Sunday, December 10, 2023

Who's Next?

And down the stretch we come… this is the next to last scheduled post of the year!  A few items to cover this week and we’ll kick it off with a look back at my past Industry MVP’s and Runners Up as the 2023 edition will be unveiled next week.   I created this program in 2013 to recognize folks and companies that go above and beyond to support our industry.  Many on the lists below are still active and very involved in our space which is very cool, and many continue to make positive impacts even in new places.  Some have retired and one sadly passed away who is missed daily. 

 

Starting with the past winners- your previous MVP’s were:

 

2013- Tracy Rogers

2014- CR Laurence

2015- Jon Kimberlain

2016- Chuck Knickerbocker

2017- Joe Erb

2018- Nathalie Thibault

2019- Bill Sullivan

2020- Tim Kelley

2021- Matt Kamper and Steve Dean

2022- Jodi Martinez

 

And the long list of previous Runners Up:

 

Tom Culp, Mark Silverberg, Ed Zaucha, Mic Patterson, Oliver Stepe, Dr. Helen Sanders, Scott Thomsen, John Wheaton, Rick Wright, Tom O’Malley, The late great Bernard Lax, Garret Henson, Walker Glass, Dip Tech, Kris Vockler, Mike Albert, Thom Zaremba , Urmilla Jokhu-Sowell, SAPA, GCI, Darijo Babic, Cathie Saroka, Felix Munson, Jeff Haber, Glenn Miner, Rob Struble, Greg Oehlers, Courtney Little, Scott Rowe, Rowe Fenestration, Syndi Sim, Dustin Anderson, Casey Anderson, Sam Hill, Bill Daubmann, Keith Daubmann, Dr. Kayla Natividad, Kyle Sword, Adrian Lowenstein, Tom Jackson, Stanley Yee, Chris Phillips, and Frameless Hardware Company- FHC

 

Some do ask me about my process, and they’ll say these are all your friends- and yes many on the list I consider my friends but there’s a few on this list who don’t even know I exist and some who legit aren’t fans of mine.  Yet when they were chosen it was deserving because of what they did (and in many cases still do) for our space.

 

Who gets added to these rolls this year?  Next week you’ll find out!

 

Elsewhere…

 

--  In case you missed the latest From the Fabricator podcast- I had Trey Taylor of BEES Inc. and Henry Taylor of Kawneer on.  Both conversations featured quite a few take aways on training, approaches, culture etc.  Two excellent people for our world from leading organizations too.  Next week I’ll have my traditional year ending podcast with just one guest and I think it will be a great for all to check out!  Thank you for supporting!  To check out the Trey and Henry episode- 

VIDEO

AUDIO (or Search “From the Fabricator” on Apple, Spotify, Google or wherever you get your pods)

 

--  The last Glass Magazine of 2023 is out and another tremendous combination of info and insight from the remarkable editorial team there!  Rachel Vitello dove into a great project in Oklahoma featuring some of the best of the best in our space, and we even have columns from past MVP’s Joe Erb and Chuck Knickerbocker.  And the Glazing Information Bulletin included is a biggie.  The whole issue is chock full of goodness!  Check it out!

Meanwhile the coveted Ad of the Month went to FHC for their ASPIRE ad.  I am normally a less text is better guy- but this ad made it work and the use of color- especially on the word mark “Aspire” made it pop.  So kudos to the gang at Frameless Hardware Company for a job well done!

 

--  My good pal Scott Goodman came through big time this week with a link on a bowling ball being shot at 500 MPH at “bullet-proof” glass (Note- I HATE the term “bullet-proof” but that’s how the article states it.  Ugh!) Anyway check this out HERE and thank you Scott for always supporting!


--  Last this week… another past MVP, Bill Sullivan of Brin Glass with a clutch shared tweet.  This is wild and something you’d normally see at glasstec… incredible precision, skill, and obviously a dash of voo-doo to make this happen.  Thank you Bill for the share!

 

LINKS of the WEEK

I always crack up about these stories that note “towns safe enough to keep your doors unlocked” – I mean doesn’t that just send a huge signal out to the bad guys?

 

Huh- interesting photography action here

 

Lost in space

 

PROJECT of the WEEK

2024 I believe is going to be the year of the retrofit.  But the gang at St Germain’s Glass in Duluth, Minnesota got a jump start on it in ‘23 with this remodel.  Good looking elevation of glass and aluminum as a part of a facelift to an older building. Given that it’s probably snowing like crazy there now, I am sure the St Germain’s team got this one buttoned up by now.  Congrats to all on a tremendous effort and keep it up!



No comments: