Lights, Camera, Action!

Even before I hopped my plan for Vegas this past Monday morning I was thinking about glass. Anyone whose ever walked from the Pittsburgh airport parking lot to the terminal … well … let’s back up and re-phrase that to say any glass person walking from the parking lot to the terminal has certainly noticed the display of roller-wave distortion in the walls of windows along the way. Going back to my original thought, I’m sure even the non-glass folks have seen the ripples and just didn’t know what they were or why they were there.

So certainly roller wave distortion, as well as other tempering topics, were on the agenda this past week as part of GANA’s Glass Fabrication & Glazing Educational Conference, which took place in Vegas. If you’re not familiar, it’s an event that’s ideal for those relatively new to the industry as it serves up a program of essential information that everyone in the glass industry should know, from taking care of those tempering furnace rolls, to cleaning and handling glass, as well as a look at industry-specific codes, standards and market trends.

Those of us attending for USGNN.com and USGlass magazine are used to reporting on industry events and conferences by way of the written word. But this past week we all took it a step forward when we did some on-camera reporting. Now I, personally, have a tendency to get all stressed out before trying anything new, be it eating escargot or doing an on-camera interview. I wasn’t sure of how I would sound, if I would, and um, between every other word … it was just nerve-wracking for me at first! But once I did it, I have to admit, it was a lot of fun. Check out some of the interviews at www.usgnn.com.

Speaking of this past week, you probably know we celebrated Earth Day on Tuesday. Greg Saroka, president of Goldray Industries, talked to USGlass publisher Deb Levy about some of what his company is doing to be a "greener" glass company (you can see that interview from Glass Fab on www.usgnn.com, too). There's lots we all can do--individually and as an industry--to help protect the earth and the environment. Please share your ideas by posting a comment here or sending me an email.

Vegas Bound

Like lots of people who travel often, I’ve been to Vegas many, many times. The first time I was there I hated it, really, really didn’t like it one bit. Second time, still not crazy about it, third time, OK, it’s growing on me a bit. Today, I’m not sure how many times I’ve been there (I know it’s a double-digit figure), but I’ve grown to find the city somewhat enjoyable. Please note, I said somewhat. I’m not a gambler by any stretch, but I do enjoy the nice restaurants and the fabulous shopping. I’m also rather fond of the architecture specifically, the glass.

Few hotels, casinos or condos along the Las Vegas strip (and even those off the strip) are without an eye-catching glazing display. I mean really … Vegas would just not be Vegas without shiny, shimmering, colorful glass, right? Ya’ll know this; Vegas was made for the glass industry.

So it’s with great excitement that I will be returning to Las Vegas next week to take part in GANA’s Glass Fabrication 2008 conference. While the presentations and speakers are always top-notch, I’m particularly looking forward to the high-rise construction tour on Monday afternoon. This special event will allow those of us on the tour to really take in the current Vegas construction boom. And I am sure that my glass mentor, the great C. Gregory Carney, will be there to guide us along the way, sharing his insight and knowledge. Indeed, the tour will be fun and the conference educational.

In addition to Glass Fabrication, GANA’s Contract Glazing Educational Conference will also be taking part concurrently. A hot presentation topic that will be new this year is a discussion on Google Sketch-Up, imaging modeling software. If you’re not too familiar with this, it’s something you’ll be hearing a lot about in the near future. If you’ve not yet read your April USGlass, check out this article I wrote about BIM: http://www.usglassmag.com/USGlass/2008/April/modelapproach.htm. BIM may take a while to catch on, but the consensus seems to be it’s definitely here to stay.

The Big Oops

Faced with the reality that the national average cost of gas is about $3.36 cents, it’s tough to not talk about energy costs, gas prices and the like. Earlier this week on April 8, the Alliance to Save Energy issued a statement saying it was urging consumers to help tackle spiraling energy prices by reducing consumption.

That same day Saflex® announced tit would be implementing a price increase of up to 40 percent, effective May 1, on its PVB sheet products to address the rising raw material, energy and transportation costs. You can read the entire release at www.usgnn.com. Of course, Saflex isn’t the only company that’s had to raise prices. Many have and many will be doing so soon, I’m sure.

But enough about increasing costs … they are here to stay and all we can do is try and save energy—individually or on a global basis. There’s a lot of good that can come from trying to live a greener life, and believe it or not, there are still some people not familiar with “living green.” Just a few weeks ago, in fact, I was explaining it to someone … it’s not that difficult to be green and just because you are doesn’t necessarily make you a tree-hugger. And actually, if we all were a little more earth conscious would it really be so bad?

Some of you have probably heard me talk about my sister, my little tree-hugger, who's beenin California teaching outdoor education since 2002. I’ve learned a lot from her and in many ways I am trying to live more like she does – taking my own bags to the grocery door, turning off lights when I leave a room, recycle … I’ve learned that I can’t do everything to fix the problem; I just do what I can and the more little things we can do the better.

And on another note … we all know no one’s perfect, right? Just this week Max wrote in his blog about the CrystalGrey oops in the Minneapolis Star Tribune. I’d also like to share an oops that I saw in a magazine, Country Living, it was (bear in mind, that having been a magazine editor for a good number of years, I pretty much can’t open a magazine [or a book, restaurant menu or newspaper] and not find an oops).

So anyway, I’m reading this great little article about how we can all make our homes more green—50 ways to be exact. And, there it is, right in the middle (or almost), number 22: “Prevent heat loss and gain inside your home by installing double- or triple-glazed windows … you may save more than 30 percent on energy costs by doing so.” Sounds good, right? There’s more. “Look for windows with the EPA’s ENERGY STAR label …” Huh?

The EPA? Last I checked ENERGY STAR was a DOE program. Sounds like the editors at Country Living forgot to do some fact checking. Don’t worry, I’m sending an email to make them aware of their oops.

About a year ago I visited Martinsburg, W.Va. If you’re not familiar with it, I’m not surprised. It’s a small little town that’s located maybe 2 hours west of Washington, D.C. The town’s not far from Harper’s Ferry if that gives you any remote idea as to the location of which I speak. So, while the town wasn’t much to talk about I did find a great little shop called West Virginia Glass that sold hand-made, decorative glass items. Now this is my kind of place! I remember thinking, praying, as I walked through the door, I could maintain some spending control.

Sure, it was hard to not buy every beautiful vase, display bowl, even sculptures and art. There was a lot I would like to have bought. I finally narrowed my selection to two Blenko Glass pieces (www.blenkoglass.com): a yellow sunflower bowl or limited edition amethyst bowl. Decisions, decisions … while sunflowers are my favorite flower, I’m also a stickler for anything “limited edition.” So, in the end, the purple bowl won out. I took a picture … but it’s hard to see all of the color and details … sorry, it’s a pretty dismal day.

Since I got started in this business and learning about glass--mostly architectural—I am still so fascinated by how absolutely beautiful glass is. What you and I know, that many others do not know, is how simple a material glass really is. It’s the skill and craftsmanship that truly create such works of art.

I started thinking about decorative and art glass for a couple of reasons. The simplest of which was the fact that earlier this week while shopping for a wedding shower gift I found myself in a store that sold Blenko Glass. The bowl was green and when you looked straight down on it, it resembled a starfish. I resisted the urge to buy it.

More specific to the flat glass industry, I’ve been talking to a lot of companies that make decorative door panels and sidelites. Looking at their catalogs and websites, it’s clear that incorporating these products into a home can, in some cases, really be like adding a work of art to the architecture.

Glass really can be pretty amazing and never fails to impress me.