Yes on the Future, Meh on the Current

Lost in the mega TEXpo recap from last week was the latest release of the Architectural Billings Index. That metric has been on a roll lately and the latest score continued that trend with a mighty score of 57.9 which is one of the highest ratings of all time.  That is a giant number showing a ton of confidence in future work.  The immediate analysis pointed to pent up demand AND to retrofit.  I have been hammering the retrofit side for a while as a huge growth area and it’s great to see the experts agree.  The only bad news here is this is future based, so we’ll get to enjoy this run later this year and into next but right now for the areas that are soft- and there’s a bunch- this doesn’t help.  Next week I am going to dive into that situation and give some clarity of why we’ve now hit that center of the donut (in my year preview blog I explained 2021 was going to be like a donut with a hole in the middle- looks like we are here). In the meantime, this trend is our friend, so let’s ride…

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  GlassBuild America registration opens this week!! Yes, it is time to get BACK to the largest glass show in North America and maybe the biggest one in the world in 2021.  This year also they are doing a cool promotion- register early and become eligible to get on the show floor early!  No more waiting for the clock to strike 10 on day 1- you’ll be able to skip that line come in ahead of the rush.  But you gotta sign up early- so get to it!!  I’ll post registration details when they open on my social media accounts.

 

--  The latest Glass Magazine is out and it’s one of the more popular issues of the year featuring the “Top 50 Glaziers” and more.  Nothing gets our industry going like a list like this and congrats to everyone on it! Norah Dick and Katy Devlin did an amazing job with their coverage of the list and players. (Tons of stats and benchmarks- really good deep dive!)  Plus as always so many other good pieces of content in here.  Check it out!

 

--  The ad of the month… tough one with a bunch of advertisers I have not seen a lot of but the winner is someone I see pretty much monthly but this effort caught my eye!  CR Laurence gets the nod for the best of the month for their Bi-Fold door ad and the use of color and shapes.  Really sharp ad that passes my test of “did it make me stop and read?” and the answer is absolutely YES. Congrats to Barbara Haaksma and the team at CRL on a job well done!

--  You know if you read this blog I love good info being shared (other blogs) and we have a few to link to this week.  First from Glass 3 Enterprises a smart rundown on the benefits of designing with laminated glass.  I love lami and I think it’s still an underrated product out there.  Excellent piece.  Next one of my all-time favorites Rick Alexander of Tom Brown posted another tremendous blog on VHB tapes with an ode back to 1980 when Rick was probably a pre-teen glazier maybe?   Rick always delivers!  And last was this outstanding piece from Kensington Glass Arts on interior design trends and using our favorite product.  I’m bullish on the interior space and this helps cement that!  Nice work everyone!

 

--  Not a company blog like the above but via LinkedIn I caught a super read on Solar Heat Gain Co-efficient. Thanks to Seth Madole at Viracon for tagging me in on it as otherwise no way I catch it.  Excellent read on this subject and what it’s true effect is on the building design, how you tune it in, etc.  Deep dive and a good one! Nice work Brandon Andow!

 

--  Last this week… I think with regards to travel we are back to pre-pandemic standards.  Airports are busy and feeling normal.  Planes are packed again (RIP the empty middle seat on Delta, man I loved you!) and parts of airports that were shutdown are back. So now that we are seemingly back here’s a great link of some of the best airport interiors in the world.  I usually call ones out here when I see them and now that things are normalizing expect that to be back… but until then this awesome photo essay will have to do!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

Crazy story- 4 different car accidents into the same house?  Yeesh.

 

Hey a party goes crazy viral- let’s do this for GlassBuild! LOL (No, please)

 

Pretty cool “flight to nowhere” but even with the views, I fly too much as it is….so I’d pass.

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

A new company for me gets the honor this week!  Congrats to East Coast Glass of Greenville on this sharp Farmville Library job.  I just love the look and feel of it and the glass and glazing look tremendous.  Tubelite on the framing, Trulite on the glass.  Great job by the East Coast Glass team and all others involved!

The Road BACK begins

The road to being “back” took a major step forward this past week in San Antonio, Texas at the TEXpo event there.  The organizers and the incredible Texas Glass Association did a wonderful job with the setup and layout and it was great to be back on a show floor again!  The overall vibe from the crowd there was hopeful, enthusiastic and resilient.  The market in some parts of Texas has softened a bit but that has not taken any energy away from the folks there.  Everyone is still very focused and hustling like crazy.  The big obvious issue is labor- no one has nearly enough, and close behind is tightening of certain supplies, but the lessons of communicate and diversify (that I preach here a ton) are core values there and so people are working through it.  I’m obviously biased but one of the best parts of the show for me was hearing from so many folks how pumped they are for GlassBuild in the fall and getting our entire world back together in one place.  And after this week- I’m bursting at the seams to be BACK in the ATL at GlassBuild!

