W&D Weekly - January 2, 2008 | Vol 3, Num 1
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Peachtree Closing Georgia Plant
The Peachtree Door & Window plant in Gainesville, Ga., will be closed in February...
The Peachtree Door & Window plant in Gainesville, Ga., will be closed in February, with production of foamed patio and entry doors moved to the Weather Shield Manufacturing facility in Park Falls, Wis., according to a company news release. Workers at the Georgia manufacturing facility were notified at the end of November.
The closure is designed as a cost-saving measure, allowing the company to deliver complete orders, with entry doors and windows together in a single shipment, and reduce the manufacturing costs of those products, Amy Lewis, a Peachtree spokeswoman told the Wausau Daily Herald.
Both the Peachtree Cos. and Weather Shield are owned by the Schield family of Medford, Wis. The Peachtree operations include Peachtree Door & Window and SNE Enterprises, acquired from Nortek Inc. in 2001. They sell windows and doors under the Peachtree, Crestline and Vetter names and continue to operate manufacturing plants in Mosinee, Wis., and Huntington, W.Va.
In addition to the Park Falls plant, Weather Shield operates manufacturing facilities in Medford, Ladysmith and Greenwood, Wis., and Logan, Utah.
Taylor Sells Garage Door Business
ECP Safe-Way Door LLC, based in Warsaw, Ind., has acquired the garage door business of Taylor Building Products...
ECP Safe-Way Door LLC, based in Warsaw, Ind., has acquired the garage door business of Taylor Building Products. Taylor will continue to manufacture and distribute its line of steel and fiberglass entry door systems through its current customer base and distribution channels.
“The sale of the garage door business to Safe-Way allows us to focus on and grow our entry door systems business, while still allowing an opportunity for our garage door customers to source product from a supplier that we feel will maintain the high standards of quality and service that Taylor Door has provided over the years,” says Nick Cangialosi, Taylor CEO.
“Safe-Way’s core goal is to improve products, services and overall value for our customers,” notes Frank Galluci, Safe-Way president. “The acquisition of Taylor’s garage door business provides us with wonderful opportunities to provide more for our customers, and to work with the customers that Taylor has worked so hard to develop.”
President Bush Signs New Energy Bill
A stripped down energy bill passed both Houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Bush...
Stripped down considerably from earlier versions, a new energy bill passed both Houses of Congress and was signed into law by President Bush on December 18, 2007. The Energy Security and Independence Act of 2007 primarily focuses on automobile fuel economy, with additional provisions for more efficient appliances and lighting, as well as some steps designed to increase efficiency of government and commercial buildings.
A version of the bill passed by the House of Representatives earlier in December included an extension of tax credits for energy efficient improvements in homes established in the 2005 Energy Policy Act. That extension fell by the wayside, however, when the bill went to the Senate. As a result, the tax credits for more energy efficient windows and doors scheduled to expire as of December 31, 2007, have indeed expired.
The bill may have some impact on the window and door industry, as it includes requirements for significant upgrades in the energy efficiency of federal buildings. It also authorizes a Commercial Building Initiative, combining research, development and deployment of new commercial buildings that would use energy efficiency and clean energy sources to produce zero greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Alliance to Save Energy.
In signing the bill, President Bush described it as “a major step toward reducing our dependence on oil, confronting global climate change, expanding the production of renewable fuels and giving future generations of our country a nation that is stronger, cleaner and more secure.”
The legislation raises Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards from the current average of about 25 miles per gallon for passenger cars, light trucks and SUVs to 35 mpg by 2020, saving consumers $22 billion in 2020 and reducing U.S. oil consumption by 1.1 million barrels per day in 2020—half of what the U.S. currently imports from the Persian Gulf, ASE points out. The new standards also will cut greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to taking 28 million of today’s cars off the road.
The new law could phase out the incandescent light bulb, as new lighting standards are likely to produce a shift toward compact fluorescents and LEDs.
Installation Training Program Started in Oregon
A new organization of window and door manufacturers and dealers, Mt. Hood Community College and SWD Training Institute have launched the Pacific Northwest Window & Door Industry Training Program...
With the backing of the Window & Door Coalition of Oregon, a new organization of window and door manufacturers and dealers, Mt. Hood Community College and SWD Training Institute have launched the Pacific Northwest Window & Door Industry Training Program. Designed to help address a shortage of skilled workers—and the resulting problems of improperly installed windows, service headaches and liability issues—for builders, dealers and manufacturers, the program is being spearheaded by Keith Strand of Strand Windows & Doors based in Portland, Ore.
Strand started in the industry in 1998, working for a number of companies before launching his own window and door dealer operation in 2001. Certified under the InstallationMasters program developed by the American Architectural Manufacturers Association, Strand has also participated in numerous manufacturer-sponsored training programs. Seeing a need to decrease liability issues and increase performance and quality throughout all aspects of the industry, Strand contacted Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Ore., at the beginning of last year. “With the help of MHCC and their customized workforce training department, a curriculum was developed, a training plan organized and marketing and other components began to fall into place: SWD Training Institute was born,” he reports. (The SWD name derives from the name of his business).
“Word of the class spread and interest within the industry was high,” Strand continues. “The training began to serve as common ground for several companies throughout the region, and a loose coalition began to take shape and developed into the Window and Door Coalition of Oregon.” WDOC participants currently include representatives from Milgard Windows & Doors, Parr Co., Everclear Windows, LbL Windows, Empire Pacific Windows, DSC Window Fashions, Suburban Doors, Glass Doctor, Portland Sash & Door and Joe’s Glass.
In addition to industry support, Strand notes that the region’s Workforce Investment Board is assisting WDCO to fund the training, recruit participants from outside the industry, organize a regional and state-recognized portable training credential and coordinate post-training job placement efforts.
“What started as a small effort to improve quality within the industry has grown into a grassroots movement to unite and promote the window and door industry in Northwest Oregon and Southwest Washington,” Strand concludes. More information about the WDOC and the training program is available by contacting him at ke.strand@comcast.net.
Energy Issues to Top NWDA Agenda
A preview of the potential Energy Star changes tops the agenda of the Northeast Window & Door Association’s winter meeting...
A preview of the potential changes in the Energy Star windows program tops the agenda of the Northeast Window & Door Association’s winter meeting, scheduled for January 14 and 15 at the Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, N.J.
Richard Karney, the Department of Energy’s Energy Star program manager, will be speaking, offering an update on the government’s plans to strengthen requirements for Energy Star-labeled windows and doors. Also on the agenda will be Mike Fischer of Kellen & Co., a code consultant for the Window & Door Manufacturers Association, who will look at emerging changes in building energy codes.
Nils Peterman of the Alliance to Save Energy will offer a talk about emerging window technologies and how manufacturers might be able to capitalize on incentive programs offered by utility companies. Finally, Cheryl Baldwin of Green Seal Inc. will discuss how to sell to green-minded consumers.
The NWDA event kicks off Monday evening, January 14, with a tabletop exhibit and welcome reception. The business meeting and educational sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, January 15. More information is available by calling 609/799-4900 or visiting the association’s Web site at www.nwda.net.
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Commercial Real Estate Fundamentals Are Sound But Investment Slowing
from Realtor.org
The fundamentals in commercial real estate remain healthy with only slight increases in vacancy rates expected for the office and industrial sectors during 2008, although credit restrictions have recently slowed overall investment activity, according to the latest COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE OUTLOOK of the National Association of Realtors... read more
Important Design Trends, According to a Stock Home Plan Developer
from DesignBasics.com
There's more to selecting "the perfect" home plan than counting the square feet, bedrooms and baths. Choosing a plan for the place you'll one day call home is a very personal endeavor—one of careful self-examination of the way you live on a daily basis—your lifestyles, habits, likes and dislikes... read more
Hundreds Gather to Pay Respects to ABC Supply Founder Hendricks
from Rockford Register Star
Hundreds upon hundreds of people traveled to the Eclipse Center Thursday night for the visitation of one of the Rock River Valley’s best-known philanthropists and one of the country’s wealthiest men. As a testament to his influence, the visitation for ABC Supply Co. founder Ken Hendricks had to be held at the city’s main convention center... read more
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