is coming over the weekend. We’ll catch up with you more next post!

GlassBuild America Day 2

2011-09-13T19:58:00.001-04:00

Day 2 at the show was very strong. Very heavy traffic and it seemed like old times for a moment there. Really a fun day all around…. Now to the floor…

I witnessed my first ever impact demo at a show- video of it will be up on GlassBuildAmerica.com by Wednesday morning. Very cool stuff…. Yesterday when I stopped at PPG I did not see Jan Rogan, and I thought she skipped on this one, so I was thrilled when I saw her smiling face this AM. Also nice to see Mark Kearns from Dlubak- the guy is always working it.

The BIG STORY at the show and I’ll mention this in next weeks post as well was Greg Carney… and more specifically, Greg Carney’s hair. Greg now has flowing locks like Fabio. Seriously. For a guy like me that can’t grow hair on my head- seeing Greg sporting just a huge headful… it was stunning.

Elsewhere… the machinery booths were all packed today- surely seemed like interest was at an all time high. The gang from Glassopolis were extremely busy, but they promised SWAG yet all I have seen is cookies… c’mon Rob, gotta step it up. There was a Scott Surma sighting on the floor. So great to see Scott, as I consider him one of the most talented people around. Also the Glass Pundit herself, Kris Vockler was out in about, Wednesday she’ll be leading a very cool seminar on decorative glass but today she was working the floor along side good friend of the blog Steve O’Halloren. I got to walk to the show with Dr. Helen Sanders of Sage, which as always is a complete honor and got to meet Sage’s new VP of Marketing Derek Malmquist, who was an extremely impressive individual.

Missing from the floor…. No Julie Schimmelpenningh as I hear she is down under. (I did see the awesome Aimee Davis of Solutia though) also no Garret Henson from Viracon but there are rumors he may appear on Wednesday. I don’t think I have ever done a GBA without a Viracon sighting. Bobby Hartong of WA Wilson was a no show- we got his Dad and his business partner, but I guess the lack of DQ’s in Atlanta kept him away.

All in all good day at the show- one to go….

GBA 2011 Day 1

2011-09-12T23:14:00.001-04:00

So day 1 of GlassBuild America is in the books and after a slow start the afternoon saw some brisk movement throughout the hall. My first thought is this year the show floor looks the best it has ever looked. The exhibiting companies really brought their “A” games. I am blown away by the style and class so many of the booths are showing. Really top notch!

As for seen on the floor… and the way I do this is in a rapid-fire style… so hang on, here it comes….
The first guy through the gates this AM was Dan Pompeo, the headlining manufacturers rep- one of the best around no doubt… As always the gang from Walker Textures dazzled not only with their impeccable clothing choices (as always) but the continuation of the Saturday Night Fever style dance floor. I’ve noted in the past that PPG sets the fashion tone for traditional booth-wear and Rob Struble did not disappoint with lightweight vests that had pockets. Nice stuff, Glenn Miner and Joanne Funyak were styling as always.

Great looking booths… Cristacurva left you speechless. Just strong. My friends from General Glass (GGI) had amazing examples of what they do in full size surrounding the space and they are serving Ice Cream in their booth- so you get great looking stuff and one of the greatest foods around! Loved the Lauren International booth… as they told me it’s hard to make rubber products look exciting- well they did, and they did it with style! Guardian’s booth was huge and very impressive- no doubt Earnest Thompson, Chris Dolan and company are bringing the best every time out now. They raise the bar with each show.

I met one of my blogging heroes, Bill Evans on the floor. The guy is awesome in print- inspirational as heck and just a thrill to meet him in person.

The Glazing Executive Forum was a veritable “who’s who” of the best glaziers in our world- along with some seriously good suppliers. It looked like things went very well though I’ll be curious on what everyone thought of the keynote speech and I’ll have to bring that up in a future post.

The highlight of my time though was the whole Quanex experience. Quanex is without question the dominating presence at the show… bigger than life. This year though I had an amazing opportunity to get inside the booth and have time with the Chairman, President, & CEO of Quanex David Petratis. I did an interview with him that will be up on GlassBuild.com soon and quite frankly I found him to be engaging, genuine and motivating. The guy is a gem. Then later I got to meet Mike Hovan in person for the first time after following him for years and catching up with great old favorites like Erin and Larry Johnson, Joe Erb and new friends Brian & Kim Kress. Just a thrill for me for sure. Ironically they all like the older version of my blog when I was a little “harder” with my edge… I’m a kindler, gentler blogger now… but you never know maybe my teeth with show again…

All in all Day 1 was a crazy whirlwind of a show… people are busy right now for sure, but I believe everyone is very worried about the coming months. No one can really accurately predict what next year will bring and I think that just scares people to the core.
Day 2 and 3 I’ll be all over the floor- I look forward to catching up with more people and seeing things that are “new” for me. So that’s the goal. To me the show is strong because as noted above, the exhibitors really came out strong- people that are attending are enjoying the benefits of that for sure.

More to follow in the coming days- then next Sunday a wrap up….

The Pre Show

2011-09-11T11:31:00.002-04:00

Different posting schedule this week with the onset of GlassBuild 2011.... This post will be very shot then I'll have posts here all three nights of the show with recaps and sightings.

I was on the floor yesterday and the exhibits looked spectacular, people really upped their game this year with some great booths. I am excited to see how this all turns out and also as always gauge the attitude and mood of the crowd. Been an odd year for sure- most people are very busy, but I believe everyone is casting a very wary eye towards winter and the the early parts of 2012. So we will see.

And yes it is 9/11 and the 10th anniversary of the horrific event that continues to touch all of us. I am not going to delve deep into it, there's so many tributes and insights out there already- some more amazing than others, that I wouldn't and couldn't do it justice. Needless to say my thoughts are there.

We'll do the LINKS of the WEEK here though because we have some good ones... and on that note, it's always tough to find the good ones, no one does it as good as my old conspirator now across the street. So if you have any good links you want to share, please do not hesitate to send them to me.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- We need more judges like this... he took some attorney's to task in a very creative, and successful way!

-- To me this is just a blatant publicity stunt.... but I am curious what the idea is behind a guy biking 1600 miles to try and meet with Warren Buffett. Biking... sounds uncomfortable.

-- GREAT Story on when bloggers feel swindled. You know you should NEVER get on the bad side of a blogger! LOL. Seriously though these guys portrayed in this story were way over the top and too dramatic. Sorry guys, you are not better than the rest of the world... unless you blog about glass....

A warning realized...

2011-09-04T10:35:00.002-04:00

Lost in the excitement and action of Hurricane Irene was the Earthquake that struck earlier that week. Thankfully there were no reported deaths or major injuries and for the most part everything and everyone survived. However one thing that came out of it was said perfectly by Arlene Stewart, the legendary energy consultant in a tweet. Here goes:

ArleneOnEnergy Arlene Z. Stewart 10 yrs ago, I watched SE codes bodies look at Nanette Lockwood like she was nuts for advocating for seismic provisions. Vindicated much?

And there ya go. For years people have been warning of issues to come and even though we skated on this one, the seismic provisions still should be something to be addressed and put into play. And as for Nanette Lockwood of Solutia, it’s been many years since I had the honor of working with her, but she happens to be an absolute authority on so many of these issues, if she told me to prepare for another quake tomorrow, I’d drop everything and go. So this whole scenario bears watching and we’ll also have to see how it affects us in the glazing world- because it will. And oh if you are not following Arlene on Twitter, you need to.

Elsewhere…

-- One tough image and result from the hurricane was the damage in Vermont. The iconic covered bridges that stood for so long- completely wiped out. Towns flooded. Just awful…

-- The Steve Jobs resignation was also a tough one to take. While many expected this day to eventually come given his health battles, the finality of it all is still stunning. Apple is more than Steve Jobs and I am sure their products (and love of everything glass) will continue on, but it won’t be the same. By the way, here is a quick and simple article on the three main takeaways from the way that Steve Jobs did his business.

-- We are coming up on another anniversary for this blog. I started in October of 2005 and almost 400 postings later I am still here, still plugging along. I thank everyone who reads this and supports it. And just a note, I do actually post this on Sundays at my original site. Ironically it gets tons of hits from the state of Virginia that day, guess I am popular there! Anyway it continues to be a thrill that many of my stories/opinions/comments get picked up by competitors to run on the day before my posts appear Tuesday’s in the always-excellent e Weekly. In any case, for what started as therapy continues and I appreciate everyone for following along!

-- Missed noting my brothers birthday last week… and for his big day the best gift he got was a years membership in the Dairy Queen Blizzard Club. Who woulda thunk that the first Perilstein to have a membership in such an epic club would be the skinny one… Happy Birthday bro…

-- Football predictions… as many may know I have not been into Football this year, but I still have to make my traditional (and usually wrong) call on who wins it all… So fans of 30 teams will be happy and fans of the 2 I pick… not so much… so here goes… your Super Bowl will be the New England Patriots vs. the Chicago Bears… for some reason I think Jay Cutler has a huge year this year, and Brady and the Pats look unstoppable. Of course, and as always, I hope I am wrong.

-- Last this week… here we are on the cusp of the show of the year… GlassBuild America kicks off Monday the 12th. The show floor is sold out and there’s some nice momentum out there on people attending the show. I am really looking forward to seeing so many of the folks that I can only usually hook up with at GBA. I will also, as tradition, something I started way back in the early days of this blog, be posting nightly with all of the flavor, pomp, and color of the show. If you are coming to the event, look for me running around or at my booth #1104. See you there!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Another industry that is working to develop new products… the paperclip industry… yes seriously… and a very interesting read about a needed work material we use and abuse.

-- Simply the best “out of office” e mail ever written! Wow.

-- Excellent story on the recent Kardashian wedding and how it should actually be considered.

VIDEO of the WEEK

For those of you Jersey Shore fans out there… the fight between Ronnie and “The Situation” was hyped a ton but really did not turn out as much… yet. In case you missed it, here was the “fight” in its glory. By the way, as a parent, if my daughter showed up as a booty call on Jersey Shore, I’d probably lose my mind. Brutal.

The Eye of the Storm

2011-08-28T09:46:00.002-04:00

I had a great blog already written but because of Hurricane Irene I decided to change it up. Because I post this blog on Sunday’s, the full force of the hurricane and its aftermath has not played out completely. Obviously my thoughts are with everyone in the path and hopefully everyone is staying safe.

So given the circumstances my normal batch of commentary, snark, and kudos is just not appropriate. All I can say is that a hurricane and what happens during it is bad wherever and whenever it hits, but the fact Irene is hitting places that normally just don’t get hurricanes makes this even worse. Add in that so much in our world depends on and runs on what happens in cities like New York. Basically if New York sneezes, the rest of the country can catch a cold. So it does beg the question of how much of an economic affect will this disaster have and how far will it reach?

It has been a very good summer for the glass and construction industry (especially compared to the Winter and Spring) so will this derail it or will lengthen it? No matter what the result there, hopefully everyone there hangs in with as little issue as possible. Our thoughts and prayers are with you.

I will though close with some levity. This story on what the folks are hoarding in Brooklyn… and its not water. I guess we all deal with things in different ways!

We’ll be back next week with our regular post.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- Most un-moderated message boards are worthless (like at least one for our industry), but some like Trip Advisor help people decide on hotels etc. Unless of course those reviews are fake… Nice piece on how to spot a bogus one.

-- Serious article. Scientists are warning that Aliens are coming for us. And to think there’s people who rip on me for what I say and do! Yeesh.

-- This wins the award for the worst written story featuring the dumbest choices in on-flight entertainment. The whole thing is wreck, so of course you have to read it…

VIDEO of the WEEK:

Video of Memphis cops in street fighting training…. One rule I learned from my past, don’t mess with Memphis…. Good place by the way.

News of all makes and models....

2011-08-21T08:58:00.002-04:00

An absolute rollercoaster of a week news-wise… We had good news, sad news, surprising news, and what could possibly be considered depressing news. And we had glass still falling from the sky as well…. Really it was all over the map, so let’s take a look at what happened…

-- We’ll start off with the sad news in the passing of John Neunlist, President of Admiral Glass in Houston. John was one of those consistent, classy industry guys. He always supported our industry, was a fixture at BEC, and simply a force in his world. Our industry lost a very good man last week and thoughts and prayers go out to John’s family.

-- The week also saw more rough numbers out of the Architectural Billings Index. For the 5th straight month the numbers were down. So it is surely now an official “trend.” However I am starting to question he whole methodology involved based on last year to this year. Our industry is currently a ton busier right now than what the ABI predicted 9-12 months ago. And while I think this burst of business was sorely overdue, I am still taking ABI’s latest downward trends with a grain of salt. If our world is dog slow in August of 2012, then we’ll know right?

-- Good news is that remodeling numbers are nowhere close to being down or depressed. That segment has been going hog wild for a while and will continue to do so. The era of “spec” buildings is absolutely toast, and with years of inventory on the markets right now, the remodel, retrofit segment looks very promising.

-- Surprising news on the decision in US Court dismissing the lawsuit against the United States Green Building Council. I really thought the suit would have more legs, but in the end, the judge attacked the logic behind the suit and sided firmly with the USGBC. The fine folks at BuildingGreen.com have a great recap with insights HERE. I don’t think this is the end of attacks on USGBC. There’s still a lot of people have issues with their programs and the overall value to true sustainability in our world. Will be an interesting one to continue to monitor.

-- Glass keeps falling off of buildings, the newest round is in Toronto and that news has been bouncing around the Internet like wildfire. The bad thing in that once again this can be used as a negative mark against glass as a building product. As an industry it surely would be nice to have at least a little run without someone beating on us.

Elsewhere in the very busy week that passed…

-- A hearty congrats to my pal Rich Porayko and his wife Tricia on the birth of their son Levi. The kid I am sure is already taking after his Dad and hustling like crazy. Levi is their first child… Congrats!

-- A wish of good luck to Joe Krusienski as he heads off into new pastures, whatever they may be. I had the absolute honor of working with Joe for several years and there are not many who are better. They just don’t make guys like Joe anymore that is for sure. Hopefully we’ll have a Joe K sighting at GlassBuild in a few weeks.

-- Many thanks to Ted Knopp of McKenzie Glass in Oregon and James M. who noted on last weeks blog I mis-heard the wording on the video that I posted. I appreciate the catch and now know exactly what I did- I heard what I wanted to hear- what I assumed was said and just mixed it up. In any case, thank you guys for reading and for taking the time to post it. Much appreciated!

-- And also thanks to Tish Oye of Glassworks in Seattle, WA for an awesome link about Architects love of glass. You can read the piece HERE, and to get you going this was the first line:
Architects like to build with wood, masonry, concrete and steel, but most really love glass.
Oh my is that not cool or what!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Awesome read inside the mind of one of the world’s best hackers. Scary.

What happens when your finely tuned marketing campaign gets thrown by a real life issue? In time this story will give us those answers…

On of my past co-workers is a HUGE Jersey Shore guy. I wonder if this story will make him shop elsewhere for his clothes.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Ok I am still not into football yet but getting closer… this clip from the Canadian Football League made me chuckle… what a wild celebration after the touchdown…

Glass IS Awesome

2011-08-14T13:03:00.003-04:00

Last week Glass Magazine linked to an amazing video story on Glass that somehow I missed. After running across it today in working on this post, I had to make it my top story. The link was to a story done on MSNBC about Glass and it was fantastic. Granted the majority of the piece was not about architectural or commercial glass, but there was enough in there that really put our industry into a positive light. At the end the piece legendary architect James Carpenter makes a great statement: “Glass will become more and more persuasive in our lives…” We need to keep promoting and pushing that sentiment exactly. Glass has been taking bad raps for years and much of it unfair. Hopefully with pieces like this, along with the continued amazing advances on the dynamic, energy, safety and decorative side and with hungry people out pushing, we’ll keep turning the tide and changing any negative perceptions that remain. In the meantime, click here to the Glass Magazine story and check out the video.

Elsewhere…

-- This past week I was lucky enough to find myself available to join in on an on line “GlassChat” Created by Social Media Consultant Patricia Linthicum (who runs the excellent “Looking at Glass” blog), the weekly on line Twitter chat is getting more and more popular and becoming a great resource to learn and build from. I got a kick out of seeing great insights flowing from tremendous people representing companies like Glasswerks, ICD, Glasslam, Gardner, Coral, Connors Sales and more. And don’t worry there was not even a sniff of anti trust activities; it’s basically a great interactive version of something you would follow here or in e Weekly. If you want to get in the conversation, there’s a group on LinkedIn or if you follow any of the above companies on Twitter they can lead you there. Or drop me a line at the address below.

-- Also saw a very good update on line this week about changes to UFC codes and ASTM F2248. If you or your company is in the blast protective world, it is surely an update to look at and issue to follow. More can be found clicking HERE. (H/T to the excellent JEI folks)

-- Football, in the pro version is now playing pre season and I am STILL not into it. Getting worried that I lost that groove. College ball is getting closer- and I am somewhat excited about that.

-- The term “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” dates back to the 1820’s but continues to be relevant today. Though it can be frustrating it is uplifting when your efforts get copied. Must mean you are doing something right eh? Anyway its been great to be flattered lately.

-- So we are basically a month away now from the show of the year, GlassBuild America. I am excited about it- having the chance to see people again and network is crucial (for me and really for everyone else isn’t it?) and to see the new products and innovation, to help diversify is a must. No doubt there’s some excitement surrounding the event. Also enthusiasm is growing for the Glazing Executives Forum, as the breakout session moderators have been released and it’s a who’s who of intelligent and solid industry folks. Hope to see you there!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Interesting story on patent trolls…. And I have a feeling you’ll be hearing more about this in the coming months.

-- Did the great Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavs really call the stock market crash?

-- Infuriating read here about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Criminal stuff. Now I know that when you get waaaay behind on the mortgage something has to give, but these guys are in it for the wrong reasons. Another reason to hate on Congress too.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Growing up loving baseball, when my brother wasn’t around to drive ground balls into my chest and face, I had one of those pitch-back screens that you threw the ball into and it would come right back. So you’d be able to play catch etc. Well this video takes it to a whole new level. Simply amazing to watch this guy hit…

((Thanks to my Mom noticing- the video below was yanked rom Youtube. No clue why. Trying to find another version))

A word of caution

2011-08-07T10:58:00.002-04:00

Being diverse is a good thing. Adding on new avenues to your business is also good. But taking on business that you know little about and stepping all over your subcontractors, well that is bad. And it has potential to be dangerous too. Recently there’s been a trend in our world where general contractors are deciding that they don’t need professional glaziers; they can just install the glass and framing themselves. This maneuver is becoming more prominent as job bids get tighter and people get more desperate for work. However this does upset not only the proper natural order of things (which surely would be debated by some) but the fact that you are working with products that can be very dangerous to not only the installers but the general public as well. In the last few weeks in the northeast, we had such a situation raise its ugly head. A general contractor was able to buy glass direct from a fabricator and then installed it. Except that it was annealed glass and they went into doors… at a hospital no less. Luckily no one got hurt when the first piece broke in large shards no one got hurt and situation addressed. But at the end of the day, fabricators that sell a GC direct are being complicit with a poor and most likely dangerous business practice, and the GC cutting out the glazier is absolutely shameful. I know “desperate times call for desperate measures” but these sorts of moves are not good for anyone and it actually stains us all as an industry. So go ahead and be diverse, but think twice before you step into a scenario that could have serious long lasting and devastating effects.

Elsewhere…

-- Can we backcharge Standard & Poors because of their calculation mistake? What a miserable week on Wall Street.

-- Props to Jenni Chase and the gang at Glass Magazine. Last week in e-Weekly yet another tremendous interview, adding to a really stellar list of people being profiled here. (And more to come!) Glass Magazine and e Weekly has become the place people come to be heard and is the home for in-depth insights of every big story in our world. It is just very exciting to be a part of that.

-- Good news for the “Dynamic” window world with the release mid last week from Lux Research. The world is moving that way and will continue to embrace that technology because it is good… VERY good for our world. Congrats to SAGE and Soladigm for their mentions and don’t sleep on the gang from RavenBrick. They are absolutely in the discussion too. No matter how you slice it, good things are coming and it’s great for our industry.

-- My alma mater, Ohio University, finally won something…. The Princeton Review named OU the #1 party school in the country. Amazing. I wonder if they still do quarter beer night like they did when I went there.

-- You know I like lists, and this week a cool one came out with the Top 10 cities that will be THE places to live in 2020. Boomtowns is what they are calling them… so I guess if you own land in these areas, the boom is coming according to Proximity One.
1. Raleigh, NC
2. Richland, WA
3. Austin/Round Rock TX
4. Provo, UT
5. Hinesville, GA
6. Logan, UT
7. Grand Junction, CO
8. McAllen, TX
9. Idaho Falls, ID (Once upon a time ISU hall of famer Dave Michaeli of AGC surely roamed this area!)
10. Charlotte, NC

I have been to most of these places and could see the allure. You wonder though if they grow too much will they still be as nice?

-- Last this week; did you make your plans yet for GlassBuild America? Show is coming up quick and well worth the time and minimal cost to be there so you can network and advance your business.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Trying to figure out this guys motive… stealing toilet lever handles. How many would you have to take to make cash?

-- Really cool piece on “you are what you eat” a look at random people and what is in their fridge. Site loads kind of slow but very interesting.

-- Las Vegas is talking about cracking down on street performers and panhandlers… I guess we’ll see if that actually happens. In the meantime, don’t buy the “bottled” water from anyone on the street…

VIDEO of the WEEK

We have lots of dogs at home- but none as cool as this one… great video of it “talking” -- very creative!

Ready to Roll!

2011-07-31T09:55:00.002-04:00

Well I have been teasing this for a few weeks and the time has come to finally introduce everyone to my new venture. Or actually more apt, my new AD-venture! I have founded a new consulting firm for the building products industry called Sole Source Consultants. The mission of this new organization is to be a source to help businesses prosper by offering expertise in virtually every aspect of their operation. My portion of this undertaking is the marketing, branding, communication strategy and overall reputation management side, as well as website and social media and of course code and specification assistance. But to do it right I have been working with some of the best independent consultants our industry has to offer so that any need that is out there will be handled by the best available. And it doesn’t matter your size, scope, or budget, we’re there with a plan for you.

For companies in our industry, I believe now is the time to attack business wise. Step up and get ahead of the trends, get ahead of the pack and be in the lead as the economy continues to evolve. And I wholeheartedly believe Sole Source has the ability to assist and influence that charge.

So that’s the basic pitch, for more information, e-mail me at MaxP@SoleSourceConsultants.com and I’ll gladly provide the specific details you desire. And also I will note, that after this post, you will not see me promoting my business in this space. This blog will continue, and it will remain as an industry observation point and the place that so many have flocked to since 2005 and made it the most popular industry blog around. I am humbled by that and thank you for reading. I will have a specific blog for the new company on the Sole Source site that will cover issues pertaining to that business but I have no desire to ever intersect the two.

Finally, as I have worked to put this together, I have been asked again and again, why I am going in this direction. What was my thought process and so on? Like I noted above, I think business wise it’s a slam-dunk. Smart companies are making the moves to be at the front of the bus, and they’ll be in the market for the services that a group like mine can provide. But this is also about my family. From my great grandfather, grandfather, Dad, and brother Steve- they all started businesses and did extremely well. I want to see if I can measure up to their awesome legacy. And further more I wanted to create a vehicle that my kids (along with my wife, brother, sister, and Mom) can look at and be proud of… a venture that sets the tone for the future, provides positive services, and helps people achieve and reach their goals.
Plus rumor has it if I do well I may end up moving up the rankings of the favorite people in my Mom’s life. Right now I am perking around #17… so there’s that.

