Official Washington leaves much to be desired these days.Here we have the presidency, the House and the Senate all in the hands of the same party, and yet we have a classic case of legislative gridlock. We're even starting to see progressive senators jumping ship, including Indiana's Evan Bayh, who cited partisan bickering and a disturbing lack of progress for his decision to retire.Frankly, it's

I got an e-mail the other day from a Mr. J.E. Swain, and he asked two questions:1. "Why is the double-glazing industry producing 20-millimeter space partially filled argon gas units? Considering argon gas optimum gap between glass panes is 14 mm with a maximum of 16 mm, any wider, the gas reduces the efficiency and durability by approximately 35 percent, and why partially filled instead of full

In my last blog we covered the basics of goal setting: 1) set the goal, 2) develop a plan, 3) keep the goal and plan in front of you, 4) focus on the reward for accomplishing it.By now, you have either done nothing toward achieving your goal, have started but lost confidence in achieving your goal, or are making progress toward reaching the goal. Regardless of which stage you are in, it is most

The architectural community has struggled through this recession. Faced with two years of declining business, firms have downsized, cut services and, for many, closed. According to a Jan. 20 New York Times article, employment at architectural firms nationwide was 184,600 in November, down almost 18 percent from its peak of 224,500 in July 2008. And in a recent AIA survey, 18.8 percent of

All the news on the economy trending toward the negative can wear you and your co-workers down. The construction and our glass industry have been down. All companies have made changes and adjustments.There are small signs of rebounding segments in the economy. It’s time to turn our mindsets, energies and strategies to the positive. The glass industry saw unprecedented growth during the last

I honestly didn’t know what to think when I learned last year that the bid to supply blast-resistant glass for the new World Trade Center tower went to a Chinese company. On the one hand, I’m all for cost savings, provided the product or service is high quality. On the other, I identified with PPG spokesman Jack Maurer when he said in a Patriot-News interview: "This is going to be an iconic U.S.

It's easy to remain committed when times are good. Everyone's busy, days and weeks run together as we go about our business, and we do the things we planned to do and are expected to do. Others do what they're supposed to do, just as we expect them to. Contracts are honored, customers pay, you pay your vendors, and everything trickles down and steamrolls ahead like it is supposed to. Sure, some

—Matt Rumbaugh, division manager, Education, Training and Certification, National Glass AssociationAre you on Twitter? How about Facebook? Even if you're not, you probably know people that are. Technologies that people had barely heard of two years ago are now major factors in how they communicate, how they advertise, and how they learn.In my role here at the NGA, I spend a lot of time thinking

Do you perform residential glass and window applications? Or install products at child care facilities? If so, it’s time to get up to speed on new lead paint requirements coming from the Environmental Protection Agency.Starting in April, any contractor completing work in pre-1978 homes must follow the new procedures. Not doing so could result in fines up to $37,500 per day, per violation. Some

Let’s focus on goals. The theme of this and succeeding blogs will focus on goals, goal setting, and goal achieving.We have just begun a new calendar year. If you have not set one or more goals for this year, do it now. Several clichés come to mind: if you don’t have a target, you can’t hit it; you can’t take a journey without a map. They go on and on. Suffice it to say that goals are mandatory,

2009 has wound down, leaving in its trail blood, sweat and tears. Arch filed for bankruptcy; Coastal Glass ceased operation; Oldcastle and PPG closed plants; PPG slashed 2,500 jobs; and AGC laid off workers. It was a rough 12 months, to put it mildly.To add to misery, in 2010, glass and glazing folks will face challenges in the form of cap and trade and health care reform. In a rare Christmas Eve

As the editors and I conducted interviews for the January 2010 forecast issue of Glass Magazine, we spoke with a number of glass company execs about their plans to remain profitable in what forecasters predict will be a challenging year ahead. Several themes emerged, among them: cutting costs, diversifying product and service offerings, and extending marketing efforts.We found that the economic

It’s been more than three weeks since I returned from the Greenbuild International Conference & Expo in Phoenix, but the green dust certainly hasn’t settled. Maybe it’s all the press coverage about President Obama’s upcoming visit to the climate summit in Copenhagen, or maybe it’s the news that my alma mater was just named America’s Greenest Campus (Let’s go Maryland! *clap* *clap*), but I just

One of the big names in aluminum storefront and glass fabrication tripped last week: Arch Aluminum and Glass Co. filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Nov. 25, with the Southern District of Florida U.S. Bankruptcy Court. Court documents list the fabricator's assets at $0-$100,000, with $100MM-$500MM in liabilities, according to TrollerBk.com. The filing does not include Arch's Canadian

You've been sued. It could have been prevented, or you could have at least had a solid defense to get you out. It's too late for that now.That should grab your attention. That's the situation one glass shop recently found itself in, and shared what they learned the hard way so that the rest of us might avoid the same perils in the future. So, without going into the whole case, here are some