CompanyNews

Quanex to Close Kentucky Plant, Restructure IG Operations
Quanex Building Products Corp. in Houston will close its Barbourville, Ky., location and release approximately 200 employees, says George L. Wilson, general manager of Quanex Insulating Glass Systems.

The equipment used to manufacture the single-seal warm-edge spacer system at the Barbourville plant will be relocated to the company’s Cambridge, Ohio, facility.

There will be a few salaried employee jobs created in Cambridge, and “we anticipate most will be filled locally,” Wilson says. “In terms of hourly union employees, it’s all being negotiated now with the union.”

Wilson says that the 400,000-square-foot manufacturing facility in Cambridge can handle all the existing equipment, and has 200,000 square feet open. “All the equipment from the Barbourville plants is being transferred,” he says. “We are not adding additional capacity, and will continue with the existing capacity. Customers are being contacted about the closure.”

“While it was a very difficult decision to close our spacer facility in Kentucky, we believe this consolidation will allow us to better serve our customers through streamlined operations,” adds David D. Petratis, Quanex president and chief executive officer.

The restructuring plan also includes the consolidation of administrative functions, as well as research and development.

The consolidation of operations and the subsequent closure of the Barbourville facility are expected to be completed during Quanex’s fiscal third quarter 2012.
www.quanex.com


Mr. Shower Door Plans for Expansion
Mr. Shower Door in Naples, Fla., will now be known as My Shower Door to reflect its expansion in Florida.

The current name, Mr. Shower Door, is part of a licensed agreement with a Northern founding company. The new name will be wholly owned by its Florida owners, the Daubmann family.

“The new identity is fresh and alive and is more personal than the previous, nationally licensed one,” says Bill Daubmann, co-owner. ”We are perfectly positioned to open more frameless shower door showrooms within Florida over the next two years as the business plan has been tested and proven in various markets elsewhere.”

A beta test site showroom, using a similar business model as My Shower Door, was opened this past year in the Midwest and has exceeded projected income levels thus far. An additional location will open in the near future.

My Shower Door has showrooms in Naples and Fort Myers, Fla. A third location opens this month in Sarasota, Fla.

Along with the rebranding come expansion plans in Southwest Florida. To supply the product needed for each My Shower Door location, the Daubmann family has invested in a glass manufacturing facility in Lee County, Fla. The subsidiary company, D3 Glass, was formed to augment the current capabilities.

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The Insulating Glass Manufacturers Alliance’s revamped website, www.igmaonline.org, features a technical corner that includes technical presentations from IGMA, video presentations on glass handling safety, a full archive of the “SIGMA-grams” offered by the former Sealed Insulating Glass Manufacturers Association, as well as articles and commentary from IGMA technical consultant Bill Lingnell, PE. The site also offers online registration for events and an improved user experience

AGC Glass Co. North America in Alpharetta, Ga., has unveiled its redesigned corporate website, www.us.agc.com. It features improved navigation and expanded resources, and has been designed to be more user-friendly

FeneTech Inc. in Aurora, Ohio, has updated its website at www.fenetech.com/us, as well as its corporate logo.

USG
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