 

Elsewhere…

--  Another great part of this event is seeing old friends and meeting new ones!  Obviously spending any time with the great Sam Hill of Oak Cliff Mirror and Felix Munson of Anchor-Ventana is simply off the charts.  Those two treat me a ton better than I deserve, and I love their desire to always make our industry better.  It was also great to see Brian Savage of Velocity and Seth Madole of Viracon- I wore both of them out with my whining on certain glass types, but it was really nice to get to know more about Brian than just our weather banter on Twitter.  Very good guy.  I love San Antonio because it means I get to see some great locals there.  The Luna family from Champion Glass always make the day for me- such tremendous people and spending a bit of time with Kyle Sharp was an unexpected bonus (and he confirmed that project of the week on my last post WAS Azuria.) No trip to San Antonio is complete without hanging with the great David Shaw of CompleteLine Glass.  Great person and friend.  

 

--  Now to the new folks I got to meet and there were a bunch- and some awesome younger stars in the making! (Which our industry needs) Premier Glass Products has some just incredible up-n-comers.  Josh Hemby just an impressive guy, a quick hello with Dylan Combs left me enthused about his skills and Davis Moore- a relative newbie to our world (10 months in I believe) opened by telling me he enjoyed my podcast- and man talk about a way to make an impression on me!  LOL.  Three really good, focused, classy people there. 

 

--  It was also super to run into the awesome Jacque Freeman of Binswanger.  She’s so good and I love the way she keeps advancing in our world- sky is the limit there.  Spending some time with Rick Newnom of Hou-Tex Glass & Mirror was fantastic- loved hearing his path to through the industry and the smart moves he continues to make.  Joe Lambertson of Country Glass & Mirror also tagged me to chat for a second- good guy from a tremendous company- hopefully I can catch up with him and team more down the line.  And last seeing Matt Day and Joe Silva from Glazier Nation was fantastic. Matt’s energy and desire is off the charts and the plans these guys are putting into play are game changing in our industry.  Very exciting stuff to come!  So all in all a great couple of days in Texas and good vibes all around!

 

--  The 5^th edition of the “From the Fabricator” podcast dropped last week and If you missed the links for it or haven’t gotten to it yet- please check it out!  Great amount to learn and take in there. Video is HERE and Audio HERE.  I appreciate it and I do think the quality of the great guests is worth your time!  

 

--  Last this week, an awesome one…. Our industry went viral over the past few days for some wonderful news surrounding a great person and family.  Fred Jayson of Bendheim Glass celebrated his 100^th birthday on the 14^th.  His son Donald posted that on LinkedIn and that incredible accomplishment went viral- more than 35,000 reactions, 2400 comments, and more than 1.2 MILLION views!  That is awesome and deservedly so for a great man, hitting an amazing milestone and he was IN AT WORK on his 100^th birthday making calls!  The Jayson family are fabulous folks and here’s to a Happy Birthday to Fred and many more still to go!   Here’s the link from LinkedIn if you missed it. 

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

Get ready road warriors- weigh in before you fly is coming!

 

I’m always curious on what happened after some of the re-models of Extreme Home Makeover are done.  This article sheds some light…

 

Eating advice from someone 111 years old.  Sorry I’ll stick to Diet Dr. Pepper.

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

 

This week from the feed of the excellent Roy Williams of TEPCO Glass is the stunning Omni Hotel.  The glass and unitized glazing look absolutely fabulous here.  As a #glassnerd (an Andrew Haring trademark that took off this week at TEXpo) this is the sort of project that stops me in my tracks. Roy noted the job came out on time and on budget so props to him and his folks on that and on making our world look good!  Congrats to everyone else who may have worked on this one- Roy tagged Viracon, so I assume they did the glass (I’ll bet that Seth Madole will confirm if so) Great job!! 

New Pod, Great People and Products

The latest “From the Fabricator” podcast is now out, and it is a jam packed one!  Covering a lot of ground here from innovations, to a great marketing mind, to TEXPO, to learning something new about my brother and broken windows.  I kick it off with David Maikowski of Ubiquitous Energy and folks his product is a fascinating one. A massive plus for our industry and one to watch.  Then on to Casey Anderson of ICD Coatings.  Casey is a seriously brilliant woman, and she gets it on so many levels including the need for technical over fluff.  I follow that with a short visit with Sam Hill of Oak Cliff Mirror and Glass and the Texas Glass Association.  He gives an update on TEXPO (which I will be there and can’t wait) and how exciting that event is looking.  Last, I end with my brother Steve and picking his brain from wanting to be in the industry at a young age, innovating into tempered and insulating, great industry people and more.  His influence is something that is really apparent and pretty much blows me away.  Thank you for supporting this adventure of mine- you can watch HERE and listen HERE (or find on Apple podcasts, Spotify etc.)  Hope you enjoy checking it out as much as I did making it!

