Thrilled to be headed to the great state of Texas this week to visit with the North Texas Division of the Texas Glass Association. I love the opportunity to meet and network as well as share some of the latest insights in our space. And there’s quite a bit of news to cover too, so that will be fun. I continue to have the utmost of respect and appreciation for all of these regional and local chapters and their mission to help their members stay ahead of everything in their path. This by the way is the first part of the Texas two-step for me, with another visit in May for the epic Texas Glass Conference IV. I’ve been honored to speak at the first 3, and now am trying to figure out what to bring for number 4. In any case if you’re in North Texas- get signed up for the TGA-NTD Lunch on 4/10 and I’ll see you there!
Elsewhere…
-- In case you missed my latest podcast, links are below. It was a great learning experience for me on paints and coatings and expectations in the field with Neil Chrisman III and Chris Incorvaia, then a deep dive into fabrication, products, training and more with the force Tom Donovan of Thompson IG. Thank you for checking it out!
AUDIO. And as always audio can be not only be found on iTunes, but Spotify or wherever you download your podcasts.
-- The latest Architectural Billings Index came out recently with a slight glimmer of hope that things may be turning around. The score of 49.5 (50 is break-even) is the highest total the ABI has seen since July of 2023. The projection was always a slow period for 8 months or so and this is somewhat tracking. We’ll see what the next few months bring. Design contracts were also up and inquiries with its 2nd best month in the last 12. Now this all could be an aberration, but I am trying to stay positive and regardless we still have to navigate some bumpiness for a while.
-- Hey great news for a tremendous team. Big time congrats to the gang at Clover Architectural Products on their 10th Anniversary! So happy for Tom O’Malley, Ed Kearney, and Jim Stremplewski on this awesome achievement and best wishes for many more years of success. Fantastic company, people and products that always makes our space look good!
-- Who’s back of the week? Two guys. First up Lance Cotton is back in the industry as President of Isoclima’s NAFTA Region. This includes the Global Security brand and what used to be Dlubak Specialty Glass and is now under the Isoclima Specialty Glass heading. Lance is an incredible talent- especially when it comes to these products. Heck many of them he had a massive part in developing/executing. So good to have him in our world full time again and working with a very talented team. Then news that Steven Acker has rejoined Wicona / Hydro Building Systems as the Commercial Director- North America. Wicona continues its unparalleled success in North America and is really rocking and getting Steven back in the saddle is a heck of a move. Congrats Steven and Wicona on a nice move!
-- News this past week broke that View Glass filed for bankruptcy and will effort a move to emerge as a private company. Never great when an operation in our industry makes the news like this and it has been truly a case study/interesting journey for this company. This whole thing really has book/Netflix doc potential. Anyway, a lot of stories can be found online- one with some specifics to this latest move is HERE.
-- So, I had mentioned in the latest Glass Magazine the excellent resources available for recruitment and workforce. I should’ve also pointed to the National Glass Association “Workforce Toolkit” that has an absolute treasure trove of content for everyone trying to build and retain labor. If you haven’t checked it out recently- go HERE now for more.
-- The great Bill Sullivan of Brin was first to send me the story of the All-Glass Entry breakage leading to a 35-million-dollar award. If you haven’t seen the video or read the details- check it out HERE. From what I understand the temperer and glazier were off the case earlier in the process.
-- Last this week… gotta make my annual baseball picks… season is already underway but a long enough one where I am fine with making a prediction at this early state. I think the Braves finally get through the National League playoffs and win the pennant there. Meanwhile I’m going with the Seattle Mariners in the American League. At the end, the champs will reside in the ATL. Should be an interesting season overall. Will the Yankees make a run? Dodgers with all that payroll and starpower? Can the Detroit Tigers shock the world? We’ll see….
LINKS of the WEEK
The days of the “Mall” continue to wane- especially when landlords stop paying the electric bill.
THIS IS UNREAL- saw blade from jobsite almost does serious damage- caught on tape. Safety folks- safety!
Curious on how my friends in the KC area feel about this. Me personally? Billionaires should be paying for the own stadiums… good for the voters there.
PROJECT of the WEEK
Complete coincidence that the project of the week features Thompson IG when I have the reminder up on the podcast featuring their Tom Donovan. This project came to light because it was an award winner from Guardian Glass and was recognized during Guardian’s BEC reception and award event.
This was the winner in the Early Adopter category, and it is the Godfrey Hotel in Detroit. Outstanding project and all stakeholders crushed it. From beautiful primary glass via Guardian, to Thompson fabbing it and the fine folks from Edwards Glass installing it- this deserved to be a winner. Congrats to all involved!!
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