The Western Region board of the American Architectural Manufacturers Association (AAMA) recently held its spring meeting, inPortland,Ore., April 10-11. Meeting attendees had the opportunity to hear from experts on industry topics, as well as take part in an immersive learning experience via a tour of the Cardinal IG Hood River Facility.

“Each of the presentations was pertinent and informative … [and] will have important implications for our company and industry,” says Larry Hammil of International Window.

The following is a look at just some of what the event offered.

One presentation that was of interest to the meeting’s attendees was the update on BIM from Dennis Neeley with SMARTBIM. “Building Information Modeling will change everything,” Neeley said during the presentation. “The change is becoming very evident [and] it is happening at unprecedented speed.”

Neeley’s presentation not only provided a comprehensive overview and real world examples of the benefits of BIM, it gave attendees a key contact when they begin work on their BIM plan. Karen O’Connell of Sierra Pacific Windows, noted that the BIM presentation was “the best Western Region presentation” she had seen, as it “provided insight in the designs of several projects” in which she is currently involved.

The NFRC IVP for doors and windows also drew interest from attendees. Many questions were raised regarding the characteristics and weighting of variables that comprise the algorithm of which the IVP selection criteria is based. NFRC is required by the Environmental Protection Agency to have the IVP fully implemented in January 2013.

Continuing their education, attendees left the presentation rooms to take part in a tour of the Cardinal IG Hood River Facility.

“The tour at Cardinal IG was very impressive, but most of all, Dave Windsor and Clayton Watson at Cardinal were very forthcoming about their experiences with higher performing IG Units,” says Hammil.

AAMA Western Region members can continue their education outside of region meetings by way of an ongoing webinar series. The first two installments of the webinar series, scheduled for August and November 2012, will deliver industry information specifically tailored to address the requirements of manufacturing and performance within the Western Region.