Anyway thank you for reading and supporting the blog and my career as it’s gone through the years and know I truly appreciate any and all consideration you send my way.

Elsewhere…

Since this post was so long- we’ll save the posts for next week. But I do want to say I will have a piece on a very scary and discouraging item about glaziers getting cut of the food chain by generals. And when that happens the mistakes that come with. So come back for that next week!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Florida has to be an interesting place to live… and now one town will charge you extra for “Sink Hole” coverage. Amazing what you have to pay for now.

-- This store is actually near where I used to live in suburban Pittsburgh. Comically stupid workers at an adult store stage a robbery. And they get caught of course.

-- Fellow travelers, you could be getting some money back from the airlines. Check out this story to see why. I hope I am…

VIDEO of the WEEK

So yes Pro Football is back… and still not that excited yet, but this video of Indy Colts punter Pat McAfee making a 75 yard Field Goal was pretty dang cool.

Panic or Not?

2011-07-24T14:24:00.002-04:00

Last week we saw yet another rough batch of results from the AIA’s Architectural Billings Index featuring the third straight underwhelming month. The fear now is the experts felt that when you start to string 3 months together that can constitute a trend. However, looking at the positive side, at this time last year, the ABI was just as bad, yet current business levels (which would be right in the time frame where the ABI has its effect on our industry) have been solid to very good. A majority of the industry is busy right now, so possibly the attention paid to the ABI is not what it’s cracked up to be and maybe it’s not that accurate of a metric. No matter how you slice it, we all know there’s holes in our economic world right now and that even with increased business levels taking place right now, I don’t think anyone is confident of long term sustainment of such. The fundamentals have to come back and hopefully that happens sooner than later. Until then we’ll track everything and anything we can to get a vision of what is still to come.

Elsewhere…

-- Congrats to my friend Dr. Helen Sanders of Sage. All in one week she appears in front of congress and is featured in a story in the Wall Street Journal. Excellent. Just remember us little people Helen… and remember the sad little blogger that did one of the first Q&A’s with you…. I guess though that is the rightful path… Glass Magazine to Congress to WSJ. I love it!

-- GlassBuild America is coming up and when I went to make my travel arrangements I was VERY pleasantly surprised at how inexpensive the flights to Atlanta are. Trust me I know how tight everyone’s budgets are (mine basically doesn’t exist!) so seeing the deals for Atlanta was pretty awesome. So if you are on the fence, go check the rates and book- for those prices you can’t afford NOT to be there!

-- Speaking of GBA, one of the seminars I am looking forward to is the BIPV one. Solar is something so many people are curious about in our world, and the line up for this piece is very good, moderated by the esteemed Richard Voreis. If you have any curiosity at all about this emerging technology- this seminar will be a huge help.

-- Flying as much as I have in my past I thought I had seen it all, but this week I saw something new… I watched as a flight attendant had a serious verbal altercation with what had be an 80+year old lady. They went at it for at least 10 minutes and the flight attendant almost walked off the plane! The argument was as we were loading and no clue what started it but talk about watching a wreck happen. Luckily cooler heads prevailed. You had to be there…

-- Looks like we’ll have football on time this year… so why am I so unenthusiastic about it?

-- Last this week, how about a hand for all of the folks who are working in the field or in the plants right now during this massive heat wave. Those folks are the real heroes of our business anyway, but especially during conditions like this. Stay cool and safe folks!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- I have gone easy on China recently (heck I go easy on EVERYONE now! LOL) but this story about their athletic set up and the wrath on the folks put away by it is worth reading and sad indeed.

-- I already noted above that football coming back isn’t thrilling me. And neither is this new rule for the NFL adding a possibility of more replay and longer games. Ugh.

-- Uh oh… there’s now an “App” for compressing words for your text messages. As a good friend noted to me on this “it makes my head hurt”- yep it sure does. Are we becoming so much of a rush rush short attention span culture that even the text messages have to be compressed?

VIDEO of the WEEK

We are year away but the trailer for the next in the series of Batman movies is out. “The Dark Knight Rises” is the name and it looks pretty strong…. Here it is…

Green or Not

2011-07-17T10:47:00.003-04:00

This past week I found myself in a discussion on the value of the “green” movement. A few years ago, slapping the word “green” into your materials gave off the impression to the then unknowing masses that your company had the golden key to success. But as time progressed and more people became aware, the whole notion of “greenwashing” (yes it has a name) became out of style, distasteful, and those who did it were somewhat ostracized. So now there’s not as much outward pushing of green because people are more aware and intelligent about it, but has the lack of promotion hurt the cause? I say yes and no. Yes from the standpoint that the more light you can shine on a subject the better coverage it can get and more knowledge added to it. No because more and more people are grasping the idea that energy efficiency, truly created by better buildings with better materials, is doing your part… your green duty as it is, and at the end of the day doing the deed is better than just talking about it. Bottom line to this whole discussion is we as an industry still have to keep pushing the pedal to the floor in creating and advancing our technology as it relates to green or energy, or sustainability or any other heading you want to throw it under.

Elsewhere

-- Want to know something that is not probably green these days? The color of the grass in parts of the drought riddled states in the south and southwest. I swear looking at the national map on day last week and it looked like there was a dome covering the state of Texas not allowing a rain system in. Mother Nature continues to be cruel and this historic drought continues.

-- With all of the talk in DC about the debt limits and budgets, how come no one gets upset that the bogus chase and trial of Lance Armstrong, professional bike rider, will cost our government more than 100 million dollars. How is that sane?

-- An interesting top 10 this week from CNBC… The Top 10 Cities LEAST effected by the housing crisis. The survey notes that declining home values has touched every city but these 10 have weathered the storm best. If your city is on here, congratulations as I bet when the list of “most” affected cities comes out mine will be on that list. Here goes:

10. Greenville, SC (Awesome place by the way)
9. Knoxville, TN
8. Durham, NC
7. Rochester, NY (shocking to me actually)
6. Pittsburgh, PA
5. Yakima, WA
4. Little Rock, AR
3. Tulsa, OK
2. Oklahoma City, OK
1. Fayetteville, NC

-- I mentioned books last week while propping Bill Evans wonderful recent post, and here’s one if you are looking for a quick, breezy read on the greatness of a company and marketing plan. First in Thirst: How Gatorade Turned the Science of Sweat Into a Cultural Phenomenon is the story of Gatorade and how it was developed but more interestingly how its marketing evolved. At only 280 pages you can finish it quick, or in Scott Surma time, one treadmill session.

-- Last up this week… a great site to get around the whole automated operator systems that many mega-sized companies have in place. Click HERE and the site will show you the tips to follow to be able to talk to a real live human being! Imagine that. And no worries, I have no plans of adding an automated phone system here at From the Fabricator Blogging Inc. or at my next venture... coming soon....

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Could be some of the dumbest humans ever? Breaking in while leaving the baby in the car. Yeesh.

-- A very interesting read on former Dallas Cowboy Michael Irvin, his life and his attitude changes. Excellent stuff.

This story is from 2009 but is too amazing to not link here. Burglar breaks in and gets used as a sex slave after his plans go awry. Head scratcher….

VIDEO of the WEEK

Crummy week for video submissions… best of the best… video of an 18 foot, 2,000 pound gigantic crocodile in Australia… what a beast!

CRL brings USAC back...

2011-07-10T19:07:00.002-04:00

Well that slow cycle of news in our industry didn’t last very long did it? Last week two big stories hit, with one an obviously much bigger mainstream story than the other. That news was that C.R. Laurence (CRL) acquired U.S. Aluminum. CRL has been a force in the industry for many years and this maneuver continues to solidify that fact. The interesting parts start now for the gang at CRL in rebuilding USAC and putting the pieces back in place. They made a great first move at that with getting Tom Harris back in the fold to run it. Also worth watching is how CRL puts USAC back in the game- will it be nationally or more on a regional basis out of the gate and how will the return of this capacity effect that side of the industry. Seemingly never a dull moment around here. Also to note, a lot of the props in this case will be automatically be directed to Don Friese and family and they deserve them no doubt, but without question CRL doesn’t keep growing without the steady hand and influence of President Lloyd Talbert. That guy is the straw that stirs the drink there and a brilliant businessman.

Elsewhere…

-- The other major deal reported last week was the sale of gigantic glazier Permasteelisa to JS Group out of Japan. While Permasteelisa is a massive player in the world of glazing, this story is nowhere near as big as the one above as I’d say 95% of the North American glass market has either no idea or would have no interaction or effect from anything here. Still fascinating to follow none the less.

-- I really enjoyed Bill Evans blog post from last week. I’m afraid with how crazy last week was with the holiday, people may have missed it. If you missed, you can click HERE to view. Best part was his item at the end with the value of a book vs. lunch. Now that is truly food for thought!

-- The glass industry and specifically Guardian got great coverage over this past weekend with an article in the Indy Star out of Indianapolis, IN. The home décor writer of the paper did up a piece on how glass really is great and gave some serious love to the folks from Guardian and their products. Any time our world can get positive main stream coverage like this, it’s a major victory.

-- Fun one to think about? The start of bread coming in slices hit 83 years ago this week. So that was the beginning of “sliced bread” so that brings the question, what was the greatest thing BEFORE sliced bread? And comically the younger generations are totally lost on the whole concept on things better than sliced bread…

-- Well the big Seattle-Portland MLS game was Sunday afternoon and the atmosphere was really electric, even watching on TV-if you took the graphics down and just listened to the crowd, you woulda thought you were watching a game being played in Europe. Great 2nd half and Seattle came back twice from deficits to win. So for my Seattle friend Chuck Knickerbocker of TGP, a sweet victory for his town and I am sure a “told ya so” e mail is forthcoming to me!

-- Last this week, how can you not salute the greatness of Derek Jeter? The guy has been a clutch player his entire career, has lived in the most glaring spotlight possible, but yet has never had anything close to a mis-step, and from all accounts is just a solid citizen. And he also knows how to please a crowd, a homer to get to 3000 hits as a part of a 5 for 5 day! I think Jeter right now sits as the next unanimous Baseball Hall of Fame inductee without question.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This is a great story for those of you who fancy eating out… some of these items I have experienced and some are way beyond me, but it’s the Top 10 worst food trends….

-- In case my fellow travelers missed this story… here it is about the supposed new plot to implant explosive devices into the terrorist bodies to try and beat airport security… yeesh.

-- I’d say get this while you can… story noting no upfront costs in doing solar at your home. Seems too good to be true…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Yes I am a bit Soccer crazed right now. Must be the fact that I think the NFL is never coming back. In any case, amazing goal at the end of the U-17 World Championship Semi Final between Mexico and Germany. Mexico wins it with a Bicycle kick late, with a guy had the whole major head injury look going! Great goal, and great announcers…

Proof in the pudding

2011-07-03T10:48:00.002-04:00

Last week I had noted that despite the falling ABI score that optimism was in play and that in my own informal polling, people were reporting that they were busy. Well this week some tangible proof of that came through when the Institute for Supply Management reported that June factory activity rose nicely in June. That good news from the manufacturing sector also helped fuel a great week on Wall Street. No doubt it is nice to see positivity in more of a real format compared to a feeling! The hope now is that this momentum can be sustained. Many of the people I talked to had concerns that come fall we could be back to where we just came from and I believe there will be some softening, because there always is in our cyclical world, but hopefully not dramatic enough to make a major case.

Elsewhere…

-- Hope everyone had a good holiday weekend! Canada Day and the 4th of July all fitting nicely into a weekend. Gotta love the way the calendar fell this year… won’t be as lucky next year sadly.

-- The story surrounding the W Hotel in Austin is becoming more and more fascinating by the day. For an industry guy like me I get a kick out of seeing who is being called on to comment and provide analysis. In the article from Saturday’s edition of the Austin Statesman, you had whole run of guys mentioned, from Chicago legend Mark Meshulam to Paul Beers and Bill Lignell. Plus even a piece written for Glass Magazine by Tony Leto was noted. I have a feeling this story is nowhere near done and should be an interesting watch.

-- Outside of the W story, really was a slow week in the industry, which is probably welcomed since we’ve had more drama in the last 8 weeks+ than I can really remember. I am actually pretty happy that I have little to write about this week!

-- Congrats to Butte College for going off the grid- going all solar. Story is here and shows that there are some people really thinking out there.

-- How about the new twist on an old internet scam…. Remember the whole “I am a Prince and if you send me X dollars to release my fortune, I’ll share with you” angle? Well now the scammers are doing a wild one. They are sending out notes that they are the authorities in these countries and that they have arrested said scammers and there’s money to be paid back to anyone who was approached by the scammers. All you have to do is send them some cash to get your “settlement” released. Absolutely amazing. I swear the people that come up with this stuff, if they used their powers and creativity for good, our world could be so much better.

-- As some of you know I am a soccer guy- usually more national games than league games, but this coming weekend in the MLS is a huge game between Portland and Seattle. An incredibly fierce rivalry and passionate crowds. Will be a must watch. And I believe for a birthday gift for my friend Kris Vockler of ICD, Portland will deliver a win.

-- And speaking of Kris, she is due to facilitate a seminar on trends in the Decorative Glass world at GlassBuild America. Decorative is a prominent and healthy product segment and this seminar will be a must if you have even the slightest interest or dealings in that world. GlassBuild America as a whole is coming along nicely- I am sensing a lot of enthusiasm about it as people are realizing to keep up and to get ahead of the market, this is a show you have to attend.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Insane story of the week. Two parents actually arrange a fist fight between their kids. Just click the link- talking anymore about it makes me ill.

-- I’m crushed! This story says the fights on Jersey Shore may be staged! No way!

-- Getting a patent for spying technology via Skype. Interesting read.

VIDEO of the WEEK

An absolutely freaking awesome video showing bridges being blown up from various motion pictures. Who needs 4th of July Fireworks? I’ll watch this any day. Just a great watch matched with an epic soundtrack.

Looking at both sides

2011-06-26T11:34:00.002-04:00

When it comes to economic conditions, the past week hit both ends of the spectrum. That spectrum instead of being good and bad is more like “hopeful” and “worrisome”. (See I AM turning over a new leaf already!) On the worrisome side was this month’s release of the Architectural Billings Index. The numbers were not pretty and any positive momentum from earlier in the year has dissipated. The most disappointing of the numbers was the new project score coming in with its lowest total in the last 18 months. But at the end of the day the ABI is not the “be all, end all” and its momentum can swing back to the positive quickly. On the hopeful side was the news out of Apogee this week that they have a better backlog and expect positive trends as the year proceeds. That can obviously be a signal for the industry to point to. Bottom line is we knew 2011 wasn’t going to be easy and we all hoped for the 2nd half to be the start of solid rebound and there’s evidence of that possibility.

Elsewhere…

-- And in my own non scientific poll, it sure sounds just from connecting with people this past week that places are busy and seeing some nice forecasts. At the end of the day it’s the actual reality for the businesses that matters and if it’s good, then the reports from the various groups really don’t mean that much.

-- The guys at Glassopolis are known for creating great ads. Well this past week one the main guys at Glassopolis had a part in creating something really great. Rob Botman and his wife welcomed their third child to the fold. Jasper joins the team now (Love the name!) and I am sure is already working Dad over about what next great creative is coming for the company. Congrats to Rob and family!

-- Not sure if anyone on here caught the crazy Gold Cup soccer final between the U.S. and Mexico. That’s the type of game the casual fan could enjoy. Mexico came back from a 2-0 deficit to beat the U.S. 4-2. I believe Alejandro Sanchez had a big part in the win for Mexico making it the 2nd time this year that he broke the hearts of many Americans. Great game none the less.

-- Congrats to the gang at Holcam on the launch of their new marketing initiatives. Very well done and smart to get out there and bang the chest a little bit. They also added some very smart pieces to their approach that I believe will make a difference. Well done folks!

-- My Ipod on shuffle continues to be like Tony Robbins. First two songs from my run yesterday were: “Seize the Day” and “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”

-- And last this week…. I was very honored to get the full transcript of the speech Guardian’s Russ Ebeid presented at Glass Processing Days and I must say after reading it, I am blown away. Just a tremendous piece and tons of takeaways… One of the big ones for me personally was this line:

“In challenging times and rapid change, companies must be smart, nimble, and wise focusing on their customer’s needs. It is not the time to be hesitant or timid – it is an opportunity to prune for future growth. It is time to have the best people. It is time to be the best at what you do and make sure your customers know it.”

And with that incredible and very true line, it will serve as inspiration for me in my next steps… coming soon….

LINKS of the WEEK

-- 14 ideas from the 42nd President of the U.S. Bill Clinton to fix the economy. No matter what you think of him or whatever party affiliation, a very interesting read for sure.

-- 51 year old actor marries his 16 year old girlfriend and that brings the same first question from everyone… how? Then the next question is how long will it last? I give it 2 years.

-- An actual store with everything in it made in the United States… Obviously a must stop if you find yourself near its location in Elma, NY. Will be interesting to see what it has and how it all goes…

VIDEO of the WEEK

The official trailer for the upcoming movie Moneyball starring Brad Pitt. It was a very cool book, we’ll see if the movie takes Hollywood license to it or not. Actually we know Hollywood will, but the question should be, how much?

Here, there, and everywhere....

2011-06-20T09:42:00.002-04:00

Tying up loose ends and cleaning off the desk once again with short and assorted subjects…

-- Big news to the industry last week when I heard that marketing superstar Christine Shaffer was leaving Viracon to go to Apogee sister company Tru Vue. Very happy for Christine and the folks at Tru Vue pulled a coup (sorry for the cheesy rhyme, too easy) Its tough news for our side of the industry as no doubt Christine was a shining light, but at least she’ll be close by.

-- Christine was listed on this blog back in 2007 as one of the superstars of the industry and it was fun to go back and re-read that. The others in that inaugural class are all still plugging along at high levels. Greg Carney now on his own as a world class consultant, Brian Craft still not reading my blog, but doing great for Guardian, Mike Gainey, still a force at Azon, and Julie Schimmelpenningh at Solutia and always on the top of everyone’s list. Only Scott Surma is missing from our industry now but he still kicking tail and taking names and I believe he still follows the drama here when he has time.

-- Hated missing Neocon yet again last week, but heard tons of buzz from my architectural friends about it. Congrats to the fine folks at General Glass, evidently they made a tremendous impression on the show goers because I heard about them specifically from one of the premier interior Architects in the U.S. Also heard positives on the gang from Walker (and their “Dance Fever” floor) and Guardian’s big splash, but judging from the action GGI took the cake I guess. And to think my brother wasn’t even there either to take it all in!

-- Went out for a run on Saturday and the first song shuffled to my Ipod was “Eye of the Tiger” followed by “The Good Life” … wondering if that can be some sort of omen… the run ended with the classic Aerosmith tune “Dream On” hmmmm….

-- Congrats to the Bruin fans out there and my condolences to the fine Canuck fans (the non rioting ones) on their loss. The Bruins were so good they were able to get past my prediction skills.

-- Speaking of the riots, did you see that the shops damaged by the riots can’t put the losses to their property insurance? Evidently this would fall under something else and they would need actual “riot” insurance. It’s amazing; do insurance people ever pay anything out?

-- Getting excited for GlassBuild America and I am not alone. More than 40 first time exhibitors have joined in so far… with I know for a fact a few more still to come. The timing is right for show this year, and the people that want to get ahead of their competition will be there. I plan on having much more coverage on this as it creeps closer because it will be the place to be.

-- And finally this week, as most people who followed the situation expected I am no longer employed. It is what it is. At the end of the day it was a pleasure and honor to work with some unbelievable people over the last 10 months and I am sorry we didn’t get to finish what we started. I am thinking and praying for all of them. As for me going forward, we’ll see, I am getting excited over some possibilities and as soon as there’s something to report, I’ll bring it. Until then I’ll be plugging along working on the manuscript for Groundhog Day 2.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Interesting piece on the inner workings of AOL from a former writer there.

-- Have you played the game Angry Birds yet? I do and so do a ton of others, a million more every day!

-- A very cool piece on the origin of the Nike logo also known as “the swoosh”

VIDEO of the WEEK

Older video but really wild to watch, toddler at zoo, with Lions and the Lion wants to eat it! Thank goodness for the glass! It is really wild to watch…

A mellow reaction

2011-06-11T15:14:00.002-04:00

Usually when a price increase letter hits the street in our industry it elicits a ton of action. No maybe I am distracted (probably) but this latest round of letters seemingly didn’t bring the angst that normally shows up. Now I don't believe this is a clue on the acceptance or success of the letter but it is interesting to me that it doesn’t or at least in my opinion, hasn’t been the be all, end all that it used to be. As for the increases, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise at all, especially given everything that has been happening both in our little world and also everywhere else.

Elsewhere…

-- And if anyone was brave enough to read the national news this week I guess you could see why this increase letter pales. The Dow had another horrid week, now dropping below 12,000. Home equity is now near a record low and the whole employment outlook continues to look ugly. Not a pretty week and that didn’t even include the Twittering congressman…

-- The good news of the week actually happened last Saturday and I should’ve posted it then but blew it… and of course the subject of the good news thought I would and was bummed when he read my blog and it wasn’t mentioned. My son Zach played the game of his life (scored an awesome goal) and his team won a local 10 & Under Hockey title. Very happy for him and his team, and just a thrill to watch your kid achieve and succeed!

-- Ok back to reality… ha ha…. A great post this week on LinkedIn about the fact that LinkedIn’s growth in popularity is because of the tough economy and the fact people are losing their jobs and need to network for that more than anything. It was a case made even more dramatic when a headhunter posted a group of openings on LinkedIn and by nightfall his e mail box was full and website crashed.

-- PPG announced that they have surpassed the 94 million square foot mark in shipments of Solarban 70XL. Congrats to Glenn Miner and the team on the accomplishment, and looking back I know there were a lot of naysayers about the about the potential of that product when it was launched, but there’s no doubt that it’s been a hit.

-- And while we’re propping the primaries, a big group of kudos to Guardian on the launch of their new InGlass program. With a very cool new website and some very interesting products and plans, this should be a very exciting program to watch.

-- Am I the only one who gets mad when the newscaster gleefully announces gas prices have dropped a whole penny? I know everyone wants good news, but a penny?

-- If you haven’t checked out the latest issue of Glass Magazine, you need to. The annual look at the top 50 Glaziers is the cover story and of course it is something everyone looks forward to and once again the gang delivered the goods. And yes I am biased but the magazine has been absolutely on a roll in the last several months.

-- Last this week, normally this would be in the links, but it is too pertinent to what we do in our world. It’s the whole “glass steps” debate and the fact that it brings a lot more issues to mind then people may realize. Personally I have never been a fan of glass steps, to me it was never worth the safety for some sort of chic style. Check out the coverage HERE.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Funny piece on how a law in France makes it illegal for the media to mention Facebook and Twitter.

-- Great story that I know my brother Steve will love… what it truly costs to chase your dreams on American Idol.

-- I got this one from a few people and it’s pretty simple… if you have to constantly be on your phone or texting, then going to the movies is the wrong choice. And this theater in Austin (where they like it weird anyway) has a blast with it.

VIDEO of the WEEK

This video is only 5 seconds long but you will click it a few times… it’s Shania Twain falling as she walks to the stage at last week’s CMT awards. No doubt she may be embarrassed but she’ll just look in the mirror and realize she’s Shania Twain, so what does it matter…

Mind Numbing

2011-06-05T10:11:00.003-04:00

What a slow and boring week… can’t believe the lack of news in our world....

If only that was true.

