How cool would it be if our industry, our little world, had the honor of having a year named for it? Well, if we all can come together and push, maybe 2022 will be known as the International Year of Glass by the U.N.
Before we blink and another year is over, now would be an appropriate time to reflect on where we’ve been and where we will be heading. Capital is moving, companies continue to invest, and it appears opportunity will continue to knock on our industry’s door.
We’ve reviewed past predictions and now it’s time to break out the trusty crystal ball and look at what I see ahead in the next 11 1/2 months of 2020. I am pretty confident about this grouping, and ready to go five for five when I review at the start of next year.
In the context of a modern, globalized and highly digitalized world, the success of glass processing plants to a great extent depends upon how well they embrace the latest IoT-based technologies. The amount of automation and smart data enabled by IoT are two primary factors that define a company’s efficiency, operating speed, and ultimately, competitiveness. No wonder the most progressive glass processors are looking for ways to tap into this particular niche.
Before we can look forward into 2020, time for one more look back at 2019 and specifically at my predictions for the industry posted one year ago. Let’s see how I did!
Happy New Year! We are off and running in 2020, and I am excited about all to come this year. Each year on this blog I start off with reviewing my predictions from the previous year, and then I go to my predictions for the year ahead. Next week is when I’ll look back, and the week after is when I’ll make my “money back guaranteed” predictions for 2020.
I recently had the opportunity to speak with Michael and Valarie Gomm, the husband-and-wife team behind the new The Glass Guru franchise in Wichita, Kansas. Michael and Valarie first became aware of, and interested, in the franchise when they experienced a failed window of their own. We discussed Michael's background in the aerospace industry, Valarie's work as the family "CFO," the recession--averse nature of the community-based glass business, and more.
“Don’t judge a book by its cover,” sounds great, and I’m not one for presumptions. However. If I am honest, I’m guilty. I judge some things positively, and others negatively, but I have noticed these days my judgement is routinely related to websites.