Glass Canada • December 2017 • Industry News

The Vancouver Regional Construction Association (VRCA) recognized the finest in B.C.’s construction industry at its 29th Annual Awards of Excellence, held Oct. 25 at the Vancouver Convention Centre. Garibaldi Glass took home the Gold Award for Manufacturer and Supplier for its work on the Pacific Centre Redevelopment Project and Flynn Canada picked up the Gold Director’s Trade Award in the over $7 million category for its work on The Hub at King George Station. Glastech Glazing Contractors won the Silver Trade Contractors President’s Trade prize in the $1 to 3 million range for the Langara Science and Technology Building. This year’s competition attracted more than 95 entrants and shone the spotlight on 50 projects representing approximately $1.1 billion in construction value. A total of 25 awards were presented including 15 Gold Awards, nine Outstanding Achievement Awards, and a Heritage Award.

“VRCA’s Awards of Excellence showcase the best of the best,“ said Fiona Famulak, president of the VRCA. “B.C.’s construction industry is the most progressive in the country and the awards allow us to recognize the collaboration, innovation and professionalism that our members bring to their projects - the complex, state-of-the-art infrastructure that we use every day,” she continued.

You wouldn’t have thought there is any way to make a discussion of the Access for Ontarians with Disabilities Act engaging and funny, but Jennifer Threndyle of Workplace Safety and Prevention Services managed it at the Ontario Glass and Metal Association’s fall seminar held Nov. 16 at the Richmond Hill Country Club. There were lots of chuckles amid the groans over the incredible complexity of Ontario’s rules for accommodating both disabled workers and customers in a business. The laughter and learning continued with Michael Mesure’s presentation on bird friendly glass. Mesure was extremely knowledgable and informative; the laughs came from Sergei Mihhailenko who reflected on the fact that eggs are a lot cheaper than glass and perhaps a better solution to the problem is to simply breed more birds.

The OGMA is planning another education seminar for the spring, details to be determined.

Glass industry legend Doug Hotham passed away on Oct. 18 at the age of 90. Hotham’s remarkable 50-year career included roles with several of Canada’s most noted glass fabricators and contractors. He was given the Ontario Glass and Metal Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. Hotham started in the trade in 1941 at the age of 14, floral-cutting mirrors, vases and other glassware by hand at London Glass and Mirror in London, Ont. From there he went to Canadian Pittsburgh Industries where he was trained at CPI’s glass school for glass industry salespeople. His next stop was Upper Canada Glass, which took Hotham to his final home in Aurora, Ont. There, Hotham and his wife of 63 years, Norma, raised their sons Greg (an NHL hockey player with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Pittsburgh Penguins) and Brent, who is sales manager at Explore1 Glass and Door Services. Hotham eventually left Upper Canada Glass and worked at RMP, Commercial Aluminum and Galaxy Glass before landing at Indal’s Tempglass where he helped develop its heavy glass division. In this role, Hotham was trained in Europe by Saint Gobain and began bringing heavy glass shower doors, entrances and squash court enclosures to Canada. Walker Atlantic Glass finally lured Hotham away from Tempglass with an offer to help them set up their tempering furnace in Scarborough, Ont., where he worked on such projects as the barrel vault roof in Toronto’s Eaton Centre and the interior glazing at the Rogers Centre. Hotham ended his long career in 1994 as heavy glass manager for Guardian.

The Physical Test Steering Committee of the Architectural Glass and Metal Technician (AGMT) Certification Program began development of conceptual test apparatuses at a meeting held on Sept. 20, in Hanover, Md. The apparatuses will be used by future AGMT certification applicants to demonstrate their proficiency in fundamental physical glazing skills and abilities – the physical test element of the certification exam. The committee also designed the draft physical tasks that would be assessed as part of the certification requirements. These included various glazing-related assembly and installation procedures utilizing components of curtainwall, storefront and aluminum entrance systems, and proper use of sealants, gaskets and other water-management methods.

“Because of the large cross-section of glazing industry professionals involved, the steering committee made amazing progress in establishing the physical test requirements,” said Mike Laughlin of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, DC-21. Construction of three unique prototype test apparatuses is expected to be complete by press time. Further fine-tuning will occur leading up to the next Physical Test Steering Committee meeting, tentatively scheduled for February.

The physical test steering committee is comprised of a balanced representation of industry experts from three major stakeholder segments: glaziers, glazing contractors and the user community consisting of manufacturers, suppliers, architects, consultants and spec writers. “The number of people who have volunteered as industry experts to be part of this effort really speaks to the need for this program,” said Jeff Dalaba, project manager. “With 29 members on our steering committees and others looking to join the effort, we see there’s a groundswell of support.”