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  The news came down this week that 2022 WILL BE THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF GLASS!  That is tremendous stuff and should only be good for all of us going forward.  I expect a lot more details to come but as the great leader of this effort Alicia Duran noted in her announcement of this happening “Welcome to the AGE OF GLASS” 

 

--  Big Thirsty Thursday this week.  Standards for Anisotropy is the topic and it’s a major one in the tempering world.   This presentation will address the most current research and technical updates surrounding anisotropy, including a review of new ASTM Test Method for Measuring Optical Retardation in Flat Architectural Glass.  Presenter is the great Louis Moreau, Head of Technology & Innovation at AGNORA.  Sign up today HERE!

 

--  Congrats to the team at Quaker Windows & Doors as they celebrated their 1st Anniversary in Eldon, MO and also announced an expansion.  And because Josh Wignall the Director of Commercial Marketing of Quaker does nothing smalltime, Quaker had the Governor of Missouri Mike Parson in attendance to cut the ribbon on the start of the additional plant space. Very cool to have this sort of exposure to Quaker and our industry and I am sure the Gov was very impressed with the great people and products at Quaker.  Congrats to all!

 

--  I think Bill Daubmann and his team at D3 and MYShowerDoor win so many awards and recognitions that we may just have to create all new categories for them.  Congrats to Bill for winning Southwest Florida’s “Distinguished Entrepreneur” for 2021.  That is a huge honor for Bill and our industry.  Awards like this bring our industry the right sort of publicity and it’s exciting.  I think the only award left for Bill is either an Oscar or Grammy… so stay tuned!

 

--  Last this week… another list for me… the Top 10 US States that grew the most from 2010 to 2020 according to the latest Census. 

10 - South Carolina  - Great state and area- actually thought this would be higher.

9- Arizona -  First surprise on the list for me

8- Washington - Another surprise must be the Devin Bowman/David Vermeulen factor.

7- Florida  - There may be tons of “Florida Man” stories but it is a great state to live in

6- Colorado - Maybe being the leader in legalizing a certain plant first helped here? 

5-Nevada - There is more to this state than Vegas obviously 

4- North Dakota - If it didn’t get cold here, I’d move this way.

3- Texas - I love the great state of Texas- I really thought this would be #1

2- Idaho - Stunner- I have only been here once.  Obviously the lure of being in the same area of Idaho State football hall of famer and glass guy Dave Michaeli is the draw! 

1-Utah - Cool area with so much to offer, knew it would be high, did not think #1.

 

LINKS of the WEEK

--  The tiny house trend continues to struggle.

 

--  This is wild story- stolen backpack with a prosthetic in it… kinda important eh? 

 

--  This youth football video went viral this week but was done a year ago and the coach involved rightfully fired.  Unreal scene here and shameful

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

Since I’ll be in Texas this week, I figure why not have a Project of the Week from the Lone Star State… This is the Navy Army Community Credit Union Administration Building II in Corpus Christi done by the team at Sharp Glass.  Great looking project expertly installed by Sharp.  Kawneer was the framing system with Vitro SolarBan 70 Azuria (But I it really looks like Atlantica to me but may be the angle/light- regardless it is awesome and the post says Azuria)   

Congrats to Kyle Sharp and the team there on a job well done!!

Safety Always Wins

We just completed Construction Safety Week and what was nice was the push for that extra training needed to keep our teams safe in the shop and in the field.  While I talk about labor here a ton, I don’t talk enough about the importance of the safety of those who are already working with us. We shouldn’t be cutting corners on safety (or the education and training of it) and really in fact should be going all in.  We make and install amazing products that truly stand out and serve a massive purpose in our world, and we should be selling that wholeheartedly.  But we also need to make absolutely sure our environments are the best they can be and really be proactive with safety and all that goes with it.  We just had a one week focus on it, let’s keep that going at full speed.

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  Time for my monthly Glass Magazine review.  Very strong issue that starts with an awesome cover and goes from there.  One of my all-time favorites Matt Johnson of The Gary Law Group has a tremendous piece on insurance and design activities.  Also, strong pieces from the great Joe Erb and Katy Devlin is back with “Glass & Metals 601” which was fascinating and super helpful in a ton of ways- great training tool!  So check it all out… great work by all!

