The Road to GlassBuild America – Issue 2

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Issue 2 – Featuring recent additions to the show, a great Q&A and our video showcase.

Thanks for stopping by, and make sure to scroll down to learn more about our featured companies in this edition, JEI Structural Engineering and RiteScreen.

Preparations for The SHOW of SHOWS are ongoing as a steady stream of exhibitors continue to sign on to show their products and build brand awareness. Exhibitors with innovative products are appearing on the floor and more are in the process of getting their applications approved to exhibit either in the Innovative Product Pavilion or elsewhere on the floor designated as an Innovative Product Exhibitor. This program, started just 3 years ago, continues to grow in both size and excitement. Everybody wants to see what’s new and innovative.

Some of the latest additions to the floor:

Advanced Fiber Products
Bostik
Bottero
GlasWeld
Hygrade Metal Moulding
Intex Glass (Xiamen) Co. Ltd
Laser Products Industries
Landglass Technologies Co. Ltd/ IGE Glass Technologies, Inc.
Marine Fasteners
Power Brushes, Inc.
QComp Technologies Inc.
Rockwell Security, Inc.
Shoko America, Inc.  (Innovative Product Pavilion)
Unelko Corporation
Vitro, The Glass Company.
Vytek

In addition, EZ Vent has joined the show as a first time exhibitor!

See what these recent additions and all exhibitors will be showing by visiting the GlassBuild America Exhibitor List & Floor Plan. Check it out!

Interested in Exhibiting?

The time is NOW! Reserve your space and start promoting you company with GlassBuild America.

Thank You!

Before you move on to view the rest below, we have to thank the thousands of people who visited this site last month for our debut issue. The traffic exceeded expectations and we truly appreciate it.

The Road Q&A – Getting insights from all angles of the show!

In this edition we catch up with Carrie Jeske, Marketing & Project Development at JEI Structural Engineering.

Right off the top, what are some of the services that JEI Structural Engineering offers?

We specialize in providing design calculations specific to the glass and glazing industry. Our expertise is storefronts, curtain walls, skylights, glass entry, aluminum composite panels, glass floors, handrails, blast design and other structures containing glass.

Structural engineers tend to focus on steel and concrete design so working with aluminum is less familiar. Most people don’t realize the 2010 Aluminum Design Manual has 469 pages and is much more complex than steel design. It’s not taught in typical structural engineering degree programs so finding an engineer (like us) with glazing industry experience can add a lot of value.

You have been in business since 2001. What do you think are the biggest changes in the way business (either in our industry or out) is done?

The information available online is amazing and the emergence of social networks has made it easier for us to build relationships with clients and add value through webinars and educational blogs. There are some big changes with regard to updated codes that can have a negative impact on glazing contractors and manufactures, if not understood. We’re using technology to help our clients stay in front of the learning curve.

An important issue along those lines is the manufactures storefront charts. Most don’t account for lateral buckling according to new code requirement and standards. We’ve written several articles and blogs to educate glazing contractors and we’re working with leading manufactures to update their storefront charts.

On your website, you offer an amazing array of governmental jobs that are up for bid. What is your strategy behind giving away such great intel for free?

I’m so glad you noticed! We’re a small, veteran owned company that is in high growth mode. We want to attract clients that are aggressively looking for projects, paying their bills on time and interested in providing quality installations. Government projects require a higher level of expertise so it seemed a natural value added service for us to provide. (Plus, we found a high quality; low cost way to gather the data, but shhh… we can’t share that secret!)

From your view and research, how do you see the economy playing out for the rest of 2012 and beyond?

We (Stewart Jeske, P.E., founder and I) watch a lot of news and read all the trade journals. The outlook is gloomy on many fronts, but smart companies can thrive. We’ve chosen to stay positive; working longer and harder. Connecting at a higher level of service with good clients has been a key for us. We’re available to our clients and they’re rewarding us with repeat business. That’s good advice for any business no matter the economic conditions.

It is great that you’ll be showing your services and abilities this fall at GlassBuild America. Thank you for that! Speaking of the show, why do you think it’s important that people attend a national event like this?

This is our fourth year at GlassBuild America and we really enjoy it. It’s a great opportunity to connect face to face with our existing clients and build new relationships. We’re bringing our entire engineering staff this year as a training opportunity and company perk. Stop by and see us at booth 1070 or find us at www.JEIstructural.com.

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Sponsored By:

If you are interested in sponsoring future editions or being more involved in the show, contact Jennifer Robinson at jennifer@GlassBuildAmerica.com or by phone at
770-416-8023.
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Video Spotlight

Our latest showcase features RiteScreen. We spent time in their booth at GlassBuild America 2011 in Atlanta and got the low down on the products and services they provide.

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The Road to GlassBuild America – Issue 1

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Welcome to The Road to GlassBuild America!