In addition to the physical glazing exam, which will have a large bearing on an applicant’s total score, the certification assessment process will also include a prerequisite written exam that will gauge the applicant’s knowledge of proper glazing theory and procedures, tools of the trade, construction documents and layout, and quality control and failure prevention measures. The third-party personnel certification initiative is being developed by Administrative Management Systems (AMS) and will be open to all glazing technicians. In furtherance of the development of the certification exams (written and physical), AMS has designed a validation survey to determine the importance of 30 key glazing-related knowledge and skill categories in minimizing glazing-related defects and failures and the frequency with which the elements of the categories are typically performed. The ultimate goal is to establish how prominently each will be featured in the certification process. The intention is that items that rank higher in importance/frequency will receive more attention on the exams than less important/frequent items.

Glass Canada hosted an informative webinar discussing the AGMT program last year. The recording is available at glasscanadmag.com > webinars.

Saand has welcomed Alain Decoste as sales representative in the Ottawa territory.

Decoste studied at Algonquin College and has extensive experience as a sales representative in the Ottawa/Gatineau region. He will be responsible for creating and generating profitable and sustainable sales opportunities. He will support the corporate sales plan by developing and increasing the customer base while maintaining excellent relationships with current customers.

Saand has also introduced Lezlie Donlan as customer service manager at its London facility. Donlan has worked with one of North America’s Fortune 500 companies for many years and brings with her an extensive background in customer service. She will be responsible for leading the customer service, order entry and invoicing teams.

Being a leading materials and solutions provider in the global coatings market, Henkel Adhesive Technologies has strengthened its expertise in this highly innovative field with an investment into U.S.- based advanced materials start-up, NBD Nanotechnologies (NBD Nano).

“As part of our innovation strategy at Adhesive Technologies we have established a strong scouting process for new technologies and applications,” said Michael Todd, global head of innovation and new business development at Henkel. “The investment in NBD Nano demonstrates our commitment to collaborate with promising startups that provide access to cutting-edge future technologies.”

NBD Nano, headquartered in Boston, is an advanced materials start-up with expertise in adjusting surface properties such as repellency or adhesion. Through its proprietary platform technology, the company is creating additives for plastics and coatings that provide customized surface solutions that are both durable and adaptive. NBD Nano’s technology can be used in manifold applications from electronics and consumer goods to automotive. Its product offerings include RepelShell coating additives that provide excellent water repellency to car glass and DirtBlock coatings that significantly reduce the dirt pick-up on solar modules or architectural glass on buildings.

“Functional coatings are one of our key search fields for future innovations in our adhesive technologies business,” said Paolo Bavaj, head of corporate venturing at Henkel. “Based on its robust technology platform, NBD Nano has demonstrated the ability to provide cost-effective surface solutions with unique and durable performances for a large variety of applications and on many different substrates.”

For NBD Nano, the funding provides the basis for accelerated commercialization and customer adoption of its products. “We are ready for the next phase of commercialization. With Henkel as one of our investors we are looking forward to integrating our innovative solutions in the commercial marketplace,” said Deckard Sorensen, president of NBD Nano.

Vitro Architectural Glass (formerly PPG Glass) announced it has published Glass Design Guidelines, a pocketsize resource that architects can review with colleagues, engineers, glazing contractors, glass fabricators and other building professionals when drafting or reviewing glass specifications for building projects.

The booklet features a convenient fold-out section that details the eight factors specifiers and design pr ofessionals must consider during the glass design/specification process, including safety, wind and snow loads, thermal stress and surface orientation. The guide also contains details about the full suite of Vitro Glass specification tools available online at vitroglazings.com or the Vitro Glass Education Center. They include a search tool for Vitro Glass’s extensive selection of advanced architectural glass products; a project gallery that shows selected products on finished buildings throughout North America; and an advanced construct tool that architects can use to configure and compare custom insulating glass units then generate finished industr ystandard three-part specifications for the products they select.

Robert Struble, manager of brand and communications at Vitro Architectural Glass, said the guide is a versatile resource for anyone interested in learning more about designing and building with architectural glass. “This booklet covers a lot of ground in a condensed, easy-to-use format that can be accessed quickly,” he explained. “Architects, specifiers, glazing contractors and other building professionals now will have one more valuable resource that can help them manage building projects.”

Richard Wolk, president of Rochester Insulated Glass, passed away suddenly at the age of 62 on Oct. 14. Wolk was the son of RIG founder Stanley Wolk, and the company has done significant business in Ontario over Wolk’s 45-year career. According to an announcement by Wolk’s son, Tyler, Wolk started work at the family enterprise when he was 16. His vision as president of the company was to go beyond standard architectural glass offerings, especially into larger sizes. Tyler will take over as president of RIG.