 

--  The Ad of the Month goes to Quattrolifts- with their two-page layout that just brings what they do right into your face.  Smart and simple ad that uses color effectively and message is delivered. Props to Chip Olson and the team there on a job well done!

 

--  Nice piece in the news this week that included a former Glass Industry MVP prominently.  Bill Sullivan of the Brin Companies was quoted extensively in this article on the “getting back to work” process and the changing of the office as we know it.  Good piece and as always Bill represents our world extremely well. 

 

--  Congrats to Joanne Funyak of Vitro on the promotion to her new role of Director of the Vitro Certified Network and Project Management.  This will be a great move for Joanne who has always been on my favorite list- as she is one of the nicest and classiest people in our industry! (Not to mention immensely talented too)  I love seeing good things happen to the good folks in our world. 

 

--  Here we go again time… Transparent Wood instead of Glass had yet another article written.  This has been coming up for several years and once again the same ground is being covered.  I really struggle to understand how people can continue to put items out like this that seriously don’t come close to thinking things all the way through. In any case, feel free to check out the latest on the push to get transparent wood in our space. 

 

--  Last this week… I’ll be recording Episode #5 of the “From the Fabricator” podcast this week for its debut next weekend.  THIS is going to be a fun one.  My guests, unless something crazy happens, features a pretty cool subsection of our world including a great glazier, tremendous manufacturer/supplier, an innovative “newbie” to our space, and of course the 1^stappearance of the legendary Stevie P- my brother.  He’s nervously anticipating my questions…. So that is all coming your way next week- thank you all for the continued support!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

Bizarre way to do an event!

 

This is one impressive woman!  9 babies! 

 

Bad luck at a Gettysburg battlefield Port-a-Potty??

 

BONUS- friend of the blog submitted this one- and I honestly thought Condors did not exist anymore- I guess they do and they’re out destroying peoples decks!!

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

I found a very cool project on LinkedIn from a company I have absolutely no clue about… but since they are located in Canada I figured they have to be awesome people (since pretty much all Canadians are!) Anyway take a look at this beauty from AB Architectural. It is the Waterton Lakes Visiting Centre and between the mix of materials and the backdrop, you have a stunner in front of you.  By the way the wood, stone and Kawneer framing make the glass just stand out.  According to the post the players on this were:

Deb Quick Alpine Glass Inc
Installed by AB Architectural Glazing Ltd. team Aleksandr Balcenko
FWBA Architects, The HIDI Group, and Structurlam

Congrats to everyone involved on this one!  Super work and a great Project of the Week!

Supply Chain Scaries

Every few months a complete supply chain update for the building product world is published by Gilbane.  It is an excellent resource and for the longest time glass was always listed as “Stable” in the three main categories of price, inventories, and deliveries.  That is no longer the case as in the latest release glass is now noted as “increasing” under the price category, and “stabilizing” under the other two.  I took that and know that it means those areas are volatile but nowhere near settled.  So as I always preach on here, there is no time like the present to work on your supply chain, communicate at the highest levels (both up and down the chain) and be proactive overall. No one said 2021 would be easy and the bumpy roads continue.

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  An absolutely brutal week with a few significant people passing away from our industry and ones that really hit close to home for me.  Lynn Ziesche, long time industry leader, major player in the Pittsburgh glass and glazing market at Golomb Glass passed.  Tremendous man and leader and he also delivered a few kids into major roles into our world including my pal Jeff Ziesche who is now a leading manufacturers rep.  Lynn’s impact in our industry will be felt for a long time thanks to what he did in the Steel City market and then passed on to his kids.  My condolences to Jeff and Jim and the rest of class acts in the Ziesche world. 

 

--  Then on Friday the news that my former co-worker and friend Erik Stumpf had passed away.  Erik was a larger-than-life guy, he brought a ton of passion to the industry and cared deeply for his customer base.  He was also a great one to work with- he could be the “bull in the china shop” but that was his driven nature, and everyone respected it and loved the passion he brought every day.  I had just written about him recently on here when he added a new line with his work at deGorter and he was so fired up about it.  His passing was sudden and an absolute gut-punch for me.  Great guy and a better friend to me than I deserved.  My heart goes out to his family and particularly his kids who he always was incredibly proud of.  Just a tough one to take for sure. Rest in Peace my friend. 

 

--  Thank you to everyone who reached out on the vaccination approach I mentioned last week.  The majority of people who connected with me on it are doing some sort of incentive approach- gift cards were the leading thing there.  But I did have a few folks who did say they are leaving it up to their employees on what they are doing.  There is still only one organization I heard about making it mandatory, but again my results are far from scientific.  In any case I am just on team “get us back to normal in any way you can” so I’m up for anything.  Thank you again to all who connected- I truly appreciate it!

