Buggin' Out

September/October 2003

The Chevrolet Suburban’s windshield features the company’s “bug.” When distributor Tim Conklin had a glass shop call for one, he didn’t know where to turn.

Buggin' Out
Retailers Face Demands for Branded OEM Glass
by Leslie Shaver

While Tim Conklin of Wholesale Glass Distributors in Charleston, S.C., has seen thousands and thousands of windshields in his 25-year career in auto glass replacement, he may never
forget the DW1341—a windshield for the Chevrolet Suburban. A glass shop first called him seeking the windshield after a pesky customer kept insisting on the windshield, which had a General Motors (GM) label—or “bug,” as it is called in the industry.

“His customer said that he had to have the bug, but could not find it,” Conklin said.

While it was rare for GM to put its own brand on the windshield, Conklin had remembered seeing the windshield with the GM bug a few months earlier.

“I had hundreds of them in stock from different manufacturers (PPG Industries of Pittsburgh, Pilkington of Toledo, Ohio, and Guardian Industries Corp. of Auburn Hills, Mich.),” he said. “I first checked my stock and then called PPG and LOF. They told me they no longer supplied these windshields with GM logos. A few months earlier I had checked and they all had GM logos on them. At some point, my OEM suppliers had stopped stamping them with the logo.”

This time, however, when he went to order it, he was told that he had to go through a GM dealer. The customer eventually got his windshield, but it had cost the auto glass retailer a whole lot more. This can be typical of what glass retailers and wholesalers face when a customer insists on having a manufacturer’s logo on his windshield. The issue could become even bigger as GM begins putting its bugs on more of the windshields it manufactures for OE use. In addition to the Silverado, the company is rolling out its own bugs on the Bravada and Envoy with more models to follow.

Currently, Ford, DaimlerChrysler and higher-end manufacturers, such as BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes, also have their logos on some of their windshields.

“It’s an attempt by the manufacturer to copyright its glass,” said Catherine Howard, vice president/general manager of National Auto Glass Specifications (NAGS) in San Diego.

Selling the Bug
by Leslie Shaver

When Mark Rizzi, owner of ACR Glass in Alliance, Neb., is educating a customer about auto glass, he tells them there are two key components to the installation—the quality of the installation itself and the quality of the materials—specifically the glass. Since most customers don’t know the difference between a good installation and a bad one, Rizzi thinks the only real way a glass shop can differentiate itself from its competitors is the quality of its glass.

And, the best way to do this? Rizzi said it is putting in glass with a manufacturer’s logo that is recognizable to the average customer.

“Ultimately, the manufacturer’s logo should be the proof to the customer that the quality in the part is there,” he said. “If you take a Chrysler windshield with a Chrysler star out of a Chrysler vehicle, and you put a Chrysler windshield with a Chrysler star back in, you are halfway to showing the customer you have put it back to OEM specs.”

Of course, the key to this sales technique is explaining to the customer why it is important to have the OEM windshield in the car. While some may downplay the importance of the manufacturer’s windshield, Rizzi is not one of those people. He tells customers about the importance of the glass to the safety systems of the car and warns them that if you slightly alter something in the car, you could render the safety systems useless. Then he lets them decide.

“You have to listen to them and give them what want,” he said, “But you have to be responsible to them, too. Ultimately, if it comes back, I am the first stop on the liability trail.”

He said about 60 to 70 percent of his customers are interested in OEM glass. This number could go up if car manufacturers starting putting their bugs on the windshield.

“The selling point is there,” he said. “Do you want the manufacturer of the part who put it in the factory or do you want something else from someone who is not an OEM supplier? Most of them [customers] don’t think twice.”

Manufacturers brand their glass to control the distribution channels and therefore price, according to an executive for a Midwestern glass company who preferred to remain anonymous. While Cristi Chojnacki, spokesperson for GM, is fairly tight-lipped about the company’s reasons for putting its logo on all of its windshields, she admits it gives the company greater control over distribution.
“It gives us a good way to keep track of who is using our glass,” she said.