For those of you who follow along in the news of the industry, this past week the auction for the company I currently am employed at (Vitro America) happened and it continued to the be the most surreal story that even Hollywood would write off as “too unbelievable.” After an amazingly competitive auction which featured more back and forth’s than a grand slam tennis final, Sun Capital outlasted the fine folks from Grey Mountain to win. This result now once again starts the process of industry change and probable consolidation as there’s not a lot of geographic differences between the companies. Now I can go on and on with this, I think anyone who knows me, knows I am bitterly disappointed (actually mortally depressed is a better term) over the result because of several reasons. The biggest is I really believe what Grey Mountain would’ve brought to the industry would’ve been spectacular. Breathtaking and groundbreaking plans to operate and innovate, and to be a part of that would have been epic. And quite frankly the momentum that was bubbling up at Vitro before all of this unintended collateral damage junk was thrown at us was significant and I really wanted to see where it could go. So that’s a big reason for my sadness, never knowing what “could’ve been” if we got to continue like planned.

Hey that’s life right? David threw one heck of a rock but Goliath has a harder head than anyone can imagine. So for now we’ll see how this will progress. Consolidation in our world has been a fact of life for many years and things like this are not a surprise. The industry has evolved and will continue to do so until it finds calmer skies. And as for going forward, we’ll see how this all hashes out. There’s a lot of people that will be affected by this, and we’ll join a crowded field of folks from US Aluminum, Zeledyne etc that are already out there. As I have railed on here many, many times before, there’s a ton of talent out there that can help upgrade and advance revenue generation and that will surely be the case when all of this comes clear in the coming weeks. I’m sure they’ll be much more to say about this in the coming weeks, as for now, for me and many others it continues to be just mind numbing.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This guy was bragging on a plane that he had poisonous gas with him. Yep what a brain surgeon.

-- Kind of wild story on finding a credit card lost in the ocean 25 years later.

-- As a good friend of mine said after reading this article about the dangers of energy drinks- “isn’t that a no brainer” Yep, I’d think so.

VIDEO of the WEEK

A great video of the week from my friend Steve O… A Dad drops his daughter while trying to catch a foul ball… simply comical. The girl is OK by the way… the Dad I am sure is getting abused…daily.

Bits and Pieces...and a big rock

2011-05-29T11:39:00.003-04:00

This week, a quick hitter version of the blog, lots of quick short takes about the industry and beyond…

-- It seems like every few weeks I am writing about a weather related event. This week the attention is on the fine folks of Joplin after a tornado ripped through the town and basically destroyed 75% of it. Our thoughts to everyone affected yet again by the wrath of Mother Nature.

-- PPG’s new print ad campaign is absolutely spectacular. Very creative and smart and quite frankly I am jealous I didn’t think of it first. Kudos to Mr. Struble and company for a top notch job.

-- Does anyone else have an issue with the fact our government is wasting millions of dollars trying to prosecute athletic steroid cheats? Will it really make our lives better if they prove Lance Armstrong did performance enhancing drugs in his Tour de France wins? Or if Barry Bonds was on steroids while hitting 73 homers? Let the sports handle it.

-- Lots of comments last week in many venues on the whole bank financing issue. Good friend Joe Carlos of Triview Glass left a very smart comment on the home site of this blog that some of the Glass Magazine readers may have missed which was:

Max, Thanks for bringing this up. Liquidity is THE issue. Besides the lack of funding for private projects, many, dare I say most, of my customers have lost their credit lines. Most have a sterling credit history and long-term relationships with their bank

Well said Joe and thanks for the comment.

-- Also last week I was off when I prematurely congratulated Deron Patterson as President of the TGA. He is the President –Elect of that fine group and Jerry Wright of AAA Glass is still in charge and according to Deron doing a tremendous job.

-- Big day later this week… the queen of all retail, also known as my sister Marcie celebrates a birthday. And since I’ll probably forget to call, at least I am covering my bases here on the blog. Happy Birthday Marcie!

-- Gas prices went up 11 cents last week in the Midwest because of “undisclosed refinery issues”… I swear we are all in the wrong business. What a freaking scam.

-- Beautiful and classy piece sent out by the organizers of GlassBuild America last week recognizing Memorial Day. I think we as a society do not appreciate the meaning of Memorial Day enough, and its was heartening to see some folks still do. And for my two cents, thank you to all of the brave men and women who have served and to those family who have lost loved ones while they fought for our freedoms. Without these amazingly courageous people, we wouldn’t have the ability to live even close to the way we do.

-- Want to read a story about lawyers that will make your skin crawl? Click here. When lawyers have to meet a quota that is simply not good.

-- Finals picks… NBA… the Heat will romp in 5 games over the Mavs. No one can stop LeBron and Wade in crunch time. NHL… I have many more friends that are big Canuck fans that would flog me if I picked them… so to protect myself, I’m going with the Bruins in 6.

-- Last this week, this quote was sent to me by a good friend and its pretty dang appropriate for some movements that will be taking place this week… the quote was from the awesome movie “Hoosiers” (a take from David vs Goliath) and here’s hoping for the underdog to prevail…

“And David put his hand in the bag and took out a stone and slung it. And it struck the Philistine on the head and he fell to the ground. Amen”

Amen indeed… brother… Amen.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Greenwashing continues to be an issue… and more and more people becoming aware of it.

-- Story here on the National Pinball Museum is closing… and which begs to ask, there’s actually a National Pinball Museum?

Great advice if you are on LinkedIn… three things you should be doing…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Very funny piece from Tosh.0 on the “Boom goes the Dynamite” sportscaster. Once upon a time I was there… this is really well done and some funny parts to the redemption.

Tosh.0
Tags: Tosh.0 Videos,Daniel Tosh,Web Redemption

It's all about the financing

2011-05-22T13:32:00.003-04:00

The latest report on from the AIA Architectural Billings Index was certainly depressing, however just like not getting too high after one good month, we shouldn’t get too low after one bad one. However the truly worrisome angle of this entire process is it looks to be the same fundamental reason for the news- the availability of money. Here’s this month’s commentary from AIA:

"The majority of firms are reporting at least one stalled project in-house because of the continued difficulty in obtaining financing," said AIA Chief Economist Kermit Baker. "That issue continues to be the main roadblock to recovery, and is unlikely to be resolved in the immediate future."

Now here’s from April 2011, November 2010 and June 2010 and see if you can sense a trend…

"The catalyst for a more robust recovery is likely financing, with stronger growth occurring only when lending institutions begin approving credit for construction projects with much greater regularity.” (April 2011)

“Right now, reluctance from lending institutions to provide credit for construction projects…” (November 2010)

“The overriding issue affecting the entire real estate sector is unusual caution on the part of lending institutions to provide credit for construction projects that apparently would be successful in this economic environment.” (June 2010)

So it really simplifies it, when the banks loosen the grip on the lending things will improve, but until then I think you will see the scores continuing to be relatively the same as they’ve been.

Elsewhere

-- And not helping in the current time frame is once again, the weather. The unusually wet spring has absolutely wreaked havoc on the construction world. What makes it all the crazier is while we have massive issues with rain and flooding, we still have droughts in some places as well. It really does boggle the mind.

-- A few months ago I ran a story via the New York Times on a guy that made his living off of negative selling. It was almost to the point of where he would bully his customers and harass them to no end. Well he finally got what was coming to him… here’s the follow up from the NYT.

-- Major congratulations to Deron Patterson of PPG on his new post as President of the Texas Glass Association. Deron is a great guy and will do fantastic work for that quality organization. And speaking of guys like Deron, it is nice to see that there’s some serious talent at the float level that doesn’t get a lot of notice. Guys like Dan Plotnick of Pilkington, Brian Best of Guardian, and Jon Hughes of AGC are top notch folks that the industry can point to and be proud of.

-- It’s been a week since US Aluminum closed and my only comments are I am saddened at how some class people publicly decided to dance on their grave and how amazingly EVERYONE picked up so much business from this closing. If you didn’t know any better you’d think US was the leader in market share based on some of the hyperbole out there.

-- The world of Twitter in our industry continues to evolve and I’ve noted some of the better industry Twitter sites here in the past. Well now you can add Twitter.com/GuardianGlass to the list. The folks there have joined the revolution and done a nice job of keeping the conversation going. Kudos to Earnest Thompson and his team.

-- And last I must give compliments to the folks at e-glass weekly for the new format and layout. Very smooth and easy to read and the best part is when you get it on your phone there’s an option for mobile formatting, which is excellent. Between this and the recent incredible journalistic scoops, it is surely heady times for those folks as they continue to be the industry leader.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This special company rewarded its best employees with prostitutes… Crazy.

-- A major league baseball player uses Twitter and for good… making a little leaguer’s night!

Thrill seeking photography. Scary as all get out but great pictures!!

VIDEO of the WEEK

This week submitted by an old friend in Michigan and it’s a must watch to get a flavor and feel for how incredible our debt issue is here in the U.S. It is some mind numbing stuff. Warning, don’t watch on a full stomach because the info in here will make you want to toss.

Preakness

2011-05-21T17:07:00.001-04:00

To be official... the pick for the Preakness by my daughter is Dance City....

So we'll see if she can get back on the winning side again!

A very newsworthy week

2011-05-15T11:09:00.002-04:00

It surely hasn’t been very slow news wise in our world lately and last week was more of the same. We had an update on the World Trade Center issue, a major closure, a departure, an addition, and a rumor-fest amongst the everyday goings on. So let’s go ahead and take a look…

-- The World Trade Center issue that I covered last week took another spin when the New York Times advanced the wonderful work done by the folks at Glass Magazine (they’ll have to share the Pulitzer) and revealed that the original plans for the base of the building (where all of the controversy is) was scrapped. 10 Million dollars in glass and who knows how much other capital and resources squandered. I find it funny/sad that the North American supply base all exclaimed worry on the design early in the process (at least that’s what I was told) and that’s one of the reasons the playing field was so limited. Still the shenanigans are continuing there and I’d love to know when or if someone’s head would roll after blowing this one. I guess the Chinese can’t do everything and there are actually some limits.

-- The saddening news of US Aluminum closing was another big story. The depressing part is about the people working there, as this industry continues to head down perilous paths. My heart goes out to the folks caught in the crossfire.

-- A wish of best of luck to Gary Danowski of PPG as he has taken on a new assignment within PPG in Switzerland. Losing Gary on our side of the world is a major blow in my opinion. He was a calm and steady presence in the very bumpy seas. Just a flat out good man. The folks in Europe are lucky to get him. So now in the last 2 years the turnover at the top of the major players in our industry has been very dramatic, and we continue to look for the continuity going forward.

-- And speaking of moving and good guys and good luck… my brother Steve has taken a new step in his life. After being able to work for some of the classiest people out there at a great company with the Balik’s at General Glass, Steven has taken an equity position at W.A. Wilson in West Virginia and is their new Executive VP. This is an awesome move for him, he returns to the region he knows so well and ends up working with yet another tremendous group of people. (Bob and Bobby Hartong are first rate, as are many others there) WA Wilson has always been a respected player in the region and now the sky is the limit.

-- And last from the week that was… the rumors that started mid week that something major and dramatic was going to happen at Trainor Glass on Friday turned out to be a lot less salacious than the masses spreading expected it to be. Trainor tabbed Brian Clark as their new President on starting on June 1. So all of the wild stories didn’t materialize and the interesting thing is it has been so crazy in our world here that even the craziest of rumors are given credence because really anything could happen. Best of luck to Brian and the Trainor family going forward as well.

And that’s it… what a week it was and my guess is we have the potential to have some very fascinating weeks ahead that is for sure.

LINKS of the WEEK

Wow. Being threatened at school over your chicken nuggets. At knifepoint no less. Over school chicken nuggets…. Yeesh.

The coolest dog escape from a Vet ever! It’s like something you would see in a movie.

A tremendous story on the Mayor in a town in Japan that was scoffed at for building a huge sea wall in the 60’s, gets major credit as that wall saved his town from the Tsunami. They should name the town after him.

VIDEO of the WEEK

One of the wildest and craziest baseball brawls you can see. Minor league affiliates of the Red Sox and Yanks go after it.

Not a Shocker

2011-05-08T11:34:00.002-04:00

It really did not come as gigantic surprise when I read Glass Magazine’s coverage on the problems at the Freedom Tower podium. This situation was a major flashpoint in our industry back in early 2009 (or as I like to say “the good ole days”) and mostly surrounded the frustration of a major American landmark having material from China on a significant portion of the structure. Especially given what the building stood for and so on. But the design was so intense that it did limit the playing field from a cost standpoint, so at the end of the day getting it sourced from China outweighed patriotic duty. Plus it was during this time that I was told a classic line about the process. Barber Glass of Canada was going to be the fabricator and because of that, there was school of thought in the process that there was no difference between Canada and China because they were both “foreign” entities. That thought still galls me as while it may be factually correct, you just can’t lop those two together. Anyway Glass Magazine has some great coverage out of the gate on this and we will see how it progresses, just a shame so much had to suffer in the meantime for something that had the potential to be so good.

Elsewhere

-- I just don’t think there’s been enough “soap opera” style storylines in our industry lately… yeesh. As I have been joking all we really need is a love triangle and we could have an Oscar contender on our hands.

-- Gas prices supposedly now will drop. And I was right about the $6 per gallon, that mark was eclipsed in Hawaii already. The frustrating thing here is gas prices can go up .10 to .20+ per week but going down takes a lot longer. Also with the unrest continuing in the Middle East and in Libya, I still think it’s going to be very ugly.

-- Speaking of ugly… the Kentucky Derby results… my daughters Triple Crown streak comes to an end… oh well, I guess I didn’t really want to live in Vegas anyway.

-- Last this week… as you have seen me note a few times, in our midst is a fantastically talented artist. Glass Magazine’s own Katy Devlin is on the path to stardom and she now has a pretty awesome music video out. It’s my video of the week but you can also access it by clicking HERE. The mirror she used in the video by the way I am sure was made domestically…. Check it out and keep in mind when she wins her first Grammy she will thank all of the fine people in the glass industry for supporting her!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Shocking (Sarcastic) news.. frequent travel is tough on your heart! No Way!

-- I agree with on of the commenters on this… if it’s a battle between cities, I’d choose the fine folks of Houston any day.

-- This is a good twist on the old “Runaway” bride story. This time the jilted groom is suing!

Video of the WEEK

As I noted above, it’s the fantastically talented Kat Devlin in Ocean Song.

Derby Pick!

2011-05-06T15:39:00.003-04:00

Ok... my daughter has weighed in on her pick for the Derby this weekend...

Her choice to win is "Pants on Fire"... we will see if Natalie's amazing run from 2010 will continue!

Pay attention to what matters

2011-05-01T12:35:00.003-04:00

This past week really showed the mix up of our priorities as violent weather racked the south while a majority of the country was either paying attention to the bogus birth certificate issue or a royal wedding. The tornadoes that hit the south were nothing short of catastrophic for so many. So really it should be time to properly pay attention and send our thoughts and prayers to the people that need them. Our industry was touched by these storms with one of the production buildings of Coral Industries being flattened. Thankfully and amazingly no one was hurt as the folks at Coral heeded the warnings and were cleared out of the structure before the storm rolled through. I have exchanged a few e mails with Coral’s Lewis McCallister and he, his family, and the folks at Coral are back at work and throwing themselves into the needs of their customers and community. Their undamaged building is up and running and the diversion of work is probably a good thing to keep their minds off of what just happened. The ownership at Coral is amongst the “good people” in our industry, so there’s no doubt that they will emerge from this better than ever. All positive wishes and support towards those guys and the entire affected region (which spreads over several states) is really necessary and appreciated.

Coral has started a Twitter feed with updates and items that you can provide to help and that can be accessed HERE.

Also for the entire effort to help the folks in Tuscaloosa, the website is able to be found by clicking this link.

Elsewhere…

-- Wild timing as last week AAMA released a voluntary Tornado specification. I think after seeing the video and destruction, there really isn’t anything we can put in to stop that fury. It’s like an old co worker used to tell me about hurricane material- the system may be tested to deal with a category 5, but the rest of the building won’t be.

-- Funny that I have been blogging since 2005 and with her effort last week, Jenni Chase may have stirred up more of a tempest than I ever have. The interesting part of Jenni’s blog were the comments, both public and privately to me. (both on e mail and to my blog ironically)They ran all across the board, including some nasty ones (sent anonymously, of course) that really curdled and boggled the brain. But there is no doubt that this is a very volatile issue and time in our world and the next few months will undoubtedly be very interesting. Especially as truth is separated from rumor and fact from innuendo.

-- The Kentucky Derby is this coming Saturday and as some of you may remember my daughter actually picked the Triple Crown correctly last year. So we will see if she can do it again. The post positions and odds come out mid week, and after she picks I’ll post it at my blog’s home site- which can be found HERE. If she does it again, we will move to Vegas this time.

-- The excellent Glazing Executive Forum announced its keynote speaker this year is the CEO of Serious Materials Kevin Surace. Just hearing his version of the work at the Empire State Building will be worth attending. Seriously the entire event is a tremendous deal and if you are coming to GlassBuild America (which I am sure all intelligent people are) then doing this event is a no brainer. Mark the calendar for September 12th and I am sure you will be seeing a ton more on this and the show in the coming months.

-- Last this week… I have run stories in the past on passwords and how some people just use things like “123456” and “QWERTY” but I had to share in the main part of the blog this amazing story. Do you realize that a hacker can figure out a 6 character, no number/letter mix, no uppercase password in 10 minutes? That is just wild. The quick blurb, which blew my feeble mind is HERE.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- I have told my kids over and over that if you want to be great at something you have to practice. Even the book Outliers explains it. Now one man is putting the theory to test. Should be wild to see if it works!

-- Really interesting story here on the man who volunteered as Lt Governor of New York, passed up pay but really struggled in the goofy world of government and as a parting gift still go hit with a tax bill! Man we are a mess.

-- And yet another great story for the travelers out there. The pet peeves etc. I see so many of these in my travels- at least I am not alone in utter frustration.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Well my pick of the Nuggets failed, but they did win one thing… a spot on the VIDEO of the WEEK with this awesome throw for a hoop by JR Smith. This is just epic.

Coral is Open

2011-04-29T09:28:00.002-04:00

My normal weekly post will be here on Sunday- but ahead of that the following quick note on the folks from Coral Industries. As you may or may not know, the massive outbreak of tornado's that hit the south did touch our industry. One of the buildings that Coral works out of was destroyed in the storm.

Thankfully, everyone at Coral heeded the warnings and their were no injuries and everyone is safe.

I got an e mail this morning from Lewis McCallister of Coral and he let me know that Coral is open for business- they have power and to their customers to please get with your salespeople on your deliveries etc. I have no doubts that the McCallister family and the management and employees at Coral will be doing all they can to get back to "normal" and quite frankly throwing themselves into their work will help keep the mind off of all the news surrounding them.

Again I will talk about this in more detail in my normally scheduled post, but for the time being, that is the update and as an industry, all thoughts and prayers should go to all of the folks in Alabama, Tennessee, and Arkansas affected by these incredibly vicious storms.

Buyer Beware

2011-04-24T09:52:00.004-04:00

We all get the e mails that appear in our inboxes in the middle of the night offering us great products direct from China (or other foreign nations) at lower prices than ever thought before. Most of us ignore these come-ons but recently one group of e mails crossed the line. The tag line says “Supply Pilkington Low E Glass” and the body of the e mail gives the impression that you can get Pilkington Low E (making you jump to the assumption it is the legendary Energy Advantage Low E they are hawking) direct from China and this company instead of from the actual manufacturer in the U.S. Basically this is the classic misrepresentation that has been festering for years but continues to get bolder as people get more desperate to move products. Bottom line here is buyer beware. Good companies don’t just allow fly by nighters take their products and promote them, especially against their own operations. And quite frankly if it sounds too good to be true (and is rife with typos and mis-spellings) it absolutely is. There are legitimate companies in China in our industry and believe me those companies don’t have to resort to spam-like emails with misrepresentations to get business.

Elsewhere

-- As noted briefly last week, Guardian has filled the position that is being vacated by the retirement of Russ Ebeid. Scott Thomsen will be the guy and I think he’ll bring an energy and passion to that job that will really be fun to watch. It continues to be a very different world and I have no doubt a year from now our industry will really look a ton different that is for sure.

-- The ABI held serve again this month and encouraging news is really the solidification of the performance of the West. Could the end of the frustrations out there be near?

-- On the flip side, those who have followed me know I am an alarmist when it comes to gasoline prices- and once again I am playing the role of Chicken Little… but this time, I really believe the sky is falling. Gas is already flown past $4 per gallon and it’s not even Memorial Day or the summer driving season. One analyst is predicting $6 a gallon gas. That would be very ugly.

-- GlassMagazine.com (a site you should bookmark and check at least daily) had a great link to a story from Toronto last week talking about how glass as a building product is shifting. It’s a frustrating story with some inaccurate statements but it does send a message that we have to continue to educate the masses about our products. Because if we don’t, we will be replaced by other materials.

-- So the “tree in the forest” that I mentioned last week finally “formally” fell and a press release was issued that the UGC was sold to an affiliate of Sun Capital. Someone posted a comment on my blog saying it was getting the legal stuff taken care of, but that holds no water when so many maneuvers were underway already. Now let’s hope the new owners quickly make good on the payments owed to contracted employees that were not paid while the company was struggling. Outside of that, I think I’ll hold my tongue- for now- shocking I know- but still waaaay too much emotion there for me.

-- FUN FACT: The guy who won the Boston Marathon last week did it in 2 Hours and 3 minutes. He was MOVING! So much so, to run that fast, that long is comparable to turning your treadmill to 12.1 and running on that for 2 hours. 12.1! Try it- it shows you the pure speed involved. Simply crazy fast.

-- I buried myself yet again with the wonderful editor (Jenni Chase) of this fine publication. When I abused Denver and Washington in posts last week, I received an e mail letting me know that those were HER favorite teams. I had no idea going in obviously. Oh well… so if you see my next story is on the “life of useless cullet” you know she is exacting her revenge.

LINKS of the WEEK:

-- This one is just a great quick read because you will laugh at the comical nature of it. A flight crew notices a “suspicious” material in a bathroom of their plane… uh oh, wonder what it is?

-- School district looking to find sponsors for everything- including textbooks… yep just a matter of time before my kids bring home an English book brought to you by Acme Plumbing.

-- Just so much wrong and going on with the story. School secretary that has a X rated past and the 14 year old! That blew the whistle. And then it takes a life of its own. Unreal.

VIDEO of the WEEK:

From my sister Marcie the queen of all retail… very cool prank video that I am guessing many retail clothing stores would LOVE to play to get back at customers…. But of course this takes big planning and execution. Good stuff…

And yet another shift

2011-04-18T13:29:00.003-04:00

Usually the spring in our industry is quiet news wise, but 2011 has not followed that path and last week we had yet another special alert pop up. The announced retirement of Guardian Industries President Russ Ebeid hit the wires and signaled yet another shift within our industry. Once upon a time people would complain to me that our industry was stuck in neutral, the same places in all the same places. Well this sure isn’t the case anymore! As for Russ, there’s a ton to say, but according to the report he isn’t due to retire until the fall, so I’ll hold off on my tributary comments until the time is right. Needless to say he will be missed.

Elsewhere…

-- Best e mail of the week came from a industry buddy of mine who commented on the high profile retirement announcements of Ebeid and Russ Huffer. He sarcastically said “Wow, 2 great job openings now for me to choose from.. gonna be a tough call on which one I will take…” I love it. (and now just one of the two jobs are open anyway!)

-- From the “If a tree falls in a forest but no one is there to hear it” files… if a company (or group of companies in this case) gets sold (or infused with money and new leadership) but no one wants to admit it to the press (but they’ve told all of the employees and are telling customers) did it really happen? What I don’t get is why you don’t announce it? Unless something else is at play… I’ll give it another week, still makes no sense.

-- Those of you who have been reading this blog since 2005 know that one of my pet peeves is the whole price-fixing lawsuit situation, and this past week, Jeld-Wen filed suit against several glass manufacturers. The whole thing is sad, in my opinion, because at the end of the day the cost of defending yourself through our legal system is far more than just settling. So even if you are innocent (and I believe the folks in the U.S. are innocent), you end up paying. The most recent suit against the manufacturers was recently settled, but Jeld-Wen decided to "opt out" and go it alone. And why not? They are a big company with deep pockets. They can now see if the manufacturers will again decide if it's worth fighting. When is enough... enough? I don't know, maybe I'm just mad because I suffer through predatory practices daily and deal with it.

-- OK time to finish on a lighter note…. The playoffs have begun in the NBA and NHL. In the NHL, my picks for the Cup are the Red Wings and Capitals or as my son says “the worst match up ever” because he is not a fan of either team. I was going to pick the Canucks, or Montreal but knowing I have good friends that are big fans of those teams, no way could I put the hex on them. I think the Caps win it all. In the NBA, it should be a wild playoff season with a ton of teams that could win it. I’m actually going with a long shot in the West… Denver. (Yep I picked em last year too) to face Chicago in the Finals, with Bulls winning it all. Though I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Heat win. I avoided picking the Spurs out of respect for the incredible Luna family, owners of Champion Glass in San Antonio. If I jinxed the Spurs, I’d never get to see a game with those guys again! In any case should be a fun 2 months of playoffs in both leagues and a great nightly diversion to the daily adventures of our world!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- For my fellow fliers, a very cool link on the “Meanest” Airlines….

-- The “Sham Wow” guy getting sued in a “Love Slave” scandal

-- Kinda wild, wife has her deceased husband made into necklaces. Yeah. Um note to Beth, don’t do that to me please… I think you’ll remember me just fine…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Evidently this video is a few years old, but I have never seen it… and I love the way the guy is shopping and shuffling. Very cool!

Never in my wildest....

2011-04-12T08:24:00.002-04:00

You know the term “Never in my wildest dreams?” Well I can tell you I have always wanted to use it in the right context. You know like “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d get locked in the M&M factory” or “Never in my wildest dreams did I think Denzel Washington would want ME in his next movie!” but amazingly that appropriate phrase now has usage in my life with “Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be doing ‘all this’ again one year later.”

“All this” in case you have been living under a rock or working for the DOE (same thing) is the news that my current company is being sold after being forced into bankruptcy. No way could I have imagined this happening again and surely not so soon either. In any case it has been a mind bending experience, the same as the past event but yet different in many ways. While the process and some of the names and figures are the same, the overall action and path were markedly opposite. Still that said, it is, what it is, and I am living in the glass industries cruel version of Groundhog Day.

So here we are again, with so many of the same emotions percolating about, but still the most important angle is “hope.” I am truly hopeful and actually confident that this will work out for the company, our suppliers, customers, and most importantly all of the folks employed here. Have to stay positive and put our faith in the leadership in the U.S. that was incredibly deft enough to create viable contingency plans in case the legal matters we got sucked into went south.

So never in my wildest dreams would I ever see myself writing a post like this again, and so help me, I don’t plan on doing it a 3rd time that’s for sure. I’m rolling forward and I hope that we can get a chance to finish what we started and continue to work hard for this industry.

Elsewhere…

-- It’s kind of hard to hit other subjects when you have such a heavy angle hanging out there, but it is “business as usual” and I’ll keep going at it.

-- Saddened by the passing of John McGrory this past week. He and his family built a great company and my condolences to the family on this very sad loss for them and our industry.

-- An awesome post HERE by incredible Glass Pundit herself, Kris Vockler. Worth a read for sure as some incredible food for thought on display.

-- Am the only one who reads the story about Quanex and their changes at the Engineered Products Group and wonder what happens to some of the other key people from Edgetech?

-- I mentioned the DOE earlier and last week they announced 113 million in funding for Solar growth in the US. I really have concerns on that as I have not trusted their track record on who they have given money too and how they have given it in the past. 113 million could help many good growth companies- in a few different energy related industry segments; let’s hope this doesn’t get squandered. Plus the other thought is with the debt so high, this money better be well spent otherwise the hole goes deeper.

-- There was a comment on my blog from the esteemed Henry Taylor of Kawneer. He is also currently the head of the GANA BEC and one thing I failed to mention in all of my pieces is that Henry didn’t exactly pick the perfect time to take the reins of that group. The economy fell apart and spending on things like BEC was shrunk. Henry has done a tremendous job in driving the bus and he is supremely talented and important to the future of our world. And there’s no doubt he realizes what the holes are and what needs to be filled. I should’ve been clearer and absolutely no disrespect intended.

-- Last this week… I picked the Red Sox to win the American League and I think they’ve won once since… my gosh I have the touch don’t I? I guess that’s why one of my co-workers now calls me “The Flying Dutchman”

LINKS of the WEEK

-- If you haven’t been following this story on the fired news anchor in Philly, you should. It’s better than the average soap opera.

-- A fun one (we all could use a fun one right?) about the physics of clown cars… how do they stuff all those guys in that small car?

-- Any blog post that gets more than 4000 comments must be interesting and this one is… looks at the accuracy of statements by BP and Donald Trump among others. Interesting overall and so are the comments below the post.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Funny TV Bloopers sent in by my pal Bob. Some good stuff in here… and again, always nice to laugh that’s for sure!

The News

2011-04-05T08:40:00.002-04:00

Well that sure was a doozy of an April Fool’s Day eh? Now before I begin, I have to remind everyone that this is my blog- so it’s my opinion (not my company and not Glass Magazine’s) so it’s all on me. Obviously the news that hit on April 1 was surprising, frustrating and upsetting. In my estimation it surely didn’t paint an accurate picture of the company I work for (or the people I work with) and caused serious and unnecessary consternation for the fine folks here. Now all that said I have to step back and say that I trust in the people I work for here in the US and I will await the various outcomes before I comment further. Needless to say these are very interesting times in our world and not just for me and my co workers either…

Elsewhere

-- Looking back at BEC I think of Andy Gum, the most prolific chair in the history of the BEC. Andy was leery of passing the baton to me because he was afraid that the group would lose its focus on the glazier. Now while the attendance of the glazier was weaker than the past and hoped for, the focus of the sessions really was still squarely on the needs of the glazing contractor. Hopefully like noted last week in this space, the mix in the crowd was more aberration than trend.

-- Some good news to report in our world… two new industry babies were born recently. Cameron Scripture of Viracon (seriously one of the nicest guys in the world) welcomed a new baby as well as Angus MacMillan of Dorma. Boys, don’t let your babies grow up to be glass sales people… CONGRATS and best to you and the better half of you who did all the work!

-- This week USA Today had a blurb from the CEO of Wal Mart predicting seriously higher inflation rates. And he sees it happening rapidly. That is surely worrisome.

-- The Department of Commerce just put another huge tariff on Chinese aluminum coming into the US. Which makes me wonder- how does Chinese glass avoid the same treatment? Seriously what am I missing there?

-- And starting to get concerned that as we fight in Libya the issues happening in the Ivory Coast are concerning as well. Man do you ever think that the whole 2012 end of the world thing may actually be right?

-- Ok to finish, we’ll keep it lighter and baseball has started and here’s my predictions on who will win it all… In the National League, I think the Phillies are just too good on the mound to beat in a short series. If the Reds can get the pitching they are the only team that can compete for the pennant there (in my mushy mind) and in the AL.. I like the Sox.. both Red and White to make the runs, but in the end the Yankees have too much to be stopped. In the WS- Phils over Yanks.

LINKS of the WEEK

I have tons and tons. So limiting to a handful is a challenge. So no video and just extra linkage.

-- As the father of a daughter, I actually can appreciate this guys sentiment- but offering cash for the body of her boyfriend “Dead or Alive” is just not good style.

-- A look back with an update on the greatest sports April Fool’s Day joke ever.

-- Comical- Michigan bans a Beer based on its name. Hey its crude and stupid, but I thought we lived in a country that allows free speech?

-- Wait we do have free speech- but sometimes its not great to have…

-- Love these stories… “The Worlds Dumbest Pilots”

-- Mom taking up for the boyfriend instead of the kid. Despicable.

BEC 2011 Recap

2011-03-29T02:17:00.001-04:00

Well another year and another BEC in the books. As always the networking was the huge opportunity here and many great chances to hook up with the some of the finest minds and people in our industry. The overall attitude was hopefulness. Hope that the economy advances and hope that we all can be back here in a year with better things on our plates. And as I have always done it- in a “Page 6” style, here’s who was seen and heard over the few days of action…

-- I unfortunately didn’t get to attend as much as I usually do, but I did really enjoy the presentation by Dr. Don McCann of Viracon- good food for thought in there and featuring the movie star good looks of Cam Scripture was slick. I did also enjoy Kawneer’s Diana Perrriah’s spot as well. And it goes without saying that I am in the tank for Dr. Tom Culp. All the speakers did well in a tough room layout. It was very dark and wide open- so intimidating to say the least. And as was noted by my pal Chuck Knickerbocker of TGP, the BEC was really missing the “C” part this year. And that pained me and I hope that this was an aberration and not a trend.

Elsewhere from the floor and about BEC…

-- Got to get a quick meal with Jeff Meyer of White Bear Glass and he continues to be a guy people in this industry should model their businesses like. Ran into Guardian’s Jay Phillips looking crisp as usual… I swear that guy could work on a road crew and still look calm, cool and collected… Always an honor to see the “Glass Pundit” ICD’s Kris Vockler along with her legendary Dad Larry. I came “this” close to meeting Jim Porter of Apogee… alas I missed him… dang as I am fan. Obviously you know I am a fan of the Viracon crew- got to visit briefly with Garret Henson and Christine Shaffer- and my gosh I enjoyed just getting the overflow from their crowd.

-- I got to meet Jeff Razwick of TGP for the first time which was nice. Speaking of first time intro’s I met Joe Cesarotti from Hurricane Protection Industries for the initial time after communicating with him via e mail and NGA classes. Of course ran into George Petzen- he is an absolute staple of this event and got the bonus of meeting his co worker Kelley Lasek who even admitted to reading this blog! Brave guy he is. Roger Watson of Saint Gobain was there and for his stalker in Canada, he’s still pretty cool.

-- I met in person for the first time Serge Martin of AGC- he gave a tremendous speech too. Very nice guy and I am thrilled he is here and active- that’s two years in a row for the AGC influence at this event- very cool. Dr. Helen Sanders as always is an absolute treat as is the always awesome duo of Julie Schimmelpenningh and Aimee Davis of Solutia. (And I owe both Ice cream since I had to leave town early) Raj Goyal always looking good was on hand but I didn’t get much time with him or with Mark Silverberg of Technoform who happens to be one of my all time favorite people. I also missed Jan Rogan and Glenn Miner of PPG- never could get near em. And amazingly and frustratingly I never got to see Greg Carney. Unreal.

-- Missing this year…. Bill Sullivan is always there and he obviously had better plans as well as GGI’s own Mr. Brenner, just not the same without him. The gang from Bratton led by my pal Todd Riggs were also noticeable by their absence as was anyone from Pilkington… if they were there I missed them. I honestly don’t remember Pilks missing this event before.

-- Anyway it’s another year in the can and unfortunately one that I just didn’t get to enjoy the full flavor of. Next year will be better for that I am sure.

Elsewhere...

-- GANA did run an event called LOGIC that featured two very good speakers. The legendary economist Art Laffer and Blogger and Social Media guru Chris Brogan. Both gave tremendous presentations. The big takeaway from Laffer was his optimism that a possible change in the White House in 2012 could lead to a massive economic boom in 2013. Brogan’s speaking style and info were just super- very insightful and I wish I had another hour with him.

-- The rumor mill of course was working overtime but that was one area I was thankful that I did have to leave early.

-- No links or video this week (and I have a TON of links ready) because I ran out of time, they will be back and in full force next week. May even run that crazy Corning video again as so many people keep telling me about it!!

Japan

2011-03-20T09:32:00.003-04:00

When I posted my blog last week and mentioned the devastation in Japan, it was still very early in the aftermath. Now with more than a week past, the one word that comes to mind is “incomprehensible.” It is seriously mind blowing what that country and their people are going through now and will go through for many years to come. And this is surely not something that will be for us as a continent to just watch and figure we are far enough away from to affect us. Japan, with their technology, goods, and services are a bigger part of the fabric of North America than you may think. As the New York Times called it- this is a crisis the markets just can't grasp. It's like nothing we've ever seen before. Specifically from an industry standpoint this could have effect (even though some reports are saying all is fine- we’ll hope that’s right) on a glass supply that was due to be tight to begin with (it’s already insanely tight on the auto glass end) and will surely affect gas and cost of living indexes. There’s no doubt that this horrible and tragic event will be yet another hurdle for our world to get over and here’s again hoping and wishing for our friends in Japan to see some light and good sooner than later.

Elsewhere…

-- There was a regional glass event last week and the rumor mill was working overtime. All I can say is about 99% of things that were spread are pretty far fetched. But that’s what happens when you get a bunch of people in a room, too much time and not enough business on their hands.

-- The New York Times reported HERE on a takedown of the good ole Department of Energy by the Inspector General. Evidently poor record keeping that leads people to wonder where their tax money is really going was the subject. Count me as absolutely unsurprised. In watching the DOE and the members I came in contact with, their desire to be led by the nose by special interest while ignoring any other viewpoint was a major turnoff and red flag. This is not the first time the DOE has been ripped by a governmental report and I just wish for all of our sakes it would lead to some actual change there. But instead excuses are made and the same tired bureaucrats keep pumping out the same dreck.

-- If and when we get the whole true blue Glass Hall of Fame going I will nominate the designers of the Atlanta Hartsfield Airport Rental Car Complex for an achievement award in the usage of glass. The complex used glass absolutely everywhere possible and it was exciting for a glass geek like me. They didn’t go crazy on colors and decorative but the fact it was all over was cool enough for me.

-- The folks at Glasslam once again are working the angles to try and bring new concepts forward. The past week they announced a new spacer manufacturing system. Basically this system would allow their users to make their own warm edge spacer and control the game. With everyone looking for an edge this could be a player.

-- Glassweek and BEC are kicking off later this week. Next week’s post will cover the highlights, so it won’t be up on my normal site until late Monday night and will still appear on E Glass Weekly (as long as the fine people at Glass Magazine still want me) on Tuesday.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Classic reminder to always turn off your phone- or at least put to silent… especially on live TV giving an important rundown on the final four! It’s at the one minute mark

-- One of the most disturbing stories you’ll read in a while…. This guy needs to put away or put down. Just frightening

-- Great piece for my fellow travelers… top 10 hotel things you should know… and I have to chime in on #7… the freakin “resort fee” is an outrage when you are traveling for business- especially when you are only in for a night. Highway robbery.

VIDEO of the WEEK

It is basketball time and the best play by play announcer in March Madness is Gus Johnson and one of his fans put together a great compilation of his best calls… the guy is awesome. Some of the video is poor, but it’s the audio to care about.

Not so fast on the Triples...

2011-03-13T19:14:00.002-04:00

One of the most popular articles on the excellent Glass Magazine website has been the story on the growth of triple glazing. And while it seems to be that growth is on the horizon on that segment I actually look at the incredible products both here and in the very near future that will knock down that need to go to triples. The growth of these alternate products will come from education and promotion and I think you are going to see a ton of both in the coming months. Quite frankly it’s an exciting opportunity for our world.

Elsewhere…

-- Sorry I have to bang my chest- well actually give major props to my brother. Way back, on February 19th, my brother Steven sent me the now cult famous “Corning Day Made of Glass” video. And I posted it on my blog. The problem was that most people now just read my blog through the E Glass Weekly portal and only 1/3rd of the traffic clicks through the links or video. Well way back before this video got all of the attention it was on here first- Steven had it pegged- and we had it here. I guess next time I gotta make a bigger deal eh?

-- Very tough news this week when I heard that Dan Wright was out at Guardian after 16 years… That news threw me and pretty much everyone I told as if you know Dan, you know he bled the Guardian blue- he was a lifer. Anyway, he’s now a free agent and I gotta say is a prized free agent for sure. The guy will be an awesome addition to an established or growing company and someone will be extremely fortunate to make that pick up.

-- Great resource… Chicago Window Expert… can be found here. Big fan of the site and knowledge and I think Mark Meshulam does a fantastic job.

-- DyeTec solar getting a cool million dollars is yet another example of the fact that solar is far from dead. Still a ways to go- but money like that- in this economy is amazing and means there’s still great potential.

-- Last week I was sent a report that showed commercial construction staying down the rest of the year, with the “recovery” coming next year. To me this whole forecasting thing is starting to look dubious. Does anyone really know? The fact that the banks are easing a little (supposedly) is a positive and so far the ABI is hanging in there- but end of the day, I think we’re all still in the dark and hoping for the best.

-- Thoughts and prayers to everyone in Japan affected by the Earthquake and Tsunami… The video of the destruction was jaw dropping and incredibly sad. It really is a disaster on epic levels and hopefully they can recover as quickly as possible.

-- And finally… it is March Madness time… last year I did actually pick the winner here on the blog (I know shocking right?) when I tabbed Duke to win it. We’ll this year I am going with the repeat… Duke to win again… and yes I do hate Duke and hope my “powers” work where they failed last year.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This is one dedicated and crazy coach… back on the sidelines to coach in a big game just HOURS after giving birth!

-- The world’s “youngest” grandmother at just 23! But as a good friend mentioned to me- she looks older than both of us… and I agree, she is not looking good for her “age”

-- This man has 82 tattoos of Julia Roberts all over him… and the headline calls him “weird”… umm.. I think I’d use more harsh language!

VIDEO of the WEEK
So for the 1/3rd of you who make it this far… THANK YOU…. Anyway I was sent this classic of Charlie Sheen compilations earlier this week… and very good. The guy is pretty crazed (or actually very seriously crazed… ) but is comical too…

The start of something good?

2011-03-06T09:09:00.002-05:00

Well here we are in March, a majority of the horrible awful weather should be behind us and quite frankly if the train is going to pick up steam it will start this month. This past week some news popped out about credit being easier to obtain and that news alone is very encouraging. The tightness of the lenders has been the major stopping point that many analysts and advisors have pointed to over the past 9-12 months and if that is starting to loosen that really is a good sign. But we will see as this has been a time that no one has ever experienced before- no other slow period compares.

Elsewhere…

-- Major props to Chuck Knickerbocker of TGP and Mike Burriss of Cytec on their new positions within GANA. Both are tremendous men that bring significant value to the group and our industry as a whole. They follow in the footsteps of good people too in Doug Penn of Vitro America and Cliff Monroe of AAG and I do believe they will do awesome jobs… pressures now on you boys… gotta deliver!

-- Greg Silvestri leaving Viracon was big news last week. I met him and interacted with him on a few occasions and he always treated me well. Heck that was probably his downfall. Seriously though it is another shift for our industry and there are lots of rumblings out there that more are to come at companies throughout the industry.

-- What am I missing? The auction at Barber Glass (as advertised over at Glassmagazine.com) is slated for March 16th yet I keep hearing about who already owns certain pieces that will be auctioned off. So is the fix in? Is it just rumor mongering? I don’t get it. And to think my wife said she wanted an autoclave for her Birthday and dang it that was the one I was going after!

-- And on that note a Happy Birthday to my bride… March 7th… and she told me she is 33… and I am not going to fight her on it. Plus I like it- most people say 29…

-- And while on the family track, I get asked a lot about how my sister Marcie is doing. Marcie was in the industry for basically a lifetime and she got out last year… she has now found an amazing home in the retail world and she just was honored by top management for her efforts… I just think if she woulda got into that business when she was younger, the store “Nordstrom’s” would be called “Marcie’s”…

-- The Washington Examiner ran another piece on the whole “Green Bandit” issue. The story is HERE… but for me I chuckle because the main character is Cathy Zoi and she is married to a guy named Robin Roy… and as the late great Myron Cope would say… “YOI! And DOUBLE YOI!” (Gotta be from Pittsburgh to get that one) But goofy Pittsburghism’s aside- it’s an intriguing story that has been debated by both sides for a while- so the truth probably lays somewhere in the middle.

-- Last this week… the post from last week had two comments from two of the coolest west coast people around. I am big fan of both Kris Vockler and Alan Gottesman and was thrilled they both took time to write. And the points they added were great- Kris on the weaknesses in LEED and Alan adding yet another deterrent to the clean energy movement. Thanks guys!

LINKS of the WEEK!

-- Gotta love this story… Government getting new and wild Anti terror and war spying equipment but the supplier is boasting about it. Isn’t this stuff supposed to be secretive?

-- Tough story in many ways- 2 young kids and Aunt living in shed behind abandoned house. Which offers the question of why not live in the house? And makes you sad that this stuff is happening anyway.

Tough way to go, while dancing on your 70th wedding anniversary…

VIDEO of the WEEK!

The two guys that have dominated our news lately- Charlie Sheen and Moammar Ghadafi are now immortalized in this pretty comical game of “Who said it?”… and folks it’s really time for the Sheen episodes to end so we can move on to next great controversies!

Beware the Mohave Ground Squirrel!

2011-02-26T17:23:00.002-05:00

As many people know I really have a strong interest in Solar. I believe in its potential to help the world. However I am amazed daily over the obstacles this technology faces and this week yet another amazing story came out. A solar install in California that could power more than TWO MILLION homes was called off because of concerns about the impact on the Mohave ground squirrel. Now I don’t know about you, but I never ever heard of this specific style of squirrel and quite frankly I am pretty bummed that said squirrel is standing in the way of tremendous progress. The whole solar movement is caught in a major contradiction. The people who want to live green and wean our reliance of oil and coal, love solar… but if it hurts a squirrel or a turtle, well then no way. So getting it straight, let’s settle for things that may be harmful for humans but protect the wildlife.

And trust me- I have come to love animals. My wife brings another one home each week I am gone. But you can’t tell me in our incredible world of minds we can’t figure out a way to use land in the Mohave Desert and find homes for these various species. No way. We sent men to the moon and we now talk on iPhones that can start your car from thousands of miles away- we can do this- why we don’t- is befuddling and will hurt all of us in the long run.

Elsewhere….

-- Gas will go to $5 per gallon. I know I say this every year, but it’s happening here and now. Believe me if we can’t figure out how to save a turtle, we surely can’t help but watch Gas prices go through the roof.

-- We are now a month from Glassweek and BEC. Are you going? If you are on the fence, let me give you yet another reason to get there. Courtney Little of Ace Glass in Arkansas is doing a presentation called “Good Business Practices: Knowing the Cost of Doing Business” and it should be a dandy. Ace has done some amazing projects in the past and this presentation based on some of those experiences should be some must see stuff.

-- The ABI slipped some in January but was still in positive territory. The folks at AIA are still “cautiously optimistic” going forward but the cold hard truth will start to bear its head next month. If it stays above water, the index could be right on track for what many of us expect- an improvement in the economy at the end of the year. If it slips, the signals for a more protracted downturn will be very clear.

-- If you somehow missed the blog by Nicole Harris last week, you really need to take a minute to read it. It was an awesome take on an important subject and done without bias. Really well done.

-- It was reported last week that PPG showed requests for LEED documentation was up 300% from 2007. No doubt LEED is a monster. But I am betting PPG picked up at least 100%+ based on my interview with their green guru James Bogdan!Ha Ha Seriously though, it is amazing how LEED has become a part of our lives and all the more reason to see how the current legal activities against the USGBC (the group behind LEED) play out.

-- Was thrilled I wasn’t the only one last week who was bummed Eminem didn’t win the Grammy he should’ve. But on a related Grammy note- I just hope when Glass Magazine’s own incredibly talented Katy Devlin wins hers, she remembers us little folks in the glass industry.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Read this story and tell me how this guy shouldn’t go to jail for the rest of his life. Just sick and sad.