 

--  I was asked this week if there were any glass industry related charities for people impacted by the pandemic.  I said I was not aware of any- but I wanted to put it out there to the masses.  Is there anything happening on this?  If so, please drop me a line with the details so I can share. Thanks!

 

--  Last this week… some good news.  Congrats to the team at SageGlass for picking up the world’s largest “smart glass” project.  200,000 sq ft of glass is a heck of an effort and a good piece of news in a segment that continues to try and innovate.  Props to Namrata Vora and her team for pulling this one off! Can’t wait to see pictures of it when it is done!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

--  Supply chain issues aren’t just in the building product space. Cars are affected- especially rentals and some folks are trying to be creative…

 

--  Need to check to see if Josh Wignall of Quaker Windows and Doors was in this “Battle of Joshes” – Maybe Josh Lowe of the NGA was in it, or Glass 3 Enterprises Josh Aknin… (i could go on and on here... LOL)

 

--  I may live here but I have never seen this or done this…. Wild!

 

PROJECT of the WEEK 

 

This week we go to “Lex Vegas” aka Lexington, KY and this knockout by EFCO on the Valvoline Headquarters.  Absolute “Wow” here from an amazing design to how great our product can look on it!  Just an awesome style and product choice play here.  Tremendous work everyone!  According to EFCO the Architect was Solomon Cordwell Buenz and glazier Akins Company.  Photo via EFCO and Dave Burk.  Congrats to all- keep up the great work!!

The "Vax"

Since the pandemic started I have pretty much made it a mission NOT to talk specifically about anything directly connected to it.  This post however I am going to break that approach.  Reason being is I am curious on what companies are doing with regards to the vaccination process.  Are you telling your folks to get vaccinated?  Are you demanding it?  Are you incentivizing it? Or are you just leaving it completely alone?  I am just curious because I’m hearing all different approaches and really all I care about is getting back to some form of normalcy.  How we get there- I pretty much don’t care, I just want to get there.  By the way the most common approach I am hearing is the incentive approach- with companies offering gift cards or paid time off in exchange for folks getting the jab.  I have heard of companies “demanding” the vax in terms that seem a bit wonky/illegal (like “get it or else”) but I would hope that is the minority and surely doesn’t seem kosher overall.  In any case, feel free to drop me a line or note in the comments what you are doing/hearing and I’ll share some insights on a later post…

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  We did get more positive news from the latest Architectural Billings Index.  Huge winning score of 55.6.  That was better than I thought and has kept the positive trend going.  All the metrics were up and that is surely something to be excited about.  Obviously, the challenge is getting to this work as an industry since this index doesn’t touch us for a year, and we knew that we’d have some holes this year but seeing some light at the end of the tunnel is not a bad thing.

 

--  Speaking of the future, one of my guests on my most recent podcast talked specifically on his worries about 2022.  And despite what I see being different, his warnings have me on my toes- as it should be for all of you. Want to hear or see more?  Click HERE for the video version and HERE for the audio.  It’s podcast #4 and it was a great hour of insight from some incredible industry leaders.  Thanks again for the support!

 

--  Tremendous industry pub here- especially reaching the youth thanks to Bill Daubmann of D3 Glass and MY Shower Door.  Bill is going to be a “Wolf” in a “Wolf Den” program (meant to be like the TV Show “Shark Tank” but for High School students pitching their business startup ideas.)  The local FOX TV affiliate picked it up and explained more HERE and the story for me is that whenever we as an industry can get our leaders into these big community programs, it builds our image.  Bill and his family are absolute pros at this no doubt, and I am thrilled for the pub he’s getting and what it will translate into and hopefully we can get more opportunities like this in the future.  Hopefully one of these students will have a great way to help our industry- who knows!!

 

--  I do like our industry keeps innovating for the times.  Props to the team at Trulite on their latest product line addition.  I have said it a ton and will do so again now- glass is the best product going for the future of our inside professional world.

 

--  Big congratulations to my friend Devorah Serkin of General Glass (GGI).  Devorah just completed the Harvard Business Analytics Program! That is awesome!  She knocked that 18-month course out while still doing her day job at GGI.  Devorah has always been one of the most impressive people I have encountered in this industry and this just continues to prove that.  Congrats!!

 

--  The AIA announced their 2021 COTE Awards and some beautiful projects were on there- some that I believe I have had on here in other mentions before.  Take a look and as always if you had a hand in it and want me to give you proper recognition let me know!