Whether they sell an auto glass distributor the rights to sell glass or do it through their dealer supply chain, auto manufacturers can earn more money by branding their glass. Unfortunately for auto glass retailers, this possible higher cost of glass and the hassle of going through an auto dealer to get it can be an issue when a glass shop has a customer that insists on the manufacturer’s logo on his windshield.

What The Customer Wants
Fortunately, not every customer needs a manufacturer’s bug on his windshield. As a matter of fact, most consumers won’t even notice what logos are on their windshields.

“There are not a lot of people walking this earth who are concerned about what logo is on their windshield,” said the Midwestern glass executive.

Another shop owner doubts that consumers will care much about what is on their windshields unless the auto manufacturers market these logos.

“The customer will want these windshields if [GM] spends the money necessary to convince the once-in-a-lifetime buyer of windshields that they have to have the GM logo,” said Neal Golding, chief executive officer of Keystone Auto Glass in Toledo, Ohio.

And what are the chances of this happening?

“Not very likely,” Golding said.

But Tim Taylor, president of Thru-Way Auto Glass Distributors in Syracuse, N.Y., said a number of his customers who are glass retailers have customers who request original glass.

“A lot of people want original equipment (OE) glass,” Taylor said.

And, if the OE glass has a manufacturer’s bug, these people may want it, too.

The need for manufacturers’ bugs could become even more acute for people with high-end cars. If consumers have a Mercedes or BMW or a car with a special-edition windshield, the logo on the glass may matter to them.

When it comes to finding glass with a specific manufacturer’s bug, the main hurdle for auto glass retailers goes back to the car manufacturer’s control of the distribution of that part. In most cases, shops are forced to buy from the local car dealerships.

This is because of a tricky agreement between the glass manufacturer and the auto manufacturer. When Pilkington manufactures glass for a company such as Chrysler, it may run two separate batches of the exact same glass—one with the Pilkington bug and another with the Chrysler bug. The glass with the Chrysler logo will then go through the auto manufacturer’s parts supply chain. Though it may have extra quantities of this glass, Pilkington can only put it through its supply chain if it buys the rights from Chrysler to sell the glass with its logo. So, unless, the glass manufacturer has this type of agreement with the automotive manufacturer, a glass shop can often only get the glass from its local car dealership, sans the OE bug.

“If auto manufacturers can establish proprietary rights for their parts, their dealers would be the only source,” Howard said.

Auto glass retailers will certainly notice some differences when they have to go to their local car dealers for glass. For one thing, glass shops will have to be prepared to wait longer for glass. Consequently, they need to also inform their customers that the jobs could take longer. Unlike wholesalers, selling glass is not an auto service center’s primary responsibility, and this is sometimes noticeable in their service.

“Car dealers like to sell parts under the hood,” Golding said. “They are not as excited about those parts above the hood [like glass].”

Others notice this as well.

“I don’t think they [auto service centers] really want to deal with selling glass,” Conklin said. “It can be very painful for them. They will get a box of windshields and half of them will be broken.”

Because many car dealership service centers don’t want to deal with selling glass, it could take longer for glass shops to get windshields from them. This could eventually become an issue for car owners who are used to getting things right away, said some in the glass industry.

Original vs. Aftermarket Windshields
Are They the Same?
by Allan Skidmore

Editor’s Note: The following was originally scheduled to run as the first installment of TCG International chief executive officer Allan Skidmore’s column, “Al Speaks,” but fit so well with this topic that the AGRR staff decided to run it as a sidebar here. Look for future articles by Mr. Skidmore, our newest columnist, in future issues. As with all our columnists, his opinion is strictly his own.)

Are you fibbing to your AGR customers when you tell them they’re getting “OE-quality” glass? For some 30 years my company has been buying glass from manufacturers, who presented themselves as “original-equipment (OE) suppliers” of aftermarket glass.