-- One of the coolest and wildest pieces of architecture I have ever seen… awesome.

-- When I used to drink soda, my favorite was Diet Dr. Pepper… well those folks are now creating a Dr. Pepper for men only… yep this has the fingerprints of a very bored marketing guy all over it!

Bonus Link:

-- Getting arrested after attacking your roommate over her Girl Scout Cookies! Now attacking a roommate over Pizza or M&M’s are fine…. But sorry Girl Scout Cookies are not in that class.

VIDEO of the WEEK

And in case you missed it from the Grammy’s here is Eminem’s performance…. Featuring Dr. Dre, Rihanna and the incredible Skylar Grey.

Remembering Frank Archinaco

2011-02-19T19:33:00.003-05:00

No doubt a very sad week when the news broke that Frank Archinaco had passed away. Frank was the first “big time” executive I had ever met in the industry and my few instances with him have stuck with me my entire life. So please indulge me as I have to share the best and craziest memory I have of Frank. It was when he had my brother Steven and I out to golf at the legendary Laurel Highlands Golf Club. This was a club that Arnold Palmer built and there was just a major tourney there the week before. I had only been in the industry a short time- I really shouldn’t have been there but my brother was nice enough to take me instead of more deserving folks. Frank met us along with another PPG executive (the also unfortunately no longer with us Richard Leggett- also a sad passing for me) and before we started broke out shirts for us to wear. Custom shirts with a monogram making light of a supplier/competitor we both had major issues with at the time. As we put on our shirts, Frank realized his was mis-sized- but being a good sport he squeezed into it. I was amazed. This is a guy who was a major bigwig in the PPG hierarchy and he’s playing along like any other regular joe.

So we hit the course and set teams. It would be Richard and Steve against me and Frank. Now anyone who knows me knows I get a little shook when I am with people I respect or am in awe of. Frank was both. So I was a nervous wreck. Add to it I was not a good golfer and there weren’t enough M&M’s in the world to calm me down. So we went at it and basically Frank carried me for 16 holes. He played amazing. We got to 17 with a chance to actually win. And I have to tell you Frank WANTED to win. It was a par 3 and after Frank’s shot went awry, it was on me. I was DYING inside and I think for sure he figured we were sunk. But somehow I hit the best shot of my life- a 180 yard par 3 that nuzzled within 3 feet of the hole. Frank had me sink the putt (which I did while about to pass out) and we won. For me it was unreal- but I got a kick out of Frank- he looked like he won the Masters. It was just such a cool scene. The PPG star and the industry newbie- you just couldn’t get an odder couple.

Anyway as the years went on I would see Frank at Glassweek- where he would abuse me about my golf game but always was genuine to me and my family. The guy was a prince to us without a doubt. My deepest condolences go to his family and all who had the honor of working with him and knowing him. Rest in Peace Frank and I know you and your presence will truly be missed.

Elsewhere…

-- A few years ago Bruce Mikels of BDM left the UGC to go to Arch and when I wrote about it, well it touched off a kerfuffle of sorts. Now Bruce is reversing course- going back to UGC and it is a coup of epic proportions for the guys at UGC. Bruce is one of the best (if not the best) manufacturers rep in our industry. UGC just got a ton better that’s for sure.

-- Congrats also out to David Ozment of Binswanger Glass for winning the Houston Area Glass Association’s Glass Professional of the Year award for 2010. That is an awesome honor.

-- The dynamic glass world continues to make waves. Soladigm just picked up another 10 million in financing. I’m telling you now the dynamic products will take off and there’s some seriously wonderful players all pushing that process in the right direction.

-- I was bummed to see Eminem not win the Grammy for best Record. No matter what you think of his lyrics (and yes they are vulgar in some cases) the guy is insanely talented music wise. And the song he did with Dr. Dre and the smoking hot Skylar Grey on the show was simply fantastic.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Jewelry store owner takes some justice in his own hands… GOOD FOR HIM!

-- An insanely sad story about a Mom duct-taping her child down…. I am always so bothered by these stories… simply horrible.

-- And while we are at it... another parent who shouldn’t have or be around kids. So amazing to me.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Very cool and futuristic video from Corning that shows all the possibilities of where glass could go. Also check on some of the comments- some are really hilarious.

Wicked Winter!

2011-02-14T18:59:00.002-05:00

Last week I had a quick note on the weather but that was before yet another huge storm paralyzed major parts of the country. There’s no doubt the improvement in our economic sector is taking a beating thanks to the nasty whims of Mother Nature. The big issue is all of this time is truly lost- just a killer as businesses try and keep moving forward. Now this week a warming trend is coming which means flooding and messy, wet, and uninhabitable jobsites. After that it will be hurricane season before you know it. I wonder if all of the analysts take into account the negative effect the weather has on our world and if this uneven start to 2011 will delay the great prosperity that so many (including me) see for the year end.

Elsewhere…

-- Another offshoot of the weather…. I now actually watch and enjoy The Weather Channel in the morning. I am becoming a weather geek… but seriously its good mindless stuff to start the day instead of the traditional morning fare.

-- Recently Guardian launched a new version of the corporate website and I must say they hit a home run with the makeover. Great use of “mega” drop down boxes and just a great choice in images on the landing page. Kudos to the gang there for a job well done! Also I am hearing they will add a blog to that site as well that will make it even more a must visit type of site.

-- Found it hilarious that the NFRC blog is now accepting comments on their site. Just a few years ago when I was hammering away at them weekly, I was vilified for my medium. Now NFRC not only does meetings on line, but keeps a blog and now finally is offering a forum. So while I was unable to stop them from pushing a terrible program down our throats, I believe I did force them into the new century media wise.

-- Saw that Jed Bush will be the keynote speaker during the Spring meeting for the Aluminum Association and the Aluminum Extruders Council. Hey maybe they can enlist Jed to keep the vinyl people at bay and get aluminum more accepted amongst the green world… well then again wrong political party for all that. Still a great get for those guys. And I wonder if Jed Bush will be as in awe of Dr. Tom Culp as I am.

-- Congrats to PPG for getting a 3 million dollar grant for their Solar program. Proves solar is not dead and actually far from it. And it’s been a big week for PPG, a grant and a mention from President Obama. But obviously getting pub on this blog is the biggest thrill…ha ha ha

-- So which Super Bowl commercial did you like? I loved the Dorito dog commercial and enjoyed the Pepsi Max jogger one too. I also thought the Eminem one for Detroit/Chrysler was strong. But probably the best for me was the Car Max one that showed an old fashioned gas station with all of the attendants working the car and the terrified driver crying “I’m being carjacked!” Classic. (And it is the video of the week too so see or click below) All in all though I probably didn’t enjoy the commercials as much since I was so into the game…

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This is wild technology… a text message that self destructs after a certain amount of time… and named after the one guy who really could’ve used it… Tiger Woods…

-- You know all of those “cash for guns” or “gifts for guns” promotions out there so less guns will be on the streets and in the hands of people who shouldn’t have them? Well this promotion surely takes the cake… speechless.

-- Tiny office cubicles… not fun… plus I sure hope this isn’t the “remodeling” growth we are looking for.

VIDEO of the WEEK

The commercial I thought was best at the Super Bowl from Car Max….

Major news week...

2011-02-06T22:27:00.008-05:00

What a wild week. We had major deal break Tuesday and a Presidential mandate at the end of the week. So let’s break it down. On the deal… Quanex Building Corp acquired Edgetech IG. I believe that deal caught everyone napping. In any case the deal still needs to be approved by the FTC, but once it passes that hurdle, the interesting thing will be how the market accepts it. Edgetech was a very visible entity in our world, very large presence at places like GlassBuild and Glass Magazine and also extremely active at the trade group level as well, so how will the change affect those things and more importantly their ability to continue to service and work with their customers. Also does this deal open the door for smaller and hungrier manufacturers to jump into areas that may be vacated by Edgetech? It really will be a fascinating angle to watch for sure. And yes I know that in the initial releases everyone said all will be well, but that’s what every release like this always says.

Later in the week President Obama announced his “Better Building Initiative” and the news did surely send a jolt of energy through the industry. I have talked for years about the European Energy Passport program and how it would be awesome to have here and this surely is a start in that direction. This program if it doesn’t get mushed up by special interests along the way has the potential for amazing things for our industry including the ability for us to show off our newest technologies and prove to the world we are not the weak link some people say we are. In any case I remain optimistic but again I have to stress let’s hope that this process can be implemented fast and without detriments that serve the wrong people.
And on that note, if you missed The National Glass Associations take on the initiative- it’s here and it is worth the read.

Elsewhere…

-- Guess what’s back? Yep I have to mention the good ole NFRC… Jim Benney had a blog here last week and Greg Carney offered a wonderful comment on it. Greg’s comment:

As you consider the issue of a National Fenestration Rating Council (NFRC) daylighting rating and respond to the National Glass Association (NGA) weekly survey, please keep in mind that every NFRC rating and/or certification adds cost to the fenestration contract. I can't help but wonder if the money would be better spent on today's product technology in the form of advanced low-emissivity coatings, dynamic glazing, and warm-edge spacers in lieu of the bureaucracy of NFRC?

Bravo Greg. Folks seriously, the CMA adventure was one thing but if you let this organization to get deeper into our world, you will regret it.

-- And one last code sort of item. Don’t forget Glassweek and BEC are coming… I looked at the BEC agenda and saw some really interesting pieces. To me anytime you can hear Dr. Tom Culp speak, you need to be there. The guy knows his stuff and truly has his finger on the pulse of the code world. And like I have noted many times, Dr. Culp is respected by all sides in these issues because he’s tremendously fair. So for that alone, you want to be there. I’ll have more tidbits on BEC as it gets closer and I plan on doing the same to get you ready for the Glazing Executive Forum and GlassBuild coming in September. These are all events that you should be looking too and they are spread out enough that you can swing it.

-- Health update… A few months back I wrote about a friend and co worker Dan Luna as he battled some serious health issues. Well I am absolutely thrilled to say that Mr. Luna is feeling better and on the positive road to recovery. I’m very happy for Dan, his family, friends and co workers. Keep staying healthy my friend!

-- The weather… I swear I write about the weather every year but this year does have to be the worst yet doesn’t it?

-- OK, and finally this week… the Super Bowl (and I will cover the best and worst commercials next week)… well it figures that my ability to “mush” the picks ends with the biggest game of the year. A major congrats to the Packer fans out there… many of whom I am good friends with. I am happy for you, but also sad for the Steeler fans in my life (and bummed personally too actually) and since I am now out of my mother’s good graces, anyone who wants to adopt me, I am available. Seriously though enjoy it Wisconsin! (On the plus side, I have spending money waiting for me for BEC- still doesn’t feel good)
Oh and a terrible night too for Christina Aguilera as she flubbed the national anthem… I’m sure that will be everywhere this week.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- A quick but wild story on how a text message killed a suicide bomber…

-- Just a very neat story and concept here about how tools and materials from our past don’t just disappear. And the comments below are really strong too.

-- Just an awesome link… 10 foods you can make in a coffee maker! I love it.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Now that Football season is over… one last video… this one from legend and retired (brilliant move) friend Pat Pickrell. His hometown of Ada, Ohio is the home of where all NFL football’s are made and here’s a cool video showing the process. Goodbye football season… see you in the fall (at least for college… who knows about the pros at this point)

Is it really growth?

2011-01-30T10:09:00.002-05:00

Last week on e-glass Weekly, there was a link to a story about possible growth in 2011 via a report from the Associated General Contractors of America. The report and story was very interesting but one paragraph jumped out at me, and basically got the juices flowing.

“Bid levels will remain very competitive this year. According to the survey results, 29 percent of firms report they plan to lower bid levels in 2011. That follows a year when 74 percent of firms reported lowering bid levels, including seven percent who reported lowering bid levels to the point they lost money performing the work”

So you wonder- last year ¾ of the GC’s lowered their pricing but this year only a little more than a ¼ “plan” to. So is this optimism? Or will when this poll comes out in 2012 does it show that everyone dropped again. I also think the poll is goofy. I mean do you ever PLAN on dropping your number? Isn’t that kind of hokey? I also believe that the 7% listed that lost money on lowered bid levels is woefully low just because when you have more GC’s than ever bidding a job, you know there’s more than 7% that are dropping below the Mendoza line. Anyway the moral of the story is while things are seemingly on pace to improve, there’s still lingering issues hanging out there.

Elsewhere…

-- Really, really sad news this week as I just heard about the mid January passing of Mark Bond of WA Wilson. Mark was a tremendous man and his passing leaves a big hole in hearts of many folks both at Wilson and everyone that dealt with Mark on a daily basis. When I was growing up in the industry, I dealt with Mark (my company sold to Wilson and if/when we messed up, it was Mark we/I dealt with) and he schooled me- I learned a ton from him and respected him beyond belief. He had beaten some serious health scares over the years, so when I heard he passed; I was shocked because I really thought he could overcome anything. A good man and huge loss. Condolences go out to everyone at Wilson and Mark’s family. He’ll truly be missed.

-- Last week’s blog by fellow e-glass Weekly blogger Bill Evans was super. No doubt Bill is a guy that can inspire. That entry is the type that should be sent around the office because it really its home….

-- Speaking of fellow bloggers I wonder if Chris Mammen will be hanging out at the Super Bowl this weekend….

-- Interesting article here on how one power company looks to cash in on Solar… but unfortunately on the backs of the adopters! This was due to happen that is for sure.

-- Last… and certainly not least… the Super Bowl is this weekend. If you have followed this blog (and thank you for following), you know I am on an epic picking streak… I am always wrong. So I think you can assume what my pick will be this week. So here goes…
I am picking the Packers to win… and not just because my picking a team makes the other team win and I am a Steeler fan. No here’s the reasons why:

1. I like the Packers- love Rodgers and think the GB D is good and the Steelers without their starting center will have issues.
2. Can Pittsburgh really win its 3rd title in 6 years? That’s Scott Surma like success there.
3. The MGM took in a MILLION dollar bet on the Packers. WOW. Story is here if you want to read.
4. Most important my Mom demands I pick the Packers and by doing so I move up on her list and could crack the top 20 of people she likes. (Loooong way to go to get to the rarified air my brother and sister hang out in with my Mom)

So to make this even more wild- when I was in Las Vegas this week I put money down on the Packers to win outright. So if the Pack wins, I win some cash and folks in Wisconsin won’t hate me. If the Steelers win, I’m happy, family is happy and I will have amazingly gotten every playoff pick wrong- which you have to admit is impressive. Anyway hope it’s a good game and also let’s have some good commercials this year too!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- A crazy college ski trip and wimpy sponsor

-- Cool invention to show parents what their teenagers are doing behind the wheel… have I ever told you how I dread my kids growing up?

-- And last a guy after my own heart.. he is trying to GAIN weight so he can get gastric bypass surgery! I love it!

VIDEO of the WEEK

Sent to me by an old co worker and friend, this is simply amazing… a crazy stunt that needed perfect planning. And I swear it looks fake but I just don’t know how you fake it… thanks to JK for the link!

Seismic Change for our Industry

2011-01-23T21:57:00.004-05:00

No doubt the big news of the week was the announcement that the Chairman & CEO of Apogee Russ Huffer intends to retire once his successor is named. In what could be the first of a few very high profile retirements to come in 2011, Huffer’s announcement did catch many off guard- including me quite frankly. In any case this is a tremendous unsettling of the industry and we’ll have to see who Apogee puts in to fill some very large shoes. Huffer was a very active industry participant, speaking at many events and really pushing the proper gospel that put our world in a positive light. Russ also never went with the masses. When everyone was pimping solar, Russ steadfastly held to his data that the material was not ready for prime time. I believe his stance on that forced people to go back to the drawing board and when solar matures, I think Russ will be one of the folks to thank. All in all this is a seismic change and I hope that Russ stays involved in our world in some capacity because we really do need it.

Elsewhere…

-- Speaking of an Apogee company- Viracon… last week I noted their amazing influence to get politicians into their plants. Afterwards I got an e mail that asked me why I always prop Viracon while dinging “everyone else.” So on that note- I believe I give Viracon the props they deserve- they have some of the best people in our world and they truly try to be a good and active industry player. And really with the exception of a few cases that I am emotionally involved in, I have become a kinder, gentler, blogger.

-- Another good month for the Architectural Billings Index… Even the west is starting to show signs of life there. No doubt it is promising but even the analysts are urging caution since December can be pretty funky. So we will see, but if this hold then the predictions of an improved 2nd half of 2011 will be dead on.

-- Meanwhile in current times, January looks bleak thanks to the brutal weather. Quite simply when glaziers in the east and southeast are losing entire WEEKS to bad weather, well that is just not good. Oh and then I ran across this story where scientists think a “Super Storm” may hit California? Wow. Wonder when the new codes to guard against a “Super Storm” are coming.

-- PPG capped a great year with record sales in the 4th quarter. It’s nice to see this on a few levels… hopefully that health will run downstream to more of the industry (and remember PPG is much more than just glass these days) and there’s some fantastic talents within PPG that work very hard to reach the heights those numbers showed. I’m happy for them.

-- Solutia introduced a new logo recently and I love it. (see kindler, gentler… when Kawneer broke out the big red K I panned it or when Visteon brought us Versalux). Seriously though kudos to all at Solutia who worked on it- great colors, great look and style.

-- Last and not least… my ability to NOT pick teams reached a new high… and honestly I am thrilled. The Steelers are back in the Super Bowl…. And I did seriously think the Jets (and the Bears for that matter) would win. I am glad I am not a sports better for a living… but I’d love to be anyone who goes against my picks… they have to be making a ton of money. So two weeks… two great franchises.. the Pack and the Steelers and I think you know right now I am all over the Packers to win….LOL (And note, game wasn't over 5 minutes before my Mom e mailed and said "PLEASE, Please pick the Packers to win)

LINKS of the WEEK

-- A really sad and sickening story about a Mom and a son who drowns in the bath tub. Simply unreal. Seriously what kind of world do we live in now?

-- Pretty comical way to beat the winter blahs…an inflatable window! But I wonder if it has to get a NFRC label? hmmmmmm

-- Yep only in China… You can have someone wait in a traffic jam for you… You know that would not be a bad gig for DC, Dallas or Chicago.

VIDEO of the WEEK

In Georgia they do not get a ton of snow- so when it does happens there are lots of issues. But this one was pretty classic. Snow plow driver clearing a parking lot and finding a hole and tipping over. Ooops. This is something you don’t see every day and I can tell you everyone in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan are laughing still about it.

Weather taking its toll

2011-01-16T20:00:00.002-05:00

Mother Nature showed her strength last week with the brutal storms in the Southeast and the combo storms in the Northeast. Add to that the rain out west and we have had some awful weather recipes lately. It’s pretty wild that so many things have an effect on our world, including the weather. Every day it seems like there’s something new and different that hit all of us more than other trades etc. Anyway I wonder if any of the analysts who develop future economic forecasting take weather into account. After all a rough run of terrible conditions, can surely be a negative driver. Hopefully Mother Nature has it out of her system!

Elsewhere

-- The FTC this week stepped up and ended the “Tested Green” certifications that found the products not tested or even “green”. The release from the FTC is HERE and it’s pretty interesting actually and good that it’s happened. The whole greenwash gig is good for no upstanding group, so having actions like this are a step in the right direction.

-- Didn’t get a ton of time at the Builder Show this past week… still some thoughts… show was smaller than traditionally… one vendor used the word “Slim” which kinda sounded right. Not sure how the bad weather up north affected it, but it probably did somewhat. Actually though I think this show has been “right sized”…. It was way too big and way too crazy and now it’s the way it should be. The happy days of midget Elvis performers in booths are long gone that’s for sure. Overall attitude was also leabing toward the negative, which surprised me since so many studies are showing positives for 2011. I guess we’ll see.

-- Speaking of reports there were a few more good ones about 2014 and so on with loose ties to our world. Not sure what the metrics are, but these reports sure are keeping people pumped up.
-- I saw that Senator Al Franken visited the gang at Viracon… I swear Viracon is becoming like the Iowa of the glass world. You know how when someone wants to run for President they have to go hang out in Iowa? Well I think if a political figure wants to hang around glass they go to Viracon. Congrats to those guys there attracting these folks in and also getting in their ears about the issues that are really affecting our industry.

-- Congrats to my friends from Walker Glass on their remodeled headquarters. All I can say is if that place looks as good as all of those guys dress… it is probably a showstopper!

-- Glass Magazine had a piece on Glass developed that’s stronger than Steel… It sounds pretty great, but supposedly it’s real expensive. I laughed at that line- hey just launch in our industry right now and watch with amazement as the price goes down… who cares what the cost is right?

-- Last… yep I can’t pick games- people who have been reading this blog since 2005 know that… and Oregon added to that pain. Anyway my mom says to me tonight- “So who do you like in next week’s game the Steelers or the Jets?” and before I could answer she jumped in and said “PLEASE DON’T PICK THE STEELERS! You’re always wrong!” Yep my picks have hit home now when my own Mom is aware her son is pure “Mush” when it comes to the picks. Now that said I do actually think the Jets will beat the Steelers. If the Steelers played the Pats it would be different but I think Rex Ryan and the Jets are a team of destiny and in the Super Bowl they’ll play the other team of destiny- the Bears. (The Bears have been getting breaks since week 1- it’s their year)

LINKS of the WEEK

-- This could be pretty cool… you put a price on your seat if your plane is overbooked. Curious to actually see this work.

-- Great piece on how the Sony Walkman changed the world.

-- This one I am not sure how I feel. The back story is a school district made phone calls to the families of their students letting them know school was delayed 2 hours. Snow day. Problem was the call was at 4:30AM. Anyway part of me would appreciate that call I guess. Still the story linked is about a father who DIDN’T like it and returned the favor.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Greg Carney (I should say the Long Lost Greg Carney, haven’t heard from him in a while- that’s what happens when you become a worldwide “must have” resource!) sent me this classic video of a retirement home talent show and three retirees doing Michael Jackson. Crazy. Actually a video of me doing the Michael Jackson Wii Video game would probably blow this away… well probably not, because these folks have talent! Thanks Greg for the video!

New Year, New Adventures

2011-01-08T21:07:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year to one and all… now will it really be a “happy” new year for our industry? Personally and professionally I do think by year end we will look back and note that things have turned the corner. However here are a few landmines that have popped up recently and may not be getting enough press right now that could affect the positivity. Silver…. It just hit a 30 year high and predictions are that it will keep going higher. In fact I have seen stories talking about silver going up to anywhere from 60 to even 86… (It’s sitting now at 28/29). Silver is a pretty important player in a lot of what our industry provides so a massive price growth there will have effects. (like high costs in an industry that somehow never gets a higher selling price)

In addition costs of lumber have been growing as well. I think everyone would love to get materials on returnable and reusable steel racks, but sometimes that’s not possible. Major increases in wood also will take a toll. And last on my doomsday opener here… Gas…. Yep I have been whining about gas prices for years… and now the predictions are 4 and 5 dollar per gallon gas in the future. Yikes. All in all though I am still positive… it’s a great new year ahead and we’ll work through all the landmines thrown at us.

Elsewhere…

-- If you missed my year in review, you can find it by clicking HERE.

-- Also if you missed it the ABI did have a nice finish to the end of the year. Congrats to those of you in the Northeast, man it looks pretty promising your way.

-- This week is the International Builder Show. I am hoping to get there for one quick day. As always it will be interesting to see the attitude on the floor. That show sometimes can be a pretty decent indicator of the year ahead. Though sometimes I think people that sell in that world and attend that show have very loose grips on reality.