 

--  Last this week… I made my plans to go to TEXPO in a few weeks.  Can’t wait to be back on a show floor and especially to be in Texas with the awesome folks from the Texas Glass Association, that makes it even more meaningful.  It will be interesting on how everything comes together, and I look forward to sharing here.  Then get ready… GlassBuild America will be here before ya know it!!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

Great idea but no way this can work in reality

 

This is scary and a big issue with things like this and “Alexa” style instruments.

 

I’ve been in a similar situation to this and the whole “it’s on your property” line that absolves major mistakes is crazy.

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

 

Before we get to an awesome Project of the Week just a note on last week’s winner from Glass + Metal Craft.  There was a snafu on the credit side of things, and I wanted to get it straight here. The Hyatt Place Grand Rapids was installed by Glass Design from Rockford, MI and Andy Russo of G+MC wanted me to note that they did a stellar job and kudos to Jeff Nelson, Chad Rehkopf, Dale Oberlin, Patty Karr and the entire Glass Design team!  Congrats all! 

 

Now on to this week and this project shows again why glass is so awesome.

 

Easily one of the best follows/connections on LinkedIn is Adrian Lowenstein of Skyline Windows.  His feed is always loaded with interesting and thought-provoking projects, products, and technical info.  Add into it that Skyline Windows has an amazing portfolio and the timing was perfect for them to end up here.  So again as I did last week and instead of me spinning it, I’ll just post what Adrian had on this truly special “Project of the Week” 

Congrats to Skyline Windows on this effort and for making our industry stand out!

 

“In this brutalist #adaptivereuse conversion, CetraRuddy Architecture transformed the Ralph Walker Art Deco telecommunications tower into a high-end residential showpiece 🏆

JDS Development Group wanted perfection – a restoration of the existing structure with a fresh twist on modern design.

Tilt & turn operable Skyline Windows, nearly 10’ in height, were introduced with gridlines & muntins, custom panning, and a heavy laminated glass package. The three dimensional spandrel panels were shaped from bronze colored steel and formed aluminum plates.

A challenging yet timely piece for all involved.

 

A warm thank you to Vidaris, Inc., a SOCOTEC Company for the collaboration.”

Forecasts, Podcasts, and More

It is that time again, another new episode of the “From the Fabricator” podcast is out!  The 4^th edition has a really interesting range of guests and insights.  Mary Avery of Tubelite is this awesome talent and it was very interesting finding out about her path to our world and she also shared two incredible projects.  Then Jim Stathopoulos of Ajay Glass joined me and his forecasting may scare some of you but it is certainly something to take into the planning stage.  That among many other items, including a great tribute to his legendary father were very cool to experience.  Then two younger guys in our world, James Wright and Jeremy Hoy of Virginia Glass Products and Virginia Mirror Company joined me to talk about their youth, their hair, their laminated, mirror and more.  Fun stuff!  That plus commentary off the top on the latest acquisitions and must-see documentaries mentioned at the end.  Thank you again for checking it out!  To watch this episode on YouTube, all you have to do is CLICK HERE and to listen only, go to Spotify, Apple, Google or wherever you listen to your podcasts and download from there.  

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  Last week’s lead story hit home for many of you as the labor need is really in a crisis mode.  And again, it’s not just in our segment or construction.  It is all over and it’s hitting the service industry hard.  This story from a town not too far from me really spells it out. Scary stuff.

 

--  Top Glass in Canada happens this week on Wednesday and has a strong and interesting lineup of speakers and subjects.  I always enjoy Mark Jacobson’s insights and he’s speaking so that makes it even more worthy.  Pat Flannery and team do such a nice job here- so check it out and register HERE.   I look forward to attending this one in person next year!  

 

--  The next release of the Architectural Billings Index also comes out Wednesday.  There is a ton of anticipation for this one given how great the last report was.  I’m going in with the attitude of hope for the best but expect the worst.  I don’t think there’s any way the March results will beat February, but once again I’ll be thrilled to be wrong.  No matter what I’ll have it here next week to comment on….

 

--  I have never heard the term the “Goldilocks” economy but evidently we may be in one?  Builder Magazine had a good rundown of what that is and why we possibly are in that mode.

 

--  A couple of congratulations to go out… first to Kevin Carter who just landed at AIG as a Regional Sales Lead.  Kevin is an old friend who got caught up in some of the CGH adventures.  Thrilled that he has landed with a good group and he’ll do nice work there.  In addition CONGRATS go out to my friend Lindsey Rowe Parker of Rowe Fenestration as her first book was published and released to the masses.  Lindsey wrote a very cool children’s book that will be a must have in the special education community called “Wiggles, Stomps, and Squeezes- Calm my Jitters Down” and it truly is awesome.  The help that this book will provide parents, teachers, and therapists will be off the charts.  Great work Lindsey- super proud of you!  Learn more and if you want to order this- here’s the site.  