For years, the term “OE-quality” glass has been an accepted standard in the AGR market and has commanded a premium price. Since part of my business, Autostock International, sells but doesn’t manufacture aftermarket glass, I depend entirely on my suppliers. I’ve always believed the “OE-quality” glass, for which I was paying a premium, was a cut above the average run-of-the-mill aftermarket glass (because my suppliers told me it was).

Imagine my surprise when one supplier told the U.S. International Trade Commission something entirely different. While making its case against the Chinese manufacturers during last spring’s anti-dumping hearings, the supplier drew a clear distinction between aftermarket and OEM glass. In the process, the company effectively rendered “OE-quality AGR” an oxymoron.

What I’m saying here is based on sworn testimony before the U.S. government.

Quite frankly, I didn’t really want to believe that the suppliers of “OE-quality” glass were fibbing to me all these years. After all, I have my reputation to consider, because if they fibbed, then I have passed that fib on to my customers when I’ve sold them “OE-quality” glass. As that now seems to be the case, I offer my customers my most humble apology, but I think I have it straight now.

Aftermarket vs. OEM
At least one of these suppliers now says OE glass is OE glass, and aftermarket is aftermarket, and never the twain shall meet. The company testified: “The fact that PPG’s ARG windshields are not produced to the same tight specifications and tolerances as OEM windshields does not mean they are ‘lesser’ in quality—they’re simply different.”¹ I’m still shaking my head over that!

Having bought into the concept of “OE quality,” I assumed I was paying a premium all these years for OE glass, not glass that was “different.”¹ However, PPG clearly stated, “No OEM customer accepts ARG windshields for OEM applications.”¹ So, now I’m wondering what exactly I was getting.

According to PPG’s testimony, OEM glass is manufactured only for OEM customers according to proprietary specifications, while aftermarket glass is necessarily (not being privy to those specifications) reverse-engineered. PPG’s quality control for the former is much stricter than for the latter.1 The company also said aftermarket glass and OEM glass are produced on totally separate facilities, with two exceptions.

The first is a small surplus produced exclusively for OEM customers for warranty work and dealer sales. The second exception is what it called “fugitive” OEM. In a way, I hoped this would exonerate them, but that was not the case. These windshields do come off the OEM line, but PPG stated they “ … typically do not meet all of [the OEM customer’s] specs. They are, however, suitable for the aftermarket as replacements ...”¹ But, if they don’t meet OEM customer specifications, how can they be “OE-quality?”

The Distribution Factor
Furthermore, PPG ‘s aftermarket and OEM windshields have distinct distribution channels, with measures to ensure they are not mistaken. The company testified, “… once a windshield enters the ARG distribution channel, it never ends up in an OEM application.”¹

Ironically, in trying to win this anti-dumping case, PPG has shot itself in the foot. In proving its case, the company actually admitted its aftermarket is not really superior to the aftermarket glass manufactured in China, Mexico or elsewhere in the world. The company testified, “The best of the Chinese producers probably are close to as good as the best U.S. producers.”¹

I’d like to thank PPG for exonerating Bill Chase (founder of Shat-R-Proof Corp., now deceased) and other aftermarket glass manufacturers, who said all along there could be no such thing as “OE-quality” aftermarket glass. Now, unless someone proves otherwise, I’ll not believe any aftermarket glass is “OE-quality,” any more than I believe in a fine fabric visible to only an elite few.

I may be just a little guy from British Columbia, Canada, but I’m a lot like the little guy who figured out the emperor was naked. I have told my people, as I am telling the readers of this fine publication, that our modern-day “emperors” in the glass industry have just admitted there is no such thing as “OE-quality” automotive replacement glass. (I presume, the other “OE” glass manufacturers agree with PPG’s sworn testimony—as none gave testimony to the contrary.)

So, make sure as you mind your business day-in and day-out that you are not fibbing to your AGR customers.

Allan Skidmore is the co-executive chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of TCG International (TCGI), which is based in Vancouver, British Columbia.

1Cited from PPG's testimony in the anti-dumping case, available from the U.S. International Trade Commission. See May/June 2001 AGRR for related story, page 33.

