NewMakers

obituaries
Industry Remembers Former Chicago Glazier’s Union Head
Bernard J. “Bernie” Spatz, 72, of Orland Park, Ill., a 50-year life member of Glaziers Union Local 27, passed away in February. Spatz also served as past president and business manager of the union. He was the retired secretary/treasurer of the Chicago & Cook County Building Trade Council and past president of the International Conference of Glaziers & Glassworkers, as well as a past chairman of the building trades department AFL-CIO for Cook County DAD’s Day (Dollars Against Diabetes Drive).

Trainor’s Kevin Anderson Passes Away
Kevin Anderson, project manager for Trainor Glass Co., passed away on January 29 following a two-year battle with brain cancer. He was 52.

Anderson was born in Des Moines on October 14, 1958, to former Apogee CEO Jerry and his wife, Catherine. He earned his business degree from Arizona State University and went on to a career in the commercial construction glass industry that included time at Harmon Contract, MTH Industries and Trainor Glass Co.

Anderson leaves behind his wife of 22 years, Gail, daughters Sarah and Michelle, sisters Debra Matzke and Karen Lehman, and numerous nieces and nephews.

Industry Mourns Manufacturers Rep David Rosenstein
David J. Rosenstein, 74, formerly of Concord, Mass., and Woodbridge, Conn., died January 28. For the past 30 years he served as a sales representative for Viracon in the northeast United States and Canada, and was recognized on several occasions with the company’s Salesman of the Year award. He also represented W&W Glass LLC, Sota Glazing Inc., Crane Revolving Doors and Ellison Bronze.

Rosenstein leaves behind his children Marc, Sarah and Sam.

Littleton Glass Owner Passes Away
Dale Erickson, who had served as the owner of Littleton Glass in Littleton, Colo., passed away in January. He began his glass industry career in 1957 and continued in the field until this year.

Erickson’s son, Gary, is the owner of Highlands Ranch Glass and his grandson, Joel, also works for Highlands Ranch.

kudos
Mainstreet Computers Team Member Celebrates 25-Year Anniversary
Mainstreet Computers, a glass shop software and web services provider in Belleville, Mich., announced the “25th work anniversary” of David Daniels, product development manager.

“Words cannot express my appreciation for Dave’s dedication and understanding of the value of technology in business. Working with him has been an unmitigated blessing. I can’t believe it went by so fast!” says David Carnahan, Mainstreet’s president and founder. “His experience in working with glass companies in addition to outstanding problem solving skills has enabled us to continually adapt our software and service offerings to meet the changing needs of the industry.”

Daniels began working part time at Mainstreet in 1986 while a senior at Eastern Michigan University. He joined the company full time after earning his degree in information systems.

“ I remember thinking, ‘This is going to look great on my resume.’ Twenty-five years later and I have never finished that resume. This is a testament to the culture here at Mainstreet Computers,” Daniels says.

AMinuteWith …
Matthew JaBaay
President of Doralco Architectural Metals

USG: What do you feel the future holds for Doralco?
MJ: With the new vision our team shares, we’re starting our best year ever. We have made substantial changes to our organization and have some new additions to our team as well, with the experience to continue our growth. Coupled with a newfound energy and excitement, we are going to have a record-setting year.

USG: What are your goals for the company?
MJ: Everyday, I wake up and see the news of another plant downsizing or closing and am thankful that we have the right customers and the right team to grow in this economy. It took a few months, but Doralco is ready to grow again. We’re going to pursue that …

USG: How do you measure success?
MJ: Easy question: repeat customers and new customