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BEMA Holds Its Annual Meeting
Members Discuss Standard Development,
Recognize Design Winners
by Ellen Rogers

The first order of business during the Bath Enclosure Manufacturers Association’s (BEMA) annual meeting in Atlanta early in October was to continue ASTM standard development. Once completed, it will be a guideline for safe shower enclosure installations. The document has been submitted to ASTM and balloted twice. The group currently is addressing negatives.

“Hopefully in three to six months time we will see approval through ASTM,” said BEMA president Mark Rowlett of Coastal Industries.

In addition to the standard development, Rowlett also stressed the importance of volunteering time to help the association.

“We need people. The organization is only as good as the people in it and who are involved,” he said. “Become involved to help direct BEMA because there is lots that we can do for it in the future.” Rowlett’s call must have been heard, because the group welcomed two new members during the meeting: Waterfall Bath Enclosures of Carrollton, Texas, and Eastern Glass in Monroe, N.C.

Members also discussed setting future goals and plans, as standard development had been a primary focus for the last few years. Rowlett mentioned working toward developing a training/certification program for installers.

The 2009 Design Award Winners
Also as part of the meeting, BEMA recognized the winners of its 2009 Design Awards. There were four entries in the under 3/8-inch glass category and 11 entries in the 3/8-inch glass and over category.

Don Bielawski, vice president of Easco Shower Doors in Trenton, N.J., accepted the award for the under 3/8-inch category. Their goal had been to “remove as much metal as possible” from the enclosure.

“The installation was of our Expressions series, which features a fully frameless door with through-the-glass hinges and a low profile aluminum channel and header to provide a frameless look at a semi-frameless price,” said Bielawski. “The typical aluminum post was replaced with a glass-to-glass wet-glazed corner to further accentuate the frameless look. ”

Jim Arnold of GlasSource in Grand Haven, Mich., accepted the award in the over 3/8-inch category. He explained that the homeowners wanted the views of the outside to extend throughout the house, which is located on Lake Michigan.

“We constructed not just a shower door, but a glass wall that separated the bathroom from the bedroom,” he said.

To accommodate the owner’s desire, large size panels of ½-inch clear, tempered glass were utilized as floor-to-ceiling dividers. Clips were used to maintain clean lines and expose glass edges, while joining the outer wall with the inner stall. Due to the large scale of the project, oversized C.R. Laurence Atlas commercial hinges and ladder pulls were used to prevent the hardware from being lost in the design.

Ellen Rogers is a contributing editor for USGlass.




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