 

--  This is a fascinating story of a historic home in Florida that was basically gutted by the owners without the proper permits, permissions etc.  I found the whole read and process to be very interesting along with the odd sense of deniability shown by the owners.  

 

--  Last this week… ICYMI the very talented Norah Dick of Glass Magazine had a great piece on Architecture after COVID.  This gave some good insight from some previous presentations and also via some strong industry experts.  Plus a good mention on Vacuum Insulating Glass that probably brought a huge smile to the face of Michael Spellman of VIG Technologies. 

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

A baby gator in the house?  No thank you!

Speaking of Gators my pal AJ Carr had a shot of one on a jobsite this week… I think he’s training him to install!

 

Brutal story but a more common one these days- unable to move into a home that you just bought….

This an absolutely crazy story of an undiscovered room in an apartment a guy had been in for many years. 

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

I was honored to be invited to the annual Guardian Glass Commercial Glass Project Awards event this past week.  This normally happens at BEC and obviously was postponed and moved to an online event.  Great presentation.  Unreal projects here that really showed off how great our industry is and the work that we do.  There were many deserving winners (Props to all recognized- great companies!) but I grabbed one of the projects to make it my “project of the week” for this post.  I think this is the first time I have a Glass + Mirror Craft project get honored so kudos to Andy Russo and everyone involved there on this stunner.

Via Guardian Glass... The Details:

Hyatt Place Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids, Michigan

Glazier: Precision Wall Systems, Inc

Fabricator: Glass + Mirror Craft

Architect: Ghafari Associates (previously known as Concept Design)

Products: Guardian SunGuard® SuperNeutral® 54 coating on CrystalBlue® glass and SunGuard® SuperNeutral® 68 coating on clear glass

Photo Credit: ThumbCoast Aerial

Congrats to all involved and thank you to the Guardian Glass team for the invite!

Labor Pains

The challenge of finding labor is now the biggest it has ever been and is not getting easier.  As the economy starts to come back and companies of all types are returning to “normal” business, there is a shortage of willing people to work.  In the last 2 weeks I have had more conversations on labor needs than anything else I cover.  And it’s not just us.  I live in a small town and on a short 5-minute drive to the supermarket I saw at least 6 businesses with major signage pushing that they are hiring now, great wages (some listed the range) along with other perks.  And then the store I went to itself had flyers throughout promoting the ability to “pick your shift” and the values of work at that establishment.  We are a tough spot as an industry now.  We are not glamorous to those who look at us from the outside, and we handle heavy and sometimes dangerous materials.  We need to do a better job showing how awesome our products are once done and installed. And we need to embrace technology and automation more at every level.  This is a mighty challenge that was made worse by the pandemic and the various programs that came out of it- meant for good- but unfortunately being so intensely utilized that it’s a better alternative for some than working.  So we have to keep working on ways to do better and attract more and better to our world. 

 

Elsewhere….

 

--  OK now to some good news.  The Dodge Momentum Index posted its best report since 2018!  That is exciting.  Obviously, we are battling each and every day and some areas have grown softer than we all want, but the metrics are looking like we’ll have a fighting chance as the year progresses. The best news on the latest report here was education and recreation facilities were positive gainers.  We need more of that!

 

--  In case you missed it last week another brilliant blog by David Vermeulen of TGP.  This was a follow up to his fantastic piece on getting in the specs and he expands more into the process here.  I do love everything David writes, so I am biased, but this is tremendous stuff.

 

--  Congrats to my friend Chris Dolan of Guardian Glass.  Saw that he just celebrated 30 years at the company.  Which is amazing given that he looks like he’s 35. (He does not age.  At all.) Anyway what a run and what an incredible influence Chris has had on our industry.  Obviously, I hope he keeps going and giving to our world because his approach has always not only been good for his company but for the industry at large.  

 

--  Speaking of Guardian Glass… last week I linked to a great piece with a bunch of Net Zero jobs, and one of those projects were claimed by the team at Guardian Glass.  The John J. Sbrega Health and Science Building at Bristol Community College in Fall River, Mass. was one that Guardian Glass manufactured the glass on which was fabricated by Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope and installed by Middlesex Glass Company. The architect was Sasaki Associates. It was noted to me that this facility was able to achieve net zero energy in a project type that typically does not achieve this level of performance. This a community college science building containing teaching labs with specialized ventilation needs. VERY cool.  Here’s the link again- this is the 4^th one down. 

 

--  Last this week… the From the Fabricator podcast returns next week with 4 awesome guests that run the gamut of our world.  From leading architectural aluminum, to glazing & unitized, to the growing certification process, and then to young folks making a difference at a huge legacy company.  So much to cover and great people too.  Can’t wait and hope you take the time to check it out.  If you have not caught a previous episode, YouTube versions are HERE and audio ones are HERE.  Thank you!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

Wow.  Social media is not all bad.