-- I cracked up this week in reading about SAPA acquiring Arch’s extrusion facility. First laugh was I coulda swore I read that Arch was “done” restructuring. Then the 2nd laugh and more heartily was the quote that said that Arch could be MORE reliable now that they sold their operation. Yep things always get better the LESS control you have. (Or if you can’t figure out how to run something I guess) Oh well, the beat goes on… Any quotes from the new Arch guy are an absolute treasure trove of unintended comedy.

-- Did you happen to see the article on China Glass Holdings expecting their energy related products to make up half of their sales by 2012? Right now that segment is only 10% of their work… so of course my thought is at least China is getting and grasping the need for value added energy related products. Also in that article a very ominous line:

"I'm a little worried about new supply in the glass market in 2011. Glass prices will be under pressure this year, although perhaps demand will help keep the falls capped," said Haitong International Securities analyst Zheng Zhihao.

Wow, when the Chinese are worried about capacity… that really makes the mind race.

-- The fine folks from the Window and Door Dealers Alliance put out a piece HERE explaining the new tax credit rules for residential windows. I know most people who read this blog are commercial folks, but this question does sometimes cross over and heck its good just to know.

-- Also for 2011, I started yet another phase of a lifestyle change… otherwise known as a diet. Since I am now bigger than most offensive lineman in the NFL and more importantly I am running out of clothes that fit, I had to get back on the wagon. So much fun just eating like crazy…. Oh well. So with that news if you have stock in Domino’s or M&M Mars, you may want to sell… because their biggest customer is now off the market for a while.

-- Registration is open for Glassweek and BEC. Some very good pieces yet again on tap for that event. If you have never gone or haven’t been in a few years, give it a go. It is worth it on several levels.

-- Funniest thing I saw during the holidays? When I was in LA, I saw a van advertising a local plumber… his motto was in all seriousness... “The Smell Good Plumber”… I never ever associated my need for a plumber with the smell he may leave behind.

-- By the time many of you read this the BCS National Championship will have passed… but so I am on record… I am going with Oregon…. I think it’s a close first half but Oregon wears em down in the 2nd. Final score Oregon 41 Auburn 24.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- The aftermath of that winter storm before new years that left people stuck in airports for days….people fired up…

-- Simply amazing story about a real life “Thumbelina”

-- I am not an Auto Glass guy but they have this wild “Bullying” controversy going on over there. Tremendous blog take on it here. Some of the stuff that happens on the auto side really dwarfs any of our controversies that’s for sure.

VIDEO of the WEEK

You may have heard about the homeless guy with the “Voice of God” but in case you missed it, here’s the video that started it all. Since this video went viral, the homeless guy has gotten a ton of gigs and now has an agent to boot. Crazy.

2010 Year in Review

2010-12-23T16:05:00.005-05:00

Amazing how many e mails I got asking me where the “Year in Review” is… well folks strap in, because it’s here… pretty much all below appeared in a regular blog post along the way…

January:

The news about Zeledyne exiting the commercial glass industry came out. Very sad then and very sad now… plus to make matters worse some of their best people have yet to hook on with anyone yet. The end of an era for sure… Meanwhile, PPG won Product of the Year for their Blue Glass…. California announced a new building code which goes into effect 1/1/11…. “24” returned for its last season (still bummed it’s gone)… Winter was battering Minnesota and Washington DC… and somewhere a moronic analyst was being employed to make incoherent and irrelevant comments in a classic piece of ambush journalism… (not me, I am a moronic blogger, not analyst!)

February:

A great blog started called the “Division8report.com” but it sadly it soon disappeared. Shame because it had serious potential…. We had a hero in our world when Robin DeHaven of Binswanger Glass in Austin, TX rushed into a building that was hit by a plane to save several people... and oh a certain company emerged from Bankruptcy with a ton less fanfare from when they entered it…. And that emergence made every so called “expert” look really stupid as their predictions were blatantly wrong.

March:

“Cash for Caulkers” gets announced…Greg Carney’s new career as a consultant started to take off… and seriously there are not many people in this world in the awesome class that Greg is in… The ABI went up and everyone figured here comes the positive trend… nope…. Vitro made the first of many incredible hires in Cathy Finney (yes look back to the blog post, I made that comment before I was biased!) and Guardian did the same with Jay Phillips…. Friend of the Blog, Deron Patterson of PPG made news getting his LEED AP… good guy Deron is… The Mighty Ohio Bobcats beat Georgetown!...and BEC/Glassweek was held and despite the economy people there were staying positive…

April:

General Glass announced the start of a architecture and design department… brilliant move that was copied by a few… China Southern Glass sponsored a NFRC meeting, matching two of the most annoying items in my life…. The first news of the push for ASHRAE to have a negative approach on our industry popped up… Brad Austin takes the reins as President of Harmon… the NFRC continued to astound and annoy (no surprise there) and a certain blogger found a new home…

May:

Went into the woods at 4th grade camp… and survived… my daughter picked the Triple Crown starting with the Derby… awesome… brilliant move by Solutia with their World of Color award program launch… Les George retires after many great years in the industry… and the biggest story, Leon Silverstein left Arch ushering in the start of a very tumultuous summer and fall…

June:

Alcoa “buys” TRACO…. (still odd to see the new TRACO look within the Kawneer world.) Bill Cully, founder of United Plate Glass passed… a price increase hit the streets and while some people tried very hard to keep it, I would say 6 months later it was not a success…. Hartung Glass and the very shrewd Nick Sciola acquired Holcam Sales… Hartung and Nick had a very active year actually- good publicity all around with smart decisions and promotions…. AIA was a dud in Miami (with the exception of Earnest Thompson and Guardian’s awesome “ePod” educational setup) and now is under new management for this year’s show in New Orleans… GANA had a very successful Solar Symposium… and the ABI went down badly… ugh…

July:

NFRC announced it was waiving fees to get people involved in their programs.. they offered lots of incentives like that all year long… wonder why… LOL! Guardian, PPG and Pilkington all had very big solar related news, showing that segment is alive and well… Cap and Trade died for the first time… and my life changed… on July 9th I got the boot… and soon after scores of people at Arch either left or got terminated as the winds of change blew in. For me 5 months later it’s a major blessing and I should’ve known that… as July 9th was also the date I asked my wife to marry me, so the karma was actually good. As the talent drained at Arch, other companies like Oldcastle, Vitro, UGC, RIG, and GGI swooped in and added great people.

August:

The ABI still was scuffling along… the GANA Fall Conference took place and was headlined by the continued amazing work of Dr. Tom Culp. Our industry is really, really lucky to have him. Arch got a new CEO, a marketing guy of all things… all the while firing people using lines from the movie “Up in the Air” and offering bogus 2 week severance packages… yep class acts there… Dems and the GOP were on pace to spend a BILLION dollars on the November election… sick. Guardian hit a PR home run with their announcement on their BIM program… Vitro makes a slick move in acquiring Desert Glass in Vegas.

September:

GlassBuild America was held in Vegas.. solid show overall and some positive feelings… PPG starts a fashion trend with the zip up vests… Leon resurfaces along with brother Rick and former Archie and the incredibly talented Manny Valladares in the purchase of SMI in Florida. Someday I think Rick will write a book on his journey from the last days of Arch that will be riveting…. The freakin idiot Bobcat mascot tried to attack the Buckeye.. sad… and most importantly I ended up at a tremendous company with fantastic people at Vitro. No doubt prayers answered and each day is awesome. Just blown away at what I have joined into here… still.

October:

The ASHRAE moves go down… major props to Dr. Culp along with people like Helen Sanders of SAGE and Stanley Yee of The Façade Group (among others) who led the fight so beautifully. The UGC closes Mid Ohio Tempering… that one still smarts. Infinite Edge Technologies, a company founded by Glass Hall of Famer Eric Rapp and his sons makes a major splash at glasstec… The USGBC gets sued and that action will have repercussions for years to come…Donald Trump acted like a putz with his Chinese window debacle… and “Death Ray” glass put our industry in the mainstream media…

November:

People started to question if the economy was coming back this year, the next or 2013… SAGE gets a massive boost in the way of an 80 million dollar strategic investment by St. Gobain… a huge move that gives credence to everything the gang at SAGE has worked for… Also justifies that segment of the business and shows we do have more technology here than people give us credit for. Greenbuild had a solid show in Chicago in a tight, smallish room…. The ABI sucked again… the NFRC tried to entice people again… Viracon buys Glassec in Brazil… Kid Rock’s new CD comes out making my wife oh so very happy.

December:

Suresh Kumar, let go as COO of Arch… that was an epic 4 month run.... The theme of bad customer service took hold thanks to a great piece in the NYT. US Aluminum got hammered in a newspaper piece… the roof of the Metrodome collapsed making a great video…

Conclusions:

Well it was the classic “Best of times, worst of times” year. But the key was the worst of times were early in the year and now we move forward on a great high. Plus I am so happy for so many folks who found new places to work this year… ultra talented people like Steve Martin, John Dubose, Rob Taliani, Terry Hessom and many many more found new homes that will truly respect and appreciate their abilities. Not to mention my brother who landed with the great folks at GGI- a great match for both sides indeed. In addition I have had the honor of meeting and working with people that I have a ton of respect for and that’s been unreal. Industry wise, we continue to battle… the NGA and GANA are doing their thing in protecting us… the NFRC continues to astound… and more and more people are just getting more aware of how our world is working.
2011 should be a very interesting year… some will win and gain and we’re probably going to lose some folks along the way as well. No matter what I look forward to covering it here….

And on that note.. a sincere thank you to everyone who stops by and reads this blog. When it started in 2005, it was a chance for therapy and still is, but now, for good or bad, my therapy is pretty public! Anyway I am grateful to all of you who read and take time to communicate with me on what happens here.

To everyone out there in the industry, wishing you and your families only the best this holiday season and a happy and healthy (both physically and business wise) 2011!

Patience

2010-12-20T11:50:00.002-05:00

For those of you who look here first on Sunday/Monday... the new post is coming sometime this week... sorry for the delay...

I am actually writing this from way up in the air thanks to the Wi Fi here on the plane and my luck of an exit row set (legroom!!)

Anyway.. 2010 in review is in the works and will be up sometime this week....

Hope everyone is well...

Yep it happens here too...

2010-12-12T13:40:00.002-05:00

Last week’s customer service piece brought a ton of reaction my way. But really none better than the folks who informed/reminded me of the fact this “bullying” tactic happens in our industry all the time. Now it’s nowhere near the personal vile that the NYT piece presented but there’s a few manufacturers/fabricators that have used the bully tactic- basically threatening that if you use someone else, you’ll never get to use their company again and you will be ruined. Now most people would normally ignore such a threat, especially when you are in our world right now of tons of supply, low low prices and weak demand. But incredibly, there are people who actually buy into this- including one account who I persobally know of who literally believed if they gave work to other fabricators they would be doomed. So moral to the story is I guess the negative and bully approach has its merits, even our little piece of the world.

Elsewhere…

-- Has ever the line “The weather outside is frightful” been more accurate than this weekend for the folks in the Midwest? What a miserable storm… and how about the roof of the Metrodome in Minnesota ripping apart? The video from Fox showing the tear and the water streaming in was amazing. (The footage of the collapse is our Video of the Week)

-- I am patiently waiting in the next batch of leaks from Wikileaks the inside story of the NFRC. You know that has to be in there right?

-- This week’s rant about air travel… it’s the pet peeve of not putting your smaller item under the seat in front of you. The overhead bins are tight enough as it is, but last week I watched person after person put their briefcase, laptop bag, purse etc up top. Just makes me nuts. Cmon folks common courtesy would be nice.

-- Interesting to see how the case between AGC and the City of Marshall, Michigan plays out. Mashall gave AGC tax breaks for their plant there but when AGC shuttered the location, it made the town want to get the lost tax money back- or “clawback” as the article stated. I see both sides here- a deal is a deal and AGC was within their rights to do what they did- heck they stayed their longer than most people would’ve given how bad the economy was. But the city has some angles here too with the commitments and length of the deal. Regardless this sort of thing is going to show up more in more because happy days are surely not here yet and municipalities are really hurting. They simple can’t afford the old Dire Straits theme- “Money for Nothing”

-- Meanwhile US Aluminum took some heat from this wild newspaper article HERE. What I don’t get is how does a newspaper write something so enflaming and NOT get a quote from the company its hammering?

-- Last this week a heads up… the next two weeks will be the 2010 year in review parts 1 and 2…. 2010 was probably the most bizarre year I have ever experienced, so going back through will surely be interesting. I may have to finish it from a psych ward, but it will be done. For those of you bugging out after this week… have a super holiday season and a healthy, happy and prosperous 2011!

LINKS of the WEEK

-- A warning to those of you who travel… beware the “free” Wi-Fi offers… it could be a scam…

-- Simply a stunning link and pictures… the third most awesome island in the world is in the Arctic Circle. Seriously. Not a typo. Now I am not going there anytime soon but my gosh, it sure looks incredible.

-- And speaking of incredible photos… this one from a story about birds and their predators. Crazy.

VIDEO of the WEEK

As noted above-the collapse of the Minnesota Metrodome roof… just mind blowing watching it happen. Thank goodness no one was in there at the time!

When bad customer service is good

2010-12-05T12:00:00.003-05:00

Customer service and doing it well is something that gets pushed into all of us every day. You learn from early on in your career that the better you treat the customer, the better chance you have to be successful. Plus there’s even a cottage industry of speakers, classes, and consultants to talk, teach and drive good customer service. But this past week I read the most amazing story on going “opposite” of customer service- by bullying and abusing your customer to build your online base upon negative comments. (truly an effect of working in the internet world with page views and ranks) It’s simply mind blowing and the article can be found HERE. It’s quite the read and simply amazing that this “opposite” approach could actually work if dialed down just a bit. Treating your customers badly and it working? Talk about putting the world you know on its ear!

Elsewhere…

-- Last week’s ABI column brought a lot of good feedback- one angle that was brought up by someone much more astute than me was the fact these are “billings” and as we all are experiencing contraction of available business (and stupidity) is driving prices down- so billings are probably less as well. I mean you have to figure architects are working off of smaller margins too right?

-- Thoughts going out to a former co worker of mine Dan Luna. Heard he is battling a significant health issue. Mr. Luna is a tremendous guy who I know can overcome anything in his path…. The guy has the ability to build nuclear reactors (probably the only guy in our industry who can) so I know he’ll get through this. Thoughts and prayers to him and his family during this time.

-- Lots of LEED news this past week. Glass Magazine linked to an interesting article that talked about the growth of the green building segment- though I swear any future prediction by McGraw Hill has to be taken with many grains of salt. Also in a very interesting article HERE on passive homes, LEED takes a shot to the chin too. In any case green no matter how you slice it continues to drive conversation.

-- Pretty bummed that the US lost its bid for the World Cup in 2022. What a cool event and it would’ve been a neat experience for the States. The US lost to the country of Qatar. Not sure how the whole Qatar thing will work out but considering their approach to human rights and their hatred of Israel (if you have a stamp from Israel on your passport, they won’t allow you in) I am not real positive.

-- Last…when I saw the story about a naked woman making a ruckus on a Delta flight last week to New York… it reminded me of my recent bizarre flight experience when I was crammed on a tight commuter jet next to this really big guy (bigger than me, which is saying something- cause I’m huge) and he pops his lap top open and starts watching porn. Yep. I swear you just don’t get more bizarre and uncomfortable than that in one fell swoop.

LINKS of the WEEK

This week we dedicate the links to our friends across the pond… all three come from the British.

-- What brought the Dinosaurs to us? Yep it had to be Global Warming.

-- It’s funny I see this a ton nowadays… Teachers sending out reports with spelling and grammar errors.

-- And this may be the worst soccer team in the history of the world. I’m guessing none of these guys will see the World Cup…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Simply crazy finish to a High School football game… very rare that these plays work, but this one did… the 2nd angle about ½ way through the video is better to watch by the way.

Why the ABI may matter

2010-11-28T08:51:00.003-05:00

After reading last week’s ABI (Architectural Billings Index) I had a nagging feeling that I needed to see how accurate that whole process is/was. So during the holiday weekend I decided to go back into the archives of Glass Magazine to investigate. What I found was somewhat telling, a 4 part series (great job by Katy Devlin) from late 2007 that predicted the slow down to come. Back then you could see some signs on the horizon, but most of the world was blind (or better yet fat and happy), but yet the ABI started to decrease and the warning signs went up. Now there is no doubt the ABI is not perfect and they had plenty of stops and starts in the past, but they did probably do the most accurate accounting of the commercial side, so the numbers that come out from them in next few months should be taken seriously and hopefully they are better than in the past.

Elsewhere…

-- Hope everyone had a great holiday… I am still full…

-- Now before we blink its Hanukah, then Christmas and New Years… man time is flying.

-- More good news from the area of glass industry and technological advancements… The folks at Soladigm just picked up a tremendous honor and award from GE. Soladigm was chosen to be a part of GE’s 200 million dollar ecomagination challenge. GE picked 12 companies total to be a part of this incredible opportunity. More info is HERE. End of the day this yet ANOTHER great announcement of news showing that our industry is advanced, we are creating cutting edge materials and we are not the stick in the mud that some like to make us out to be. Congrats to the gang at Soladigm on this great news!

-- Speaking of great news, I am sure the folks at Viracon are still pretty pumped over their acquisition of Glasstec in Brazil. While so many in the industry thought Viracon would expand domestically, if you listened to the quarterly calls, the focus always has been on growing internationally and this was a great first step. Now how long before Dr. Don McCann is as big of a legend in Brazil as Ronaldo, Kaka, and Ronaldinho?

-- How about the article on the Harmon Hotel in Vegas possibly being imploded? My gosh that would just add to one of the wildest construction stories ever. Seriously some great writer needs to jump on the entire story of CityCenter… from the birth and concept to the crazy construction stories to the “death rays” to this. It seriously could be an epic read.

-- I am bummed Boise State lost. Then again the only Idaho football team I root for is Idaho State since I know a hall of famer from that institution.

-- One last note from Greenbuild 2010… next year that show is in Toronto and it will be very interesting to see how that effects the attendance. I think it will actually do more than 30,000 but the breakdown will be severely weighted down from the northeast and Canada overall. If I do that show though I will go to Montreal first and get clothing advice from the Walker guys because otherwise my Midwest duds will not play.

-- Last, if you want to see a brainless, gory, but actually somewhat enjoyable movie go check out “Faster” staring “The Rock” Dwayne Johnson. It won’t win any awards but for 90 minutes you surely forgot about ABI’s and certifications and China and so on, and to me that is worth it.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Cracking me up here…. the conundrum of the “green” parking garage.

-- As a big time dog lover, I dig this idea… a restaurant for dogs…

-- Headshaker story of the week… guy gets arrested for DWI three times… IN ONE WEEK!! This is surely a case of a guy that should never be allowed anything with motor again.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Sorry this one has to be a fake or a fix. A cat staring down 2 alligators while people just stand casually by? Too bizarre but worth the watch…

Greenbuild Review and More

2010-11-21T10:00:00.002-05:00

In addition to the coverage of Greenbuild that Katy Devlin and the team from Glass Magazine provided, I offer you my own special take. Overall the show continues to generate tremendous buzz and is still pretty much dominated by a much younger crowd than AIA. After a slow start, with what most people I talked to said was the worst first day of any show, ever, the rest of the time did improve enough for many folks to consider it a winner. So while the whole “green” push may be mellowing some and finding a fair and rightful place in our world (far from the over the top greenwashing from the early days)there’s no doubt that segment still has sizzle.

Elsewhere…

As is my tradition… seen and heard from the trade show floor…

-- The style of the show was copycat… several exhibitors copied the incredibly cool vest style created by Rob Struble at PPG. Even the folks at PPG noticed it. It was everywhere. Anyway I think Rob being the trendsetter he is, now has a knack for fashion, wonder how long before Ralph Lauren comes after him to design the 2011 line?
SAGE, fresh off their incredible news was swamped each and every time I walked by… I am very happy for them that’s for sure…. It was wild to see TRACO incorporated in the Kawneer booth, I had to do a double take… Dlubak and Pilkington were across the aisle from each other with Doralco, Berkowitz, and Edgetech all around the corner, so that was actually one part of the show floor that had some flow. It was good to see all of those guys… yes even Bob Price. Viracon was as busy as normal… I joked with them that they should just retire the booth and set up a white sheet with their logo on it because people were coming to see the folks working and not the stuff behind them… I guess the Starship Enterprise has been put out of service as OldcastleBE again went with the wide open “White Album/Siegfried & Roy” look.

OK now onto non Greenbuild stuff…

-- The ABI went down, which was disappointing but not all that unexpected. New project inquiries were still in decent shape, but the bugaboo is the financing, and quite frankly until some loosening there happens, I think this report will continue to be about the same monthly.

-- Hey, interesting offer from NFRC as they are pushing a special introductory rate to join. Basically ½ price for year one… which is interesting to me on a bunch of levels- with times so tough, it’s a shame that existing members aren’t getting a break and really comical the membership push has come to this. And by the way, your vote wasn’t worth anything at full price- it surely won’t be listened to at half price either.

-- Congrats to Tracy and Ellen Rogers on the birth of their son Rylan George. Cool name that is. Considering how well the Mom writes and how great the Dad speaks, that kid is going to be a heck of media threat when he grows up!

-- Finally this week… those of you who know me know that my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. Always has been and despite what seemingly always happens to me lately around this holiday, always will be. It’s the perfect mix of family, food and football and a time to cherish for sure. So from me and my family to you and yours- Happy Thanksgiving!!

LINKS of the WEEK!

-- Simply a crazy story on a school principal going to the home of students who were called in sick and trying to force them to go to school. Seriously nutty here.

-- I hate flying but I am not sure I follow this story too well… people refusing to get off a plane… man I don’t care where I land, get me off that thing whenever I can!

-- Why I hate Facebook... It just spawns crud like this guy and why people post stuff that may be inappropriate is beyond me.

VIDEO of the WEEK!

Still working off my backlog of videos… thanks for sending… this one is crazy… and I think it had to be fixed… a gal gets the answer on Wheel of Fortune waaaaaay too quick. The only person I know that could do this would probably be Scott Surma… seriously watch this and tell me if this could really happen…

Grenbuild on tap

2010-11-14T11:59:00.002-05:00

The big show this week is Greenbuild 2010 in Chicago. This show has grown dramatically over the years and is now becoming a place for people to roll out new products, mostly because the media still finds being “green” very sexy. In any case like all other shows, the key to me is measuring the attitude of where our economy is going and getting a feel for morale. In addition with this show specifically it will be fun to see if the average age of the attendees goes beyond the mid 20’s. The floor traffic at the last few Greenbuild shows have been dominated by that age group and that is probably one drawback to this event is that you sometimes don’t reach the level of decision maker that you crave. So we’ll be there for one day and I’ll report back next week…

Elsewhere…

-- Speaking of Greenbuild 2010, SAGE Electrochromics will be there and they’ll have more bounce in their step than normal. As you may have seen, SAGE had huge news last week when it announced that Saint-Gobain had made an 80 million dollar strategic investment into their company. That news is simply GIGANTIC. It absolutely tells the world that what SAGE has been doing is for real and that the entire dynamic glass segment is here to stay and will be a major part of our world going forward. I am thrilled for the fine folks at SAGE and pumped from an industry standpoint because as I have harped many, many times here- new technology is the key for us advancing and thriving as an industry.

-- My thoughts are with the folks from Emerald Art Glass out of Pittsburgh after a fire at their warehouse last week. Emerald was one of the first real customers I got to deal with when I was starting out and the owners Bob and Kim Zielinski always treated me and my family extremely well. They have done some amazing work in their years and if anyone can come back even better after an event like this, it’s them.