Price Pressures
In most cases, this causes price increases. One of the main reasons could be that auto glass manufacturers are not focused on the aftermarket and could set prices for the benefit of their auto glass retailers, Howard said. Or, they could even set them higher to try to compensate for incentives such as zero-percent financing and rebates on new car sales. Though no one knows what Ford’s rationale is, the Midwestern executive said this is indeed the case on its branded Carlite glass.
“Carlite has attained a higher glass price than non-OEM glass,” he said.

Of course, Howard also said there is the possibility for a windshield with the manufacturer’s bug to cost less. This could happen if manufacturers base their dealer pricing to car dealerships on their original costs for the glass when purchased in large quantities or if they are keeping the prices low for warranty purposes.

In the long run, Howard’s best advice for auto glass retailers is to do their homework.
“It basically depends on what level of pricing is set by the service parts group,” she said.

These higher prices can also push glass off of the NAGS system, making it a dealer part. For instance, if the NAGS List for a piece of glass hits $5,000, it is recalculated at a different formula to lower the list price. In this case, it may be better that the auto glass retailer gets the part from a car dealership instead of a glass distributor.

“Most glass distributors will net-price those parts rather than take a loss through the normal discounting arrangements they have with their retail customers,” Howard said. “That leaves the retailer with very slim margins on the glass. However, there should never be a situation [in which] the retailer is selling the glass at a loss,” she said. “He may not be making much on it, but he is at least covering his material costs. That leaves the question of the labor gap. We all know that it takes more than $40 to pay for an installer’s time, benefits, vehicle, insurance, maintenance, etc. That is where it hurts the retailer.”

In no case is this more apparent than Ford’s recent recall of 7,000 leaky Taurus windshields. Once the customer took the problem to the auto service center, it would either do the work itself or sublet it to a local glass shop. The problem for glass retailers occurred when the car maker controlled both the flow of work and the cost of glass. In some areas, auto dealerships were offering a fixed cost for glass of about $200 for glass shops to fix their warranty work. This was hardly enough to replace glass profitably, according to the owners of several shops interviewed for this article.

Mary Birkl, co-owner of Ossi’s Auto Glass in Cockeysville, Md., installs glass in an area with a lot of higher-end cars—Mercedes, BMWs and Jaguars. Many of these drivers insist on glass that Birkl and her husband, Ossi, can obtain only through automotive car dealers.

If she is lucky, Birkl said she can get a 25-percent discount on these windshields. The insurance company will then reimburse her at 20-percent over cost since the windshield is an “R” part. But, without getting money for labor and kits, she loses money. So, she said her shop has quit putting in what she calls dealer parts.

Taylor said most retailers in his area give a 15-percent price break. With little money from LYNX or Safelite above this, it’s hard for the retailers he sees to make money.

“If glass shops have to go through the car dealership, they make a lot less money,” he said.

Taylor sees installing glass from dealers as nothing other than building customer loyalty.

But one person did say that installing OEM glass—even from car dealerships—can be a positive.

“The bug on the windshield can be one of the best selling points,” said Mark Rizzi, owner of ACR Glass in Alliance, Neb. “I have gone to a lot of effort to educate people about the difference between types of glass.”

OE vs. Aftermarket Windshields
No, They Are Very Different
by Monica Mathews and Blair Imbody

Editor’s Note: The following is excerpted from a column that originally ran in the September/October 2002 issue of AGRR (see page 26).

All windshields are not created equal. And creating the highest quality automotive windshield starts with a strong attention to detail, manufacturing expertise, substantial OE (original equipment) supply experience, leading technology, quality raw materials and, most importantly, great people to bring it all together.