 

Another story from me on saving an old structure in Minnesota- This time a house from 1858.

 

Nice ending to a story I had on here few weeks ago on the 91,000 pennies.

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

 

I have showcased Viracon once or twice on here on jobs that came from other parts of the supply chain but this week we get one direct from the source via Mitch Hawkins LinkedIn. (I am not connected with Mitch, I think Viracon limits how many people should be talking to me, LOL, but this ended up on my feed.) Anyway this is the Amway Grand Plaza in Grand Rapids Michigan and it is a beauty.  Glass is dominant and pretty much perfect on this project which according to Mitch was a Gensler design and installed by Glass Solutions Inc.  Congrats Mitch and the team at Viracon for an absolute winner here!!

Big Company Moves

Big industry news this past week with some of the parts of CGH being sold off.  First we heard the news of the assets from Columbia Commercial Building Products being divvyed up between two companies, with the window system going to Arcadia and the architectural aluminum to FHC.  Nice moves for both of those companies- especially with regards to expanding their products lines.  Again, with how crazy our world is, diversifying what you do is NOT a bad play right now.  Then the news dropped that Solar Seal was being sold to 03 Industries.  This made me very happy as I know the Solar Seal people were absolutely determined to see their operation land in good hands and from all indications it has.  They surely beat out the rumors of their demise and that truly is a cool thing. So far, these moves look to be very good ones for many involved and few more shoes still to drop before it is said and done.  

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  I have talked on here a lot about John Wheaton’s “Creating Structure” podcast and this latest episode is incredible.  His guest is one of my “Influential 15” and someone that truly commands a ton of deserved respect in our industry- Jeff Haber of W&W.  This interview absolutely delivers.  The beauty of this cast was previewed really early on when John noted that if he saw Jeff at an event like BEC, he’d get a few minutes to chat with him and both would move on to network elsewhere- so getting him for an hour+ is something that just does not happen.  So this really is special.  Among the items covered here were Jeff’s history, W&W’s history (Racquetball Courts for the Win!), Value Props, Diversification, Communication and an amazing segment where off the top of his head Jeff riffs out 15 or more site considerations when working in New York City.  Truly a must listen and great job by both! CLICK HERE to listen.  By the way if I ever interviewed Jeff it would go kind of like THIS so I am glad John did it and is so good!

 

--  So saw this blurb on remodeling of the Pittsburgh Airport and I got sentimental.  The original Perilstein Distributing (PDC) did a lot of the glass in that structure when it was first built and when I first started in the industry it was one of the first places my brother took me to show me what our company did. (back when you could visit an airport without flying) It was so cool to see our logo on the tempered and name stamped on the spacers, it really started that level of pride first in working in the business and then obviously for our industry.  Whomever does the modernization, do it up great my friends! 

 

--  Laminated glass continues to be a hot product and with that usually comes more oversight and standards. Including now this one in the new ASTM C1900. Things like this help our world perform better and I am all for it. 

 

--  Good news about Anixter’s Jenifer Truhn with her now taking on a new role there leading a team of Glass Hardware Specialists.  I had the honor of meeting Jen a few years ago when her involvement at the Detroit Glass Dealers Association (DGDA) was helping promote GlassBuild America and from there on out I would see her from time to time making great inroads in the market and also on LinkedIn. Super talented. I think Jen will do great in this new role and I appreciate her continued support of our industry too! (Her company just smartly joined the NGA!)

 

--  Marketing friends are you following the latest from Google and their new algorithm changes for later this year?  From what I am seeing it means website optimization will take a serious headline role like never before.  This will certainly be interesting once it rolls out and how it affects older sites and also newer ones not built to keep up with the Google updates. Never a dull moment out there…

 

--  Last this week… cool look at some Net Zero projects.  Some are better looking than others and some use glass more effectively.  Check it out and let me know what you think and if you supplied any material on any of these!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

 

--  Another just “click to read the headline” sort of story.  Unreal.

 

--  Cool treehouse. Brutal execution. Gotta do things the right way folks!

 

--  This repurposing of a Mall needs to keep happening- all over.  

 

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

This week my focus is on a nice interior and entrance package done by the fine team at Kensington Glass Arts.  Good folks there (I’m a big fan of Bill Wilson there- great guy) who really do right by the industry and they do nice work including this on at Franklin Square in Washington, DC.  KGa did glass on those majestic entrances and upgrades throughout the lobby and concourse. Looks great! Props to everyone at Kensington on this excellent work!