Wild Week In Review

So now we have had a few days to let the PPG-Vitro deal sink in.  I think the underrated item in this deal is Vitro is not exactly a newbie when it comes to glass.  They have been producing glass since 1909.  So there’s history there for sure. I say this because the focus was on PPG getting out of glass after more than a century, and it may have been different if a young upstart company bought them.  Another item that had people buzzing is what happens to the current PPG workforce.  I can tell you that in a deal like this people are a crucial part of it.  Vitro now inherits some serious talent and they surely will want to take advantage of that.  Believe me if they don’t competitors will.  On the branding side, I mentioned on a previous post that the tried and true names will be staying.  That is a big move as we’ve seen acquisitions in the past where familiar names were blown out- and so were the specs that were attached to them for years.  So at this point there’s a few months while the particulars get settled and deal turns official.  We’ll keep an eye on it all but I think for the most part we won’t see any dramatic change to the way business is done in our industry based on this.  I do however see the logjam starting to loosen on other deals.  While we are in a serious rumor overload right now, I do think more action is coming in the 2^nd half of this year.  And there are a few with potential to be bigger than this and also have an effect on the industry too.  Stay tuned.

Elsewhere…

--  Last note for now on the Vitro-PPG deal and it’s an angle I bring up with all major deals- will the new entity still support the industry the way the old did?  PPG is at every show and always willing to help.  In addition their education pieces are fantastic.  Hope that continues!

--  Another note from the acquisition side, I’m surprised that the Dow and Dupont deal has not had more coverage.  A lot of speculation there on what comes next specifically regarding Dow Corning.  Will bear watching as well.

--  The monthly release of the Architectural Billings Index hit right as all of this came to play.  So it flew under the radar some.  June marked the 5^th straight positive month though the score trended down a bit to 52.6 from May’s 53.1.  New projects also fell some to 58.6 after a scorching 60.1 in May.  Basically this along with some other forecasting metrics keeps the industry on pace for a positive start to 2017.

--  Via the Twitter feed of Ted Bleecker a great column on the economy and the metrics with it.  So while I trumpet the above success of the ABI, I guess I too may be falling into that trap.  Good food for thought here.  And the author of this piece Alex Carrick, is also a good twitter follow too.

--  Last this week- one convention done, one to go.  Stepping away from the actual event and looking at the costs, these two events will tally more than 140 million to put on.  That number just blows my mind.  Yes it’s helpful for the economy- that 140 million goes to tons of trades and companies involved with it.  But it also just seems like an insane waste of resources.  And my misery will just grow worse with a BILLION dollars expected to be spent on the election in November. 

LINKS of the WEEK

Twins everywhere!  Mom gives birth to 3^rd set in 2 years.

Where is the common sense here?  Threatening to sue after not making a team?  Nuts!

Editing genes.  As a friend noted to me, just because you can doesn’t mean you should

VIDEO of the WEEK

So if you are a music fan I have one for you.  Saw this group while I was on vacation and they were amazing.  They are “Striking Matches” and the guitar playing – especially towards the end, is nothing short of tremendous.