I’ve got a special new episode of “From the Fabricator” this time out. A solo guest episode with Lakisha Woods, President & CEO of the National Glass Association (NGA). Lakisha has been in office for almost a year, and I thought timing-wise, it was the perfect opportunity to catch up with her, see how the year has gone, get her impressions of our space, and find out some of the new stuff coming down the road… and there is a lot! All of that and more, as lots of topics are covered, and you get a great feel for the vision Lakisha has for our space and the excitement that comes with it. Thanks for watching/listening!
AUDIO (Or search “From the Fabricator” on Apple and Spotify)
Thank you to FHC Frameless Hardware Company for the support of this episode!
Elsewhere…
-- This past week, I was honored to be invited to an open house at Ajay Glass's new facility in New York. Excellent setup and just impressive all over. The Ajay folks are so classy (more on that in a second), and this event was first-rate. A great part for me was running into some other industry folks there. I did see NGA’s Apprenticeship Savant Amy Hadfield, and it was wonderful to get an update on all the fabulous things she and the team are working on. I ran into my old co-worker Bruce Mikels, which was amazing. Thankfully, he’s never changed. Stunned to see the great-looking Hollywood star Cameron Scripture of Viracon there. Only got a couple of seconds with him, but I’ll take it. I enjoyed meeting Marc Pano of Vitro; the poor guy got stuck in a corner with me talking his ear off. He’s gonna need therapy for sure. Now, back to the team at Ajay. I’ve known them a long time, and just thrilled for their continued success. It was fantastic to say hi to Brian O’Shell, and then spending time with Dean, Steve, and Jim Stathopoulos was tremendous. These guys do it right, and they also care greatly for our industry. (Jim will be chair of the board of NGA next year, among other volunteering) Those guys are like family to me, my brother, and sister, and watching them trend upward, and now with a new and expanded setup- that’s only going to grow- very, very cool. Congrats!!
-- Two personnel moves of interest. One of the coolest new folks in our space is Mark Pereira of Andluca. Recently, he was named Vice President of Marketing, and he’ll do a fabulous job. He’s been a great breath of fresh air in our space, so I’m excited to see him keep moving forward! And, congrats to Geoff Shellard, who has advanced to the role of regional architectural manager for Central and Western North America for Guardian Glass. I’ve enjoyed getting to know Geoff a little bit, and he’s an impressive and talented person. Great to see him advancing this way. When good folks move forward, that just makes our industry that much better! Kudos to all.
-- A few months ago, when the Architectural Billings Index was up somewhat, I noted that it probably wasn’t up to date with all the happenings worldwide- specifically the conflict in Iran. Welp. Now it has. The latest ABI is absolutely dreadful. And worse yet, the one score that always gave me hope, new project inquiries, was down significantly, too. Not great folks. I always preach resilience and note the bumpy roads out there- so unfortunately, that theme continues. I’ll keep looking for the silver linings (like some recent improvements on commercial starts)- but when you get reports like this, even when you expect it, it hits hard.
-- So, going lighter… if you need more of me on a podcast (which is a better choice than staring at ABI numbers, that’s for sure), I did my annual appearance on the Zach Perilstein show’s Father’s Day episode. It was fun to talk Disney- Parks vs Cruises, best movies for “Dads,” and the one word that I promote and never follow. Check it out HERE or search “Zach Perilstein Show” on Apple and Spotify.
-- Last this week… May all of my friends in Canada have a wonderful Canada Day, and for those in the United States, a tremendous 4th of July/Independence Day. Have fun, everyone, and please stay safe around fireworks and BBQs etc..
LINKS of the WEEK
Somehow, a 10-foot-tall Giraffe disappeared from her ranch in Texas… and luckily, she was found, and her return trip will be interesting! https://apnews.com/article/giraffe-escape-texas-gracie-d2b4195738c484d562758c5b24e9e4a9
The brutal business beat of Red Lobster’s “Endless Shrimp” deal is being accused of a planned effort. Honestly, I thought only people in our space tried to sabotage themselves/the industry. (Ha- my friends will get that little quip…) https://nypost.com/2026/06/25/business/red-lobsters-disastrous-endless-shrimp-deal-was-owners-scheme-to-squeeze-profits-lawsuit/
I really never did “Dave & Busters,” but I know many who did/do. Good look at what’s going on there. https://slate.com/business/2026/06/arcade-raves-dave-and-busters-family-friendly-business.html
PROJECT of the WEEK
This week, a jaw-dropper in a couple of ways is in the spotlight! From Sam VanHoozer of Bell County Glass Company, a tremendous effort on the Building Construction Technologies facility at Texas State Technical College, Waco. Just this line from his post gets you thinking about the hoops he and his team were probably jumping through
"Hours spent on 3D BIM Modeling during pre-construction and coordinating everything from structural tolerances on the Curtain Walls to each wire running through the walls for the SageGlass to operate correctly."
Kudos to Sam and his team on a beautiful project. And also props to him and team for being NACC Certified- the certification angle is the future (well, it’s kind of the current, really- needed all over- but you get my gist). So I love it when I see companies that are on top of it, like Bell County, getting certified and then showing off their skills on incredible projects like this one.
