Carey Mobius

By now, I assume you may have heard the incredibly sad news that Carey Mobius of Garibaldi Glass passed away. For a ton of us, it was an absolute gut punch. Carey had a positive effect on so many in our space; he blazed a fresh trail in his operating acumen and pushed us to be better in the Architectural space. He was a mentor to many folks and a sounding board for others as well.

From a personal side, I thought Carey was a blast. He lived life to its fullest and then some. He could light up a room, and you wanted to be there with him. I had known Carey for a bit, but didn’t expect an invitation to speak at the trend-setting GlassDay® program he created at Garibaldi. I was honored beyond belief. That was a huge boost for me in so many ways. And elevating those around him was a staple for Carey, and he talked the talk and walked the walk. When I was lucky enough to get him to do my podcast way back in April of 2022, Carey delivered a masterclass in what good business should look like. He coined the term “Win-Win-Win” during the cast, meaning all parties on a job, glazing contractor, glazier, fabricator, all should be pulling that rope together so we all win. That line, along with so much more from the pod, sticks with me.  

Carey leaves behind a legacy and talented family members who will absolutely deliver on his messages. Read the full tribute from his family here. It is a wonderful recognition. And that letter ended with a perfect Carey angle. “In lieu of flowers, send purchase orders.”  Truly incredible. My sincerest condolences to the entire Mobius family, the Garibaldi team, and the friends of Carey. He will be missed but not forgotten.

There are so many beautiful online tributes. His impact was real. This one from Rich Porayko is a great example.

Elsewhere…

2026 predictions

Ok, moving forward… Each year I make predictions and it gets tougher and tougher because so much can change in an instant. Still worth a shot, though, and I think I have some good ones for 2026. Here we go!

Breaking up is hard to do. But is it really? I’m calling that in 2026, bigger companies will get smaller by spinning off locations. I look at it as the start of some deconsolidation. Honestly, in some segments, the herd actually needs to be thinned because there’s just too much capacity. But that sort of reduction most likely won’t happen, but I think we’ll see some downsizing.

A true D10 push. This may be the theme of 2026. A ton was talked about this and presented in 2025, and I think 2026 is the year the glass industry, aka Division 8, makes a significant move into the interior/furniture provider space. We have the systems, and we are getting more and more people focused on this daily. Building owners/developers & architects should want and, quite frankly, demand that glass and glaziers install these glass and glazing projects.

The tariff effect. I’ll refrain from commenting on the specific tariff issue, as there’s not enough space anywhere for me to get it off my chest. However, I will say this… one of the effects I see of the tariff, and probably not one that certain people want, is that European and Asian companies will be setting up shop in North America with actual manufacturing and fabrication locations. No more ship and drop. It’s now make it here and deliver. And me wanting the herd to be “thinned,” yeah, that’s surely not happening. Note that this could play into that first prediction, with offshore companies buying ones here vs. greenfielding. Either way, it’s going to happen. This is glass-related only. Metal will still be the way it is, and its volatility will sadly remain.

The return of color. From my contacts within the design community, the play for the upcoming year is to get more color into their projects. Architects now know and love digital printing, and they understand its use. Plus, colored and design interlayer specs will grow as will new framing colors, more creative spandrel choices, and a pivot to lighter reflective glass.  Plus, more color on building attachments like sunshades, screens, etc.

So, there ya go.  We’ll check back in one year and see how I did.

Latest DMI

Latest Dodge Construction Dodge Momentum Index is out, and it has a very positive start in mind. The index rose 7.0% in December, closing the year at 296.8 as planning activity accelerated across key nonresidential sectors. I am thrilled to note that Sarah Martin, Associate Director of Forecasting at the Dodge Construction Network, will be speaking at BEC! So, a chance to hear from a leading voice in the space on what’s happening now and further into 2026.  Seriously, do you think you can miss this? 

Get your hotel and register (early bird ends this week on the 21st) now!

New low-e glass from Vitro

Some big product news. Vitro introduced their new crisp, warm-toned low-e glass that subtly reflects champagne tones with Solarban Champane™ (not a typo- a fun use of the color and an industry term.) Right in time for the architectural trend mentioned above. Excellent. Also, an aside from Vitro, if you’ve never seen their Glass 101 video, check it out. Incredibly creative and a great way to educate on the making of glass. This should be a must show to every new employee. On both of these, he’ll defer the credit, but Rob Struble truly is a genius.

IGE and systron

Also, excellent news from my friends at IGE as they announced that they have resumed their work with systron in North America. I wrote about systron a few years ago and absolutely love the machinery, and so having them back “home” with the IGE (Michael & Carolyn Spellman & team) is great news for the industry and everyone in North America looking to take that next fabrication step!