Float Glass Production (Flat Glass)
The quality difference starts with the very beginning of part manufacture—the raw materials. Everyone may know that glass is made from sand, but to transform it into high-quality, automotive-grade glass requires significant expertise and technology. Sand, along with several other raw materials, such as soda ash and dolomite, are checked for just the right physical characteristics before they are released to put into the melting furnace. Even tiny contaminants in sand can create seriously flawed glass.
As glass is being produced, some say there is a decrease in quality if it is made for the aftermarket.
The highest grade of mass-produced automotive glass is manufactured from what is commonly referred to in the industry as the float process. The float process is the standard in the industry and was developed originally by Pilkington. It has been licensed by all the major glass manufacturers throughout the world.

The investment to build a float plant is significant with costs ranging from $85 to $135 million dollars. Today’s advancements in technology regarding the float process center around automation and inspection capabilities. For example, Pilkington is developing inspection capabilities that target a hundred million measurements per second to check for extremely small flaws in the glass. Float glass is made in one never-ending ribbon or sheet, typically 12 feet wide, and with the machine running 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for about 10 years continuously. As the glass ribbon comes off the end of the float line, it is cut into smaller useable sheets (referred to as block size). These sheets are then sent on to be used in windshield production.

Glass Design Considerations
Glass manufacturers face design challenges in both the areas of aesthetics and safety. OE windshields must be produced to meet vehicle manufacturers’ design expectations and to maximize optical quality and fit to the vehicle. One of the OE glass manufacturer’s biggest challenges with windshield production is to maintain excellent optical quality and fit on parts with complex bends. It’s like trying to wrap a plastic sheet around a ball without getting wrinkles. In order to manufacture glass at the highest quality levels, a supplier must have broad experience in working closely with multiple leading vehicle manufacturers. Without this experience, many required glass specifications, tolerances and design issues will not be known.

OE glass suppliers work with the vehicle designers and engineers to minimize the amount of wrinkles in bent glass. Tools such as computer-aided design and simulation are used to predict the final properties of a given design shape. Without ever having to bend that first prototype windshield for a new vehicle design, computer analysis models can provide accurate information regarding the bend consistency, glass fit performance, optical quality and surface contour. This information is used to work with the vehicle designers to develop the best design for performance and ability to manufacture. This process can be used for both laminated windshield and tempered automotive applications.

As mentioned above, in addition to satisfying the vehicle manufacturers’ design expectations, glass for automotive OE applications needs to be nearly flawless. An OE glass supplier’s manufacturing expertise and technology must be capable of achieving these high specifications.

Benefits
Today’s vehicle manufacturers expect the OE glass suppliers to support their design intentions and an OE glass supplier’s technology must meet those expectations head-on. Modern car glazing is a prominent feature in a vehicle and, as mentioned, a key element in design, styling and the overall structural integrity of the vehicle. Automotive glass or “glazings” are now more than ever regarded as transparent body panels. Steep installation angles for greater aerodynamics, thinner glass for vehicle weight reduction, larger window areas, flush glass mountings and shapes that blend into the bodywork are becoming more common. These trends present challenges to OE glass suppliers in terms of achieving complex shapes combined with high levels of optical quality and performance.

Windshields that are manufactured to OE specifications have these types of benefits:

• defect/contaminant-free glass meeting automotive grade requirements;

• leading edge-bending technology for stress-crack reduction;

• optical quality for better driver visibility;

• ceramic paint quality to improve appearance and block ultraviolet (UV) light to ensure long-term adhesive-to-glass bonding;

• a good fit between the glass surface and the vehicle body ensuring quality installations, improving moulding appearance, reducing wind noise levels and enhancing overall occupant safety;

• quality windshield assembly with consistent PVB to glass adhesion for structural integrity and durability; and

• solar control to reduce the heat and UV transmission into the vehicle to improve climate control and passenger comfort.

We are able to meet specifications such as these with a strong attention to detail, manufacturing expertise, cutting edge technology, quality materials and, of course, great people. Thus, it is very clear that all windshields are not created equal.

Blair Imbody is Pilkington’s former director of marketing. Monica Mathews is the manager of quality and packaging for Pilkington AGR. She is based in Columbus, Ohio.

Leslie Shaver is a contributing editor for AGRR magazine.

AGRR