Picks & Pans

Kudos to Suppliers for Educating Manufacturers

“I have two goals for being here at the show. One is to see new products. The other is to be educated about the new codes and Energy Star® requirements.” This was a statement made by Geoff Roise, president of Lindsay Windows, with whom I talked for awhile at the GlassBuild America show in early October.

When he mentioned his second goal, I stopped for a minute, thinking that there were no seminars on this topic and wondering how he was going to fulfill his mission, unless he spent hours going to various booths and tracking down all the right people to answer his questions.

But then I thought of the Edgetech booth, which focused on education, and at the same time, Roise said, “I’ll do this by visiting the Edgetech booth.”

Later in the day, I spoke to another window manufacturer who told me he visited the Truseal booth to learn more about Energy Star. Later that day when I stopped at the Truseal booth it was evident why stopping here would be helpful to him.

Here’s a quick glimpse at what these suppliers did all in the name of education the manufacturer.

Edgetech IG had a unique theme at its booth that attracted many attendees. Companies who entered the booth could enter Edgetech University. Attendees were given a notebook, an insulating glass (IG) certification manual and a report card to take with them as the visited the different educational stations throughout the booth. All attendees who completed the program were entered into a drawing to win $2,000 toward IG certification.

The company had representatives from the Insulating Glass Manufacturers Alliance, the National Fenestration Rating Council and Architectural Testing Inc. to answer questions and help educate attendees concerning IG certification, as well as the new Energy Star requirements.

Truseal also attracted much attention at its booth and the way it conveyed what the new Energy Star requirements would mean for manufacturers was impressive. The company had a series of charts at its booth showing what types of glass and spacers would be required to meet the Energy Star requirements in 2009 and 2013. Next to each map and chart, Truseal also had an example of a window unit that could meet those requirements.

And while many in the industry are wondering if they will be able to meet these new requirements, even in 2013, Truseal’s Ric Jackson says, “You can build the window of the future today.” And the examples at the booth showed them how to move toward that goal.

And I’m sure there are other companies who did the same for manufacturers. Technoform general manager Mark Silverberg told me that people are calling him constantly to ask about the new Energy Star requirements.

So kudos to the suppliers for making this a priority and kudos to the manufacturers who are taking the time required to educate and prepare themselves for these changes. Whether you like it or not, the changes are coming and the ones that will be successful are those that are ready for them.