Thank you for visiting the debut edition of The Road to GlassBuild America!  This space will be dedicated to bringing you exciting news on “The Show of Shows”, interviews with exhibitors or attendees and video spotlights from companies that fill the show floor.  Check out what we have below and thanks for joining us on The Road!

Latest News
Happy New Year! We hope the start of 2012 is treating everyone well.  To kick off this first edition we look optimistically to the future and caught up with some GlassBuild exhibitors and get their thoughts on the start of the New Year.

Douglas Canfield- Casso Solar Technologies, LLC:
“Best wishes for a happy, healthy and profitable 2012 from the team at Casso-Solar Technologies. We look forward to seeing everyone at GlassBuild America in Las Vegas at booth #1745.”

Matt Kottke- Truth Hardware:
“Truth Hardware’s family of employees would like to extend our best wishes for a safe and happy holiday season.  We are looking forward to an exciting GlassBuild 2012 and a year that is truly ‘better from every perspective’.”

The gang from Wood’s Powr-Grip:
“Wood’s Powr-Grip would like to say “thank you” for making 2011 GlassBuild a success!  We wish everyone a Happy New Year and we look forward to seeing you at GlassBuild America 2012″

The Road Q&A – Getting insights from all angles of the show!

In this edition we catch up with Erin Johnson, Marketing Director, PR, Advertising & Marketing Materials Quanex Engineered Products Group

Q:  Happy New Year to you and everyone at Quanex.  So we have to ask, if Quanex as a company had a New Years’ resolution what would that be and why?

A: In the New Year and beyond, we are dedicated to reshaping the way companies in the window and door industry, and building products in general, think about their suppliers.  By reinvesting in our people and technology we not only offer a deep breadth of components, but will also become the source for total service through industry knowledge, technology advancement and customer care.

Q: There are many economic forecasts out there. We’d love to hear what the experts inside Quanex are thinking as it pertains to our industry in 2012?

A:  I’d like to defer to my colleague Mike Hovan (Senior Vice President–Sales & Marketing of the Quanex Engineered Products Group) as he was asked a very similar question by John Swanson of Window & Door magazine and here’s what he said:

We’re expecting a flat 2012. Because the underlying economic issues are not resolved – high unemployment, banks not lending and lack of consumer confidence – this will not be the year where we’ll see a turnaround. All of these things, combined with 2012 being an election year, are not helping improve the current economic situation.

Q: The world inside Quanex is always evolving.  What new products or services will we see from you this year?  (If you are allowed to tell us yet)

A: Our combined teams have been hard at work using each other’s strengths and expertise to develop a number of new products that will debut this year. Look for new developments in window systems, IG systems and window and door components, as well as expanded service offerings. All of our new products are designed to take the fenestration industry to the next level and to help ensure that our customers are able to meet the ENERGY STAR 2013 requirements and beyond.

Q: Recently there was a very spirited online debate about trade shows and their worthiness.  Quanex is obviously a major trade show player and a great supporter of GlassBuild America (THANK YOU!). With that said, why do you exhibit and what do people miss when they don’t exhibit or attend national shows like GlassBuild America?

A: For us, the number one priority at trade shows, especially GlassBuild America, has been networking. Where else can you find so many of your customers all in one place? We prefer to use the opportunity to thank our customers, whether it’s by providing a glimpse at new technologies or by creating educational opportunities that will help them be more profitable and take advantage of industry trends. We have the best customers in the industry, so showing them a fun time is also a factor when planning for GlassBuild America.

To answer your other question, whether you go to GlassBuild America or not, chances are your competition will be there. By not attending events like this, you could miss out on new technologies or a nugget of information that gives you (or your competition) the next big idea to get ahead in the marketplace.
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Sponsored By:

Sponsor of The Road to GlassBuild America
Learn about our new interior surface (IS) Low-E glass – practical glass innovation from Guardian.

If you are interested in sponsoring future editions or being more involved in the show, contact Jennifer Robinson at jennifer@GlassBuildAmerica.com or by phone at 770-416-8023.
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Video Spotlight

This time out we visit with Trulite Glass & Aluminum Solutions.  At GlassBuild America 2011 in Atlanta, we caught up with this major glass and aluminum fabricator and found out what they had going on.

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Welcome to the Road to GlassBuild America

Follow us along the Road to GlassBuild America 2012.

Each month we will update this post which will include the following:

Questions & Answers with exhibitors or others that are involved in preparing for the “Show of Shows” GlassBuild America 2012.

Video Spotlight of exhibitors and their products.

News Updates keeping you on top of the latest information about registering, reserving your hotel, schedule updates, who is exhibiting, etc.

Visit the official GlassBuild America website.

Follow us on Twitter at #glassbuild.

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