-- Lots of discussion from last week’s story on the economy coming back in 2011 vs. 2013…. Most folks think it will be back later this year, so basically let’s hope if they are right- because I am one to say if it doesn’t come back in 2011, something tells me that original wild 2013 prediction may be true. Yikes.

-- Big week in my household ahead as on the 16th (today if you are reading via EWeekly) Kid Rock’s new CD comes out and for my wife, it’s like a holiday. It will be fun to see if she is the oldest person in line at Best Buy that day.

-- It’s an end of a marketing era as General Motors has decided to retire the whole “Mr. Goodwrench” program, deciding to go with the more staid and corporate “Certified” angle. It’s a sad day as yet another icon of the past goes away but something tells me that this theme will come back again someday.

-- Last this week… the NFRC had a meeting last week and nothing exciting happened but from their wonderful blog coverage (and no sarcasm there actually, they do cover it pretty well) came this absolutely hilarious quote:
NFRC’s Membership Manager, Anita Marsh, echoed Hanlon’s comments, pointing out that one of the most valuable aspects of NFRC membership is that it provides a voice and a vote. Marsh said other membership benefits include access to inside information, networking opportunities, and the chance to build consumer trust in the marketplace.
“Our members lead change, and making the most of your membership helps NFRC serve the public good,” Marsh concluded. “The transformation of our industry starts with you.”

WOW…. I can see many of the people I used to attend meetings with absolutely doubling over when they read that the membership provides a voice and a vote…. The only voice you have is if it agrees with the board… because end of the day, the board makes all the calls there and as for votes… big deal because even when you have margins like 45-6, if the board disagrees, that vote doesn’t matter. But hey a new sucker is born every minute right?

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Great read here on where the “best looking” people in America live. The winner was Charleston, SC, while the last place finisher was Memphis, TN…. Now since I am pretty much a Memphis guy now I take serious offense to this- there’s some great looking folks in my new town and believe me I have been to many, many uglier places… (and yes this poll happened before I got there- which makes the challenge of Memphis digging out of the basement even tougher now! Sorry gang)

-- How to get out of jury duty… mentioning your pal the serial killer…

-- Living underground in Vegas... Very sad and disturbing story for sure.

VIDEO of the WEEK

I actually now have a pretty solid backlog of videos- thank you to all who are sharing- and please keep em coming!!
Anyway this video should’ve run last week with Veteran’s Day and all but here it is- it’s about an incredible soldier, a real life “Rambo” as I was told. This piece is slightly different than the one I was sent (couldn’t get the original to work on here) but it tells a great story about a man who didn’t get the recognition he deserved for all he did for our country. Sadly, the subject of this story passed away this past February. Watch it and give props to one of the toughest men ever to walk the earth.

Will it be 2011 or... 2013?

2010-11-07T11:11:00.002-05:00

Almost a year ago I wrote about a story where analysts felt the return of better times in the commercial glass industry would not start to pick up until 2013. I noted then that it boggled my mind because most analysts predicted a return by the end of 2010. Well here we are at the end of 2010 and those analysts were pretty wrong. Now those same analysts are predicting a slight increase in 2011 on the commercial side. Can they be right this time? It will be interesting to see that is for sure…. And I wonder if these guys will get terminated if they are wrong again or is forecasting the economy for our industry like doing the weather on TV? No weatherman ever gets fired for missing that big storm prediction…

Elsewhere…

-- Well the election is over… and after the lame duck session it will be time to get to work. Hopefully the focus will be in the right place, the rhetoric will be put away in favor action that helps the country advance forward.

-- I saw legendary gold medalist Michael Phelps in the airport last week. Pretty cool sighting. A buddy of mine asked me if I went up to him to get a picture or autograph… I didn’t because I always remember Greg Carney telling me how he hates getting mobbed in airports and all…. so out respect for his personal space I left him alone… now if it was someone that my kids would’ve gotten a charge of (Wrestlers, Sid Crosby or Taylor Swift) then I’d have to waive that rule in order to be a good dad.

-- Saw IronMan 2 last week as well and like the Spiderman movies, what a great movie to promote the beauty of tempered glass…. Tons of tempered used throughout… I think the supplier should get a note during the films credits….cause to a glass geek like me the glass had a starring role.

-- Missed this last week, but E Weekly ran the note on Columbus, Ohio being the on top of the list for metro areas adding construction jobs. Made me and many others think back to the news of Mid Ohio closing… so Columbus is growing and the branch closes? Yep, looks like if the rumored guy from out west opens there he’ll be stepping into a nice spot. (and that guy seemingly ALWAYS steps in to nice spots!)

-- Though the flip side is the overall 17.3 unemployment rate on the construction side. Ugly stuff folks… man I hope that analyst from above is right this time…

-- Amazingly quiet this week was the announcement of the NFRC election results. A few years ago that event was huge- lots of interest and candidates (including good friend Cliff Monroe who ran a spirited campaign) and there was a buzz. But when the establishment not only won, but kept ignoring a major part of the participants, people stopped caring. It didn’t matter anymore because they were going to do what they wanted. Sad….

-- Last… later this week we observe Veterans Day… and that day does mean something to many people and it is more than just a day without banks or mail. (Well it is my Mom’s birthday- so that’s extremely important) We are honoring the folks who were willing and sometimes gave the ultimate sacrifice. They put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms. So if you know a vet, take em to lunch, call and thank them, send them best wishes, or any sort of positive karma because one holiday is not enough to thank them for what they did for us. End of the day this is a celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- As some of you know I am less and less a fan of air travel. One angle is I am frustrated with the security- while measures are needed, I think what we do in American airports is a hot mess of inefficiencies and overkills. And I’m not alone…

-- This story will turn your stomach.. sorry… its about a 10 year old giving birth… ugh.

-- Could there be a Ghostbusters 3? Noooooooooo. Don’t do it!

VIDEO of the WEEK

Nike recently did a LeBron James commercial to try and rebuild his image…. It was good… BUT this response from Cleveland was MUCH BETTER… someone there decided to re-do the commercial with folks from Cleveland answering his question of “What should I do?” Brilliant rebuttal folks!

The battles will continue

2010-10-31T11:50:00.002-04:00

The IECC hearings were held last week in Charlotte and as an industry we did get a couple of “wins” but overall we are still chasing our tails. Codes and code implementation and enforcement are usually positive things from a business sense, but not when they are illogical or impossible to produce with some sort of efficiency. The ironic thing in these fights is usually most of the manufacturers are one side and the consultants and advocacy group are on the other. Why we can’t ever take the best of both (like Dr. Tom Culp always tries to push) is beyond me. As an example, I truly believe the manufacturer side is not B-S’ing you when they talk about structural integrity. Believe me they know and work with the products- have installed it etc. So when a consultant or politico breaks into a speech that a Vinyl curtainwall can go 20 floors in the sky and hold up the same as metal or steel… well sorry, not in my world. Anyway, bottom line is the fight goes on.

Elsewhere…

-- I have to say that no other cause has ever done a better job of being commercially active than Breast Cancer Awareness. The folks behind that effort in getting the pink involved EVERYWHERE should be commended for their efforts. It’s all over the place- in magazines, TV, Football players, hockey players using pink sticks and so on. It’s absolutely amazing. Hopefully all of this will lead to the advancements needed to strike down this and other related diseases.

-- Last week’s note on USGBC raised several comments to me personally and one on the post itself. The issue that some people have is the program is just not realistic in some levels. People will use products to get “points” or “credits” and they may not be the best products for the long term life of the structure. It becomes a game in a way. And quite frankly the fact that glass doesn’t count as recycled material or powdercoat and liquid paint count the same are among other issues. I don’t deny that it has made people aware of green building and it does do some good things- but the issues that Henry Gifford and other naysayers have are legitimate.

-- I missed making my NBA picks last week… so here they are… take em to the bank… in the East… no doubt despite having no other players the Miami Heat will win. LeBron is just a beast and once these guys figure out how to play 3 on 5 every night…look out. In the West… hard to argue with the Lakers- just too much talent there… funny that Kobe is now more popular than LeBron. And in the finals I like the Lakers to repeat…

-- The PPG story on the supply of the WTC glass at least is happier than it was a few months ago. It’s a shame the glass will be fabricated in China though, but I guess it’s still a win. Kudos to PPG for staying on it like they did as the initial reaction on all parties was that this deal was done and there was no turning back. Kind of proves that some things are not over until they are over.

-- Last, this election day is huge as you may know. This really will be fascinating to see what happens but end of the day, let’s hope that the folks we are sending to Washington start working for US and doing what needs to be done to advance this country.

LINKS of the WEEK

Thanks to the many incredible and aware technology savvy people who sent me how to do the links popping up in a new window. Trying it today- let’s hope I don’t screw it up. Anyway THANK YOU all for the help!

-- It’s funny I have my daughter helping me with some on line stuff… but not as intense as FireFox hiring a 12 year old boy to search for bugs in their system. There’s actually good money in finding “bugs” so my friends who helped me with these links, you all should look into that!

-- Moral of this story, never trust your buddy to get you a tattoo… because you may not like that lewd image on your back…

-- This guy caught a HUUUUGE fish in the Hudson River… scary man, scary.

VIDEO of the WEEK

The trend of animating scandals has been growing… there was Tiger Woods and others but now the craft folks have done an animated video of what went down with Charlie Sheen last week. It is quite comical I must say. Almost feels like you were there…

USGBC in the crosshairs

2010-10-24T10:57:00.002-04:00

For years I have been blogging about the NFRC and along the way I had more than a few people tell me I was missing the boat. That while the NFRC had issues, my sights should’ve been on the USGBC and their LEED program. I understood their angst but I never really dug into it. Well I guess now I don’t have to as a class action lawsuit against the USGBC has been filed and this one should be very fascinating to follow. The suit was filed by a gentleman named Henry Gifford who for years has been outspoken about the USGBC and LEED programs. Gifford basically alleges everything and more that the anti-USGBC crowd has been crowing about for years. After the suit was filed the blogosphere blew up with articles and comments about this issue as it will be a hot one. Right now the USGBC OWNS the green building world. Many others have come in and tried (Spirit, Green Globes, SEED, etc) and never came close to getting the footing that USGBC and LEED enjoy.
Great reading HERE for the actual complaint and HERE for an opinion piece comparing Gifford to Rosa Parks. Check out the comments below on the 2nd link as some interesting takes including Gifford himself with a quick comment. As one poster there said perfectly it’s like “as the Green Building Turns”
H/T to the Green Building Law Blog for great coverage.

Elsewhere…

-- Somewhere I think the Phillies and Yankees lost because I predicted them in the World Series… anyway I look forward to a Giant-Ranger tilt… love the stories behind the Rangers… but this will surely be a series of great pitching (Giants) vs. hitting (Rangers)…. Surely not as sexy of a match up (like Yanks-Phils_ but should be very good.

-- The good news that the overall Architectural Billings Index breaking the magical 50 mark for the first time in almost 3 years is probably tempered some by the regionality of the scores. The scores for the Northeast and Midwest surely skewed the score as the West and South are still showing very meager results. Still though, positive news is awesome. If the momentum continues it would jive with the predictions that the comeback will hit our industry in the 2nd half of 2011. Still a long way away but at least possibly light at the end of the tunnel. To read the official report on the ABI, click HERE.

-- And speaking of the links, I have been trying to get them to pop up in their own windows but I am inept at making that work. No clue why it won’t work for me, so until I figure it out (or someone smarter walks me though) I apologize for making you click forward and back.

-- Back to the good news economy wise… you have to assume PPG having a record 3rd quarter earnings wise is also good news for the overall state of business. Though I am sure that the PPG sales guys probably hate when announcements like that come out for the obvious reasons…

-- I was in Vegas last week and every 2nd commercial was for a personal injury lawyer… that’s what the world has come to out there- which is sad. Best tag line from one of these classic ambulance chasers was: “In a wreck… Get a check”…. Yeesh…

LINKS of the WEEK

We already hit a few links above… but a couple more industry related ones actually…

-- First a quick slideshow on fraudulent construction products and how close they look to real…

-- Cool video story of a new “liquid” curtainwall. Very interesting concept but is it realistic?

VIDEO of the WEEK

Saturday Night Live took on the latest Brett Favre controversy with a classic approach… making fun of his Wrangler Jean ads… classic!

Big News!

2010-10-17T11:52:00.005-04:00

Update 10/18 -6:30AM

As you will read more in EWeekly, our industry has won a pretty significant victory in the code world as the ASHRAE appeals panel has OVERTURNED the two most controversial and possibly damaging code items from ASHRAE 90.1-2010. Folks, plain and simple this is a great moment for us as an industry. The plan for reduction of the window to wall ratio and the new minimums for Visible Light/Solar Heat Gain have been rebuffed. The excitement is because our industry worked together with a common goal and for the first time since we started this concerted process (I started in 2004) we have a victory. (We've even lost when we won votes at NFRC 49-6... so believe me to get a win like this is huge) The bottom line is we are stronger as an organized group than we are as individuals and quite frankly we are only trying to do what's sensible. No one is against energy efficiency- quite the opposite really, but we want to do it logically without destroying our industry. This announcement surely starts that process. Congrats to Dr. Culp and the Aluminum Extruder Council, Urmilla Sowell and Bill Yanek of GANA, Marg Webb and IGMA, Guardian, AGC, and Pilkington for filing the appeals and fighting it to the end. Truly monumental!

Elsewhere…

-- I was completely bummed to miss Solar Power International last week in LA. When I went last year it was an amazing show and people were so incredibly hopeful. So to those of you who went, any insight on the mood there would be great. Something tells me it wasn’t as cheery as last year but probably still better than most shows have been.

-- Best line of the week… the guy who said the housing market forecast was in various “shades of lousy”… oh man that line just hit it on the head. So if the housing market is “shades of lousy” the commercial building market must be shades of words that can’t be typed on a family blog eh?

-- Is there anything more frustrating than flying? Seriously? Last week I saw TSA make a big issue out of an IPAD. The TSA agent said the IPAD either had to ride alone in a bin OR stay in the guys briefcase. Umm, I don’t get that logic- do you? Well when the guy complained off to extra screening he went.

-- Then on the plane- the packed, steamy hot plane… two rows ahead me (and shockingly not my row) a young lady boarded late holding a child that had to be at least 1. She only had one seat. A middle seat. And so that row, even though the child was small, it sure wasn’t a “baby” in my mind had 4 people jammed in for 3 hours. Miserable. The thing I thought was that baby is bigger than a lap top, yet you can’t hold a lap top on your lap for takeoff or touchdown….

-- Look out Ashley Elementary, my son was passed the activist gene… young Zach was elected to student council… I can’t wait til he starts a blog railing about the new evil lunch procedure and how the lunch ladies just mark in lockstep with the paraprofessionals working the floor.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Every so often someone comes out raging about the LEED program. Add this Toronto professor to the list- great arguments here.

-- A bizarre experiment with a Happy Meal… what will it look like 180 days after buying it…

VIDEO of the WEEK

Folks this story is 7 minutes long but simply amazing. Its about a soldier that was impaled by a live rocket propelled grenade. Simply stirring and interesting and props to good friend Greg Carney for sharing it. Check it out.

End of era

2010-10-11T19:07:00.002-04:00

Up and down news week for me…. First on the down side, the depressing news about the closing of Mid Ohio Tempering by the UGC… It really is very sad and upsetting news…. aside from folks losing their jobs (which is very depressing obviously and the most important) there’s a historical piece here as the original founder of this company, Jack Deyo, is another one of those guys (like I noted Eric Rapp to be last week) that would be first ballot industry hall of famers (in my opinion). Seeing his place go down in this manner, with him helpless to do anything (UGC and Jack parted a few years ago) had to be pure misery. The facility, which possibly could’ve had a buyer (especially with rumors of a west coast guy opening up in Columbus) will be remembered in my mind for its commitment to quality and customers. I guess stripping the facility and sending equipment elsewhere was the better deal in their minds. My thoughts go out to all of the folks affected by this news and I hope they can land somewhere good. (And if the rumor of someone opening in C-Bus is true, the new company has ready-made and motivated workforce)

Elsewhere…

-- Now on the upside, the UGC location in Pittsburgh made a great hire of Rob Taliani formerly of Arch. Great guy and yes I am biased as Rob is a very close friend. But still he will do extremely well for that group, especially now that he won’t have the worries of competing with his fabricators or having to go after general contractors like leadership from his old company has been quoted on. (Yep I know I am beating that dead horse... but those interviews were blog material gold!)

-- Ok, enough bad news for now… a major congrats to Darand Davies of Dallas Glass (Salem, OR) for winning the Hartung/Guardian “Beat the Heat” competition. Darand is a tremendous guy and operator and it is very nice to see people like that get some great publicity.

-- Usually on line discussions in or about our industry aren’t very popular. Don’t get me wrong, there’s tons of opinions out there shared privately everyday but putting yourself out there is rare. Well recently a phenomenon of sorts took place over at business social media site LinkedIn when they question was asked “do we have a dearth of qualified people in the façade industry?” This discussion brought tons of replies and really is an interesting question overall. We as an industry do have some holes, especially in attracting new/young/fresh talent… though we also sometimes mis-use or miss flat out quality talent as well. End of the day though I found it interesting that there was a pretty good on line discussion of an issue that will have ramifications somewhere down the line.

-- Last week while in one of my hotel stays I came across the movie “Taken” starring Liam Neeson. This is one of those movies that I just love to watch… he’s like Jack Bauer, so that’s big, I love the action, and quite frankly is my daughter ever got in trouble (like his in the movie) I wish I could morph into that character. Simply awesome.

-- By the way I did not make a post season pick last week for baseball because my choices back in April- Yanks vs Phillies is still alive. I do though want the Rangers to make it, as I love that line up and the storylines with the Rangers are amazing. (Josh Hamilton’s comeback, Ron Washington’s issues, Ian Kinsler being the rare Jewish baseball stud and so on)

LINKS of the WEEK

-- I have had some cool structures featured here… and you can add this one to the list… the balancing barn!

-- Thanks to an old pal, AKA “The Freight Train” for this one.. a great story on Barry Sanders Jr. as he is headed towards some of the same greatness his father showed. Something tells me Lions fans are hoping that he can come to Detroit!

-- The newest disease for the tech world… “Toasted Skin Syndrome” for when you work too long with your lap top... on your lap…

VIDEO of the WEEK

From a friend of the blog in New York… just an awesome shootout style of goal in Hockey… kids name is Kaspars Daugavin and I have a feeling you may be seeing his name more often in the future.

Mid Term Test

2010-10-03T11:46:00.002-04:00

We are just a few short weeks away from a moment that could have a massive effect on our business lives. Like no other time in my life, the mid-term elections are something to follow and hope that whatever the outcome, positive movement for business happens. It’s seemingly every month that the ABI totals mention the icy cold credit markets, which is pretty much hampering a large part of our industry. Will the outcomes in November be able to get things to thaw? I hope so. Regardless and sadly we are headed for a very cold winter that’s for sure. I do look forward to what the analysts and experts in our industry predict for 2011 and I’d expect to start seeing some of those comments soon.

Elsewhere…

-- Hey did you see that construction spending went up 0.4% in August? Break out the champagne! The increase was led by government projects… you know like there’s anything but government projects these days…

-- One of these years I’m gonna have to get to glasstec. Just reading all of the coverage makes it sound so unreal.

-- Saw at glasstec the announcement of a new warm edge spacer technology. The material from Infinite Edge Technologies was founded by Eric Rapp and I think it’s just tremendous to have Eric and family back in the day to day grind of our industry. I’m a big fan of the Rapp clan and quite frankly when the Glass Hall of Fame opens; Eric Rapp needs to be a charter member. Best of luck guys!

-- We had winners in Solutia’s awesome World of Color Awards. The winners were very cool, so unreal uses of color and style. To view the winners and some awesome runners up, you can click HERE. Kudos again to Solutia for a great concept.

-- The whole “Death Ray” glass theme that played all over the network morning shows was comical to me. Everyone I know outside of the industry sent me a link to it, asking me about it etc. Only in our industry can we get the oddest publicity ever. I do have to say though having been at many Vegas pools during the summer, that if it was even hotter than normal, it must’ve been insane.

-- The inane Donald Trump window order debacle is sad and infuriating. There is no doubt several people could’ve supplied windows for his building instead of going to China, but at the end price won out and he played the supply card. It’s the same thing that happened on the bottom floors of the new WTC when the Port Authority took the money and ran, then made a ton of excuses to cover their behinds.

-- Hockey starts this week!! And I am so looking forward to it… and I am sure you are looking forward to my picks to win it all… I think the West will come down to Vancouver and the Red Wings, with Detroit going back to the Cup yet again. In the East, it really is time for Ovechkin and company to take it and they’ll get there with an epic 7 game win over the Pens. (It hurts to even type that) And the Cup will go to DC, with the Caps winning in 6. And yes I’d be thrilled to be wrong.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Funny link… Top 10 songs that make men cry…. And I have to disagree with some of these but fun none the less. I cry at the end of movie's like Rocky or The Natural... not at songs.

-- This is awesome… ever see the commercials with the “Most Interesting Man in the World”? It’s for the beer Dos Equis and the commercials have reached cult status… well this link introduces you to the actor who plays the role and his background just cracked me up!

-- Remember that crazy US Open Tennis video from a few weeks ago with the fight in the stands? Well the young guy who was in the middle of it, just got in trouble again.

VIDEO of the WEEK

You may have seen this, but it’s from Australia’s Top Model and the announcement of the winner goes woefully wrong. The big question is do you think this was an honest mistake or a plan… because the coverage they are getting from this screwed up announcement is bigger than ever. (At about 50 seconds in you see the host change the decision. It’s like trainwreck)

What can be said...

2010-09-26T09:21:00.003-04:00

Well I’m sure people aren’t clicking here this week to get my feelings on the new cast of Dancing with the Stars. No I’d bet (and I know because of e mail traffic to me) that because of my past associations that they want to know how feel on the return of Leon to the glass business. Well I am going to possibly disappoint because I am taking a different tact. Everyone and their mother (including mine, she’s feisty about this issue!) has an opinion on Leon himself, but for me there’s 2 other parts to this deal. Rick Silverstein and Manny Valladares are partners in this thing and that’s the huge key. Rick (or it “Richard” now? I’ve known the guy 10 years never once heard him called “Richard”) is very well known and connected with the customer base in South Florida, while Manny is easily one of the most talented guys I have ever had the honor of working with. So while the publicity comes from one side, the real meat comes from these guys. Now there is no doubt there are tons of other issues that will be at work here and this will be something to watch/monitor/comment on, but I think for now it will be interesting to sit back and see what tone is set and how the overall acceptance or possible lack thereof plays out.

Elsewhere

-- Last week E Weekly did a great poll asking if respondents saw the economy in the commercial glass industry as Good, Average, Weak or Very Weak. When I last checked the results 83% said they saw it as either weak or very weak. 13% saw it as average and 3% saw it as good. Um can the 3% who saw it as “good” give me a call? I’ve got glass and metal that I’d love to sell you! Seriously though I’d love to know where those folks are and/or what business they are in, because I think even in the best regions and best industry segments, being “average” is probably the tops.

-- Congrats to Mike Nicklas for his return to JE Berkowitz. Good guy who’s return to JEB is a win-win for all parties. Plus it really wasn’t the same for me seeing Bob Price at the show sans Mike. Certain combos in my life are a must…. like me and Peanut M&M’s, Russ and Jim on Apogee Quarterly calls, and guys from Walker Textures in really amazing suits. And so this too gets back to normal and order returns to my life.

-- Heard from Henry Taylor on the BEC show and love the direction that he and Brian Pitman and the gang at GANA are planning for this year’s event. There’s no doubt with times different (at least for 97% of us-see above) that the BEC must evolve and improve and that’s what’s happening. Henry is reaching out all over and I expect the results to be outstanding. We’ll surely have more on this as it gets closer, but I’m very excited about the initial planning.

-- Coldwell Banker just came out where the cheapest and most expensive homes are in the US, and the results while not surprising are disappointing to me for sure. The most expensive homes are in the following cities:
1. Newport Beach, CA (Obviously where the 3% live!)
2. Palo Alto, CA
3. Rye, NY
4. San Francisco, CA
5. La Jolla, CA
Well I guess the California cost of living is a little crazy eh?
On the flip side… your cheapest homes can be found in…
1. DETROIT, MI (yippee…we won something! Oh no… this is not a good one to win… especially with a house that will be for sale… I think I am going to throw up now)
2. Grayling, MI
3. Sioux City, IA
4. Cleveland, OH
5. Muncie, IN

-- Last, we are about to enter a really awesome time of year… great holidays (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Chanukah, Christmas) Sports! (Football, Hockey and Hoops stare, World Series baseball) and fall weather that can be very nice to many parts of the country. The next 3 months are usually wonderful from a social standpoint and surely something to look forward to.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- What to do if a Bear attacks? Use a zucchini from your garden. This woman did and it worked!

-- One of the great shows this summer was Hard Knocks on HBO. It was inside access to the NY Jets. Now HBO is bringing that format to hockey for the Pens-Capitals Winter Classic game. Oh boy, the DVR will be tuned up for this one!

-- Just a bizarre story from Wisconsin about “Sexting” and a District Attorney. You just read and shake your head.

VIDEO of the WEEK

Of all the videos I have posted over the years, none had the traffic that last week’s Bobcat Mascot had. Crazy…. Only my school… Anyway this week, a great goal from a soccer game with just a very excited play by play guy. (actually worth it for the play by play guy!) It’s not Mascot on Mascot crime, but it is good!

Looking back and looking ahead

2010-09-20T18:02:00.003-04:00

Well another GlassBuild is in the books. Overall I thought the show was very positive. The vibe there did fall on the side of hopeful and the buzz about the future was encouraging. Yes there were some rough parts, like some slow and spotty crowds and some key people missing, but considering the climate we are in, I would easily deem the show a success. The people that came and walked the show gained from the new and exciting things they saw, and for the most part the exhibitors should have gained from a focused attendee base, not just people using the show as an excuse to be in Vegas. The hope here is when we meet back up in Atlanta next year that we’re talking about how much better things are then now.

Elsewhere…

-- One theme that I spent time on was the fact that back in 2005 when things were rolling, did any of us sit back and say “wow this is great!” Chances are you didn’t, so I think when times change again we’ll be able to appreciate them more.

-- Vegas itself really is an amazing place… from the awesome architecture and design (and my goodness the interiors of the CityCenter were incredible) to just the cheese factor that is Vegas. Like hundreds of people watching the show out outside of Treasure Island. Lip synched songs and fire I guess attracts em in. But the other wild thing is getting up at 4AM to catch the 6AM flight and seeing the hotel lobby and casino packed. That can only happen in Vegas.

-- Also from last week… the worst cab ride ever… so I get in the cab at 4:15AM for the airport… the driver tells me that she can take me through the city, it will be quicker and cheaper than the highway. I tell her that’s great, I just want to get there as quick as I can because you never know about the airport. She then proceeds to drive the slowest I have ever seen someone drive a cab in Vegas. There were drunk partiers moving faster than us! Then as we approach a stoplight and with her almost all the way through, the light turns yellow and she JAMS on her brake and reverses the car. I was freaking out and she says “Can’t be running lights in Vegas”… Arghh… so As we keep floating along she says “what time is your flight?” and I say “6” for which she replied “Wow you sure are cutting it close!”…. Yep thanks to you I am! Anyway I made it but that was one cab trip to forget…

-- Great to see Henry Gorry of Guardian at the airport… a true gentleman and class act in this world of ours.

-- Speaking of Henry we talked about the codes coming down the pike for a bit. Plus in talking with other folks too, I don’t want to misconstrue where I sit or where many of our bretheren in our industry sit. We are not in any way, shape or form against energy efficiency. When we battle on the codes it’s because of the way they are laid out, plan to be implemented or logic behind them. Believe me we all want the same stuff.

-- Also a funny aside… people forgetting how the NFRC came to be… many folks now think that the NFRC was created solely to be proponent of energy efficiency on the residential side. Pushing for better windows, but in reality their creation was in part due to bad characters on the residential window side who were making windows with false performance claims attached to them (like single pane windows promoted as “Double Low E and Double Argon”). One of my angles all along with NFRC has been they were needed on the residential side because of the end user being an amateur in the game, but they’re not providing the value on the commercial end because we are professionals. Anyway I found it interesting that history is sometime forgotten.

LINKS of the WEEK

-- Now that I have a Kindle, this is a great idea to put all the books I have laying around to good use.

-- How about this… older men stay attractive for a decade longer than they used to… meaning a 55 year old man is still desirable according to the story. Best part of the story is baldness is no longer a stigma! Yee ha.

-- If you stole towels from the Hilton last week in Vegas, better hope you don’t get caught… this person got 3 months in jail… and really does anyone take towels anymore?

VIDEO of the WEEK

Low moment in my alumni life.. As a proud Ohio U graduate I knew beating Ohio State was a long shot… but worse yet, the video below. The Ohio mascot decided to attack the Ohio State mascot… and it was pathetic… and embarrassing… and just plain sad. Bobcats bow their heads all over the world on this display of stupidity. (watch bottom right of screen)

GlassBuild America Day 2

2010-09-16T00:47:00.002-04:00

Day 2 of GlassBuild came through with bigger crowds and more enthusiasm. I felt day 2 was going to be the make or break of the show and personally the crowds being stronger puts this show in the “make” category. Now obviously this is not a show to compare with the good ole days of 2005, but for the timing and place we are in the economy, it really was a positive showing.

Now on to what was seen and heard…

-- Always a great thrill to see Raj Goyal, now doing consulting for Technoform. A major class act and a credit to our industry for sure. And Technoform’s booth for the 2nd day in a row was jumping… those guys are probably thrilled with the show so far.

-- Heard from many people that the GEF (Glazing Executive Forum) was super. Major kudos to Matt Rumbaugh and his team for the success.

-- I attended the GlassBuild reception for the very first time… this is my 15th show and I never made it to a reception until now… It was jam packed and great food on hand. Man I blew it missing the past 14.

-- Cool as cucumber Jay Phillips of Guardian was everywhere on the floor. Guardian may not have had a booth but Jay covered the real estate on the floor like he was riding one of those Segway motor scooters. He was everywhere.

-- Very thrilled to meet in person Newton Little of Ace Glass in Arkansas. Good man who donates a ton of time for the betterment of our industry.

-- Best business cards… Tom O’Malley of Doralco… just the coolest layout and very eye catching… I think I may have to ask him if I can borrow his design. These cards were the same width as a normal card but slightly shorter height- but the key was the font and design of the card was dynamic.

-- Got to see the gang from the Glass Association of North America. Brian, Urmilla and Sara all doing well… Brian very pumped with the new headquarters that also features a video room. My gosh giving him more tools is scary good. And speaking of GANA a belated congrats to Ashley Charest on the birth of her 2nd child.

-- Running into Patrick Muessig and Dave Mills of Azon is always a treat and I always, always learn something good from those guys.

-- Standard Bent had some outstanding stuff in their booth, including a cool Pittsburgh Penguin logo that my soon would drool for.

-- There was an Elvis impersonator on the floor… even got a picture with him (if they send it, I’ll post it) but the problem was it was the skinny Elvis… I wanted a picture with Fat Elvis… would make me long for my old co worker #28 Roger Collette.

-- Awesome display of Shower Door greatness in the Alumax booth… it was like a forest of shower doors, so many neat and different styles put me into creativity overload. Just great stuff.
Missing…

-- Supposedly Dr. Tom Culp was on the floor but never saw him.

-- Also I had heard that Christine Shaffer of Viracon was not coming but you can always hope that she'll show right? Seriously though you know you are a superstar when people know you are not coming but still hope that you somehow show up. Believe me I wasn’t the only one bummed on that absence.

-- And same goes for Scott Surma… shocked he didn’t sneak on out but considering Scott already goes hog wild for 24 hours a day, not sure how he woulda crammed this in…

So one more day and I still have a ton to see- plus my daughter demanded I bring her “free” stuff from the floor, so I’ll have to go Pen hunting. Next week on my normal post we’ll wrap up the show.

Day 1 at GlassBuild America

2010-09-15T01:48:00.003-04:00

Day 1 on the show floor was surely a fun one for me. I hadn’t been to a GlassBuild for 2 years so this was great to be back among the action. Overall I thought the day was solid, the crowd came in waves and I saw some booths swamped with people. That said I know some folks may have commented that it was slow or light but I think for a first day when all was said and done it was better than you think.

Seen and heard and experienced on the show floor…. Larry King or Page 6 style…

-- Before hitting the floor I ran into Rick Friel of Cardinal… he was looking great proving west coast living must agree with him…

-- Best look of the day… the gang from PPG looking nattily clad in their very cool vests… yes the great Rob Struble strikes again with that idea. I need to beg him for one of those!

-- Loved the GGI wide open booth… went over to say hi to my brother but he was always entertaining someone…

-- No Starship Enterprise booth this year as no Oldcastle showing. Dang.

-- Speaking of OC, neat to be on the same team now as former OC’er Cathy Finney. After years of competing at our old places it’s great to be on the same page at Vitro America.

-- And on the note of my new company, I got to meet many of my co workers for the first time and it was very nice, just love the energy they are putting out right now. Though I think they all look at me and wonder what planet I’m from.

-- Best giveaway so far… the cool hats from Glassopolis… those guys raise the bar every time they leave the house.

-- Great to run into blog reader and friend Paul DeGray… and it was pointed out to me and I agree that he is a dead ringer for Billy Joel…

-- Saw Greg Carney which is always a highlite…looking good too.

-- Speaking of looking good, usually Danik of Walker Glass takes the title, but on day 1, his boss Ross Christie broke out the A game with the best outfit. So the title stays in the Walker family as they continue to be the best dressed guys in our industry… by far.

-- Off the beaten path on the show floor was a cool booth of switchable interior stuff by Polytronics. If you are walking the show on day 2 or 3, worth the visit.

-- The top mind and quite frankly most talented person in our industry Julie Schimmelpenningh of Solutia was working and walking the floor… always a pleasure to see her and the fact she even is OK with being seen with me is an honor.

-- Hearing that Jeff Leone of Arch won’t be here… and that’s OK since he obviously knows our industry so well because he knows not to "compete with his fabricators" and that he also needs to work closer with General Contractors… so you see he has it all figured out!

-- CRL’s booth was packed as usual… unreal what they do.

-- Last, the amazing Edgetech booth… no one brings it at this show like these folks. This year had a cool racing theme and a stocked bar… needless to say every time I went down there to say hi to guys I know the place was a madhouse.

On Day 2, I plan on walking the show more, getting to hopefully spend some time at Technoform (who looked very busy today) and also searching out some new products too. Plus a report on the reception too. Check back on Thursday for that update!

One week away!

2010-09-06T11:19:00.003-04:00

The big GlassBuild America show is next week and my plan is to do a “live” blog at least 2 of the days. For those of you new to this blog, when I go to shows I make observations and also cover it in a “Page 6” style. I am excited for the show and believe it will be a good one as the people attending are serious about business/education/networking etc. Plus I haven’t been to a show in 2 years, so to get to catch up with so many people across the industry will be a treat.

Elsewhere…

-- Well last week started a new adventure in my life. Getting going at Vitro was fantastic and I can’t help but being excited about the future there. People who read this blog weekly have followed my range of emotions from the good, bad and ugly- and there’s been way too much of the last two… so it’s really refreshing for some good. Now hopefully the economy will also pitch in and we can start getting some good news there too. In any case I am pumped to be where I am at and I am really looking forward to getting to know the people here.

-- The downside of the past week was the unemployment numbers. The construction industry has a 17% unemployment rate which is vicious. That is just really concerning and those numbers were added to after scores of firings from Arch Aluminum. More excellent people were let go throughout the week. Other companies in our industry will surely benefit from the talent that is now out there. Between some of the fantastic people still available from Zeledyne, to these new Arch releases, the opportunity to add talent is pitch perfect. (and yes I know the business environment is not conducive to adding people, but I’d think you have to look down the line some)

-- Back to the show stuff… The best part for me is the ability to be a part of the live hurricane test demonstration that happens to be sponsored by Vitro. (kudos to Alice Dickerson for that coup) If you have never seen hurricane impact material tested in person, it really is a treat. There’s I think 5 different chances to check it out, so make plans to do so. Seeing the glass and aluminum hold up drives home the point of how great the impact material is during a storm and the tremendous advancement we have made as an industry.

-- Also I’m hoping also to get to the Decorative Glass seminar as a chance to see guys like Bernard Lax (Pulp Studios) and Ed Trainor (Trainor Glass) in action is a treat. Plus Decorative is a great industry segment.

-- Cool effort from YKK in announcing a video contest to promote green building. I like the idea and concept and will be interested in seeing how it plays out. Very creative approach to get folks interested and involved.

-- A few weeks ago I talked about the packaging of products and how the packages are getting smaller but the price stays the same… and yesterday I got an update. Went to buy dog food again and the bag on sale was now 38.5 pounds and the label on the bag said “Now 10% more free!”… yet it was the same price as it was when the bag was 40 pounds just a few months ago. Just amazing how this works…

-- Pro Football kicks off this week and here’s my fearless predictions… some years I’m dead on… but most I am way off.. so take em with a grain of salt… Super Bowl this year will be New England (behind a truly healthy Tom Brady) against Green Bay. And I like, the Pats to win it. Now as a Steeler fan I have to admit that I am hoping I am wrong and I’m jinxing New England, but they do scare me because they are flying a bit under the radar.

Links of the WEEK!

-- This guy called off his wedding when he found out his fiancé owed a ton of cash for her college studies. Amazingly shallow relationship eh?

-- 99 day cross country trip on a lawnmower. Yep what a world we live in… and the trip actually had sponsors!

-- Now this is a wild story… heavy drinkers tend to outlive those who don’t drink alcohol. Man science is special.

Video of the WEEK!

You may have seen this video already, it’s from the US Open and it’s a fight in the stands there… normally this stuff doesn’t appeal to me, but this was like watching a car wreck happen… it just boils over and the reactions are wild. By the way I’d love to know what you could be arguing about at a tennis match….

The Green Hype

2010-08-29T10:32:00.003-04:00

***** My normal weekly post is below... I updated before the news on my new job broke. For more on that check out the story on E weekly above and please feel free to check out this week's post below.

One of my favorite reads each week is from Glass Magazine’s sister publication WDweekly. This past week John Swanson had an interesting piece on whether the marketing boom of being “green” had run its course and it’s truly a great question. Two years ago you could attach the word green to anything and bam you had an instant marketing piece. But there is no doubt that now other priorities, along with tightened budgets have changed that. Plus do not discount the fact that enough people reacted negatively to folks who “greenwashed” and that too has lessened the push. Green is a lifestyle that will persevere for years and years, but for now the marketing sparkle has surely dimmed. And maybe that’s a good thing in the way that people will actually try to be green before they promote it. Anyway this Wednesday, John will have a follow up on his question, and if you are not getting WDweekly, you can click here to sign up. Surely worth it.

Elsewhere…

-- Part of John’s piece that I was discussing above was the news that UL (Underwriters Laboratory) is getting into the green standards game. I’ll reserve total comment for now, but I can tell you from folks who have had to work with UL on the solar side, this is not the greatest of news. But we will see…

-- I hated missing the GANA Fall Conference last week, from the e mails I got from attendees it sounded like a fantastic event. Plus some interesting rumors popping up too that were surprising. But the big stuff was that as advertised I heard the speakers were strong and that especially Tom Culp’s piece on the energy codes was very informative. (I think if you asked Tom for directions to the corner store, he’d make those incredibly informative. The guy just has the goods) Anyway one of the main takeaways was the changes are still afoot, Tom and the industry are still doing everything possible to protect the industry, and the more you know, the better off you will be. This is a story that won’t go away soon.

-- Only one more week of pre season football… ahhh can’t wait for the real stuff…

-- Curious what everyone’s thoughts are on the new skyscraper that is being proposed to be built near the Empire State Building. Obviously the owner of the Empire State Building is not happy because it will not only make his building smaller, it will affect views and add a ton of competition for the same renters/lessees etc. And considering the amount of cash the owner of the Empire State Building is dishing out to remodel his building, I can understand the angst. That said, I am all for the building under one condition… it has to look good. The skyline there is iconic and this building has to meet those standards. Then again I am not a New York guy, so I am sure others who love and love in the city will have their own thoughts. Still a great conversation starter. The story on this deal can be found HERE.

-- Sick stat of the week… did you know that combined… the Democrats and Republicans have raised almost 1 billion dollars for the upcoming mid term elections? What is wrong with this picture? That means they have picked up a billion dollars in donations that go towards awful mudslinging tv ads and robocalls. It’s just crazy to me the money that is spent in an election cycle….

Links of the WEEK

-- Last week the China traffic jam popped everywhere… and ready for this, as fast as the news spread about the jam, the traffic disappeared… yep according to this story the jam just "vanished"

-- Interesting stuff from baseball last week when several teams had their financial records leaked to the web. One was the Florida Marlins and the backlash has been severe.

-- Wild story about losing millions in the market as a day trader but yet owing the IRS 172 million! And the guy who lost it, didn’t even know who the IRS is…

Video of the WEEK

The video quality is not great, but worth the 30 seconds when you see an epic fail at trying to score a goal in soccer. Believe me, if this was me, I woulda whiffed completely, but this one is almost as bad… yeesh.

The Rough Waters

2010-08-23T16:39:00.002-04:00

Two forecasts came out last week with frustrating results. The monthly ABI was up 2 points but still weak and the analysts there continue to worry about the volatility in the marketplace. The other forecast I saw was the Producer Price Index and that was pretty depressing. The numbers of course were low, but the commentary was downright frightening. Check out this line:

"Public construction, once the bright spot of the industry, is petering out and we are hopeful that the stimulus money allotted by congress for infrastructure will be spent soon and help stem the tide. Virtually all of the sectors of commercial construction are down, and represent a cumulative 15% decrease. "

Ouch. That is simply not fun. The “stimulus” money is supposedly still out there and I know a lot of folks hanging their hats on that to help ride this out. In any case, and no matter the report you read, these are challenging times and the companies that handle these times the best, will be the horses when it turns... and I still believe the turn is coming....

Elsewhere…

-- Yesterday I came across these amazing inserts from Glass Magazine that were focused on the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s in the glass industry. Really cool stuff… hopefully there are plans to do a 2000’s to add to the collection. In any case if you have these inserts they are awesome.

-- Man I hate missing another GANA event. I am sure Brian Pitman and the gang will be tweeting from the Fall Conference and I will follow along that way.

-- BIM’s popularity is not just in my head… McGraw Hill just reported that BIM usage went up 40% from 2008 to 2009. There is no question that with everyone striving for efficiencies, that BIM usage will continue to grow.

-- Being out of work gives you time to notice things you usually don’t pay attention to. This week I noticed that while buying Dog Food, the bag was now 35 pounds instead of 40… but the price was the same! So I started to really take a look at things and saw in a bunch of cases that food and other items were priced the same but came in smaller packages or quantities. I guess that’s a sneaky way at getting a price increase…. Obviously in our industry that’s not something we can do, unless it’s scrimping on dessicant or sealant, but if you do that, you’ll pay in the end.

-- I also noticed that at the book store there were like 30 different magazines dedicated to Quilting. Never knew how popular Quilting could be! By the way there were only 10 magazines dedicated to Fantasy Football… so obviously the Quilting world is bigger than football.

-- Funny NFRC stuff last week when they accidently sent out a note about Benson Industries becoming an “independent” ACE organization (Approved Calculation Entity)….. by the time that most of conspiracy theorists got done reading and tried to understand how a manufacturer could be “independent” the NFRC corrected the error with a new e mail. Sometime I think they do that on purpose to see if I am still paying attention.

-- Last, congrats to friend of the blog Steve O’Hollaren of ICD for winning an IPAD from GANA. Use it well my friend and feel free to connect to the blog from it!

Links of the WEEK!

-- Classic here… only in China can you have a 62 mile long traffic jam that has lasted 9 days! Worth the click but like a friend noted to me, “how can this happen?” Crazy stuff and I though traffic in Chicago and Dallas were bad.

-- Interesting study in Europe for how long we wait in lines for stuff like the Post office and grocery store. I wonder if anyone ever did one of these here in North America. Maybe that can be my next gig?

-- An awesome Glass house… I am sure someone in our industry supplied tons of stuff here…

Video of the WEEK!

Great video putting some style and music to the whole Brett Favre “indecision” situation…. I love how folks have the time and patience to put some of this stuff together…

A really big show

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We are now just a month away from GlassBuild America in Las Vegas and I have been amazed at the momentum the show is gaining. Maybe it’s because I am in a different position in life (and industry) but the buzz for this show is gaining. Yes I think tight budgets probably will keep some folks away, but I am also hearing from so many that are going for the need to network, diversify, and stay ahead of the masses. I think the interesting angle here will be the actual buzz on the floor- especially regarding the way the industry and economy are headed. Shows like this and the BEC are great bellwethers for what’s to come.

Elsewhere…

-- The world of BIM continues to get that traction everyone was expecting a few years ago. The latest smart move came from Guardian Industries with their PR on their BIM Design support and program for the architectural community. BIM is growing and when an industry horse like Guardian steps up and into the fray like they have, it only bodes well for the future of the platform.

-- As many of you know I am a solar junkie, so I got a kick out of some of the news items at Glass Magazine last week. On one day there was a headline: “Solar Industry Growth Slower Than Expected” and then 2 days later another story that was titled “BIPV Market Gaining Traction”…. so continues that world of half the people seeing the glass full and the other half seeing it empty.

-- Still loving the fact that football season is here… hating that it means summer is basically over…

-- Next week is the GANA Fall Conference and that is always a super event. I hate the fact I’ll miss it, and the big thing I am bummed about missing is the energy codes update from Dr. Tom Culp. Those codes are going to be major players in our life and getting into the crux of them is a must. And no one can break things down like Dr. Culp. In addition, my good friend Helen Sanders of SAGE will have a presentation as will two guys I really like in Joe Erb of Edgetech and Chris McMahon of Technoform. Add that and the tech info and it’s a winner of a few days.

-- And no I am not sucking up to Helen, Joe and Chris and as I don’t think any of them read this weekly therapy session… but still they are super people with great presentations on tap for sure.

-- Is the BP Oil spill done? Cleaned up? Plugged? Funny how that story dominated for so long and then bam it just goes quietly away.

-- I am not a big golf fan, but the end of the PGA Tournament with Dustin Johnson getting a penalty after the round was pretty unreal. Goes to show that you always have to be thinking, especially if it’s the 72nd hole of a major tourney….

Links of the WEEK

-- This guy would fake seizures to get out of paying his restaurant bill… wow… simply amazing world we live in eh?

-- If you know me, you know I love Disney… so this story pains me some… a woman is suing the park because Donald Duck “groped” her… I mean seriously? I guess it could happen but knowing and seeing the characters like I do- there just doesn't seem to be any way this can happen.
　

Video of the WEEK

Classic Fantasy Football commercial from ESPN… and so true… though the player, Chris Johnson, was a dream last year… so I don’t think anyone got mad at him… but the first game where he doesn’t score a TD or run for 100yards or more and all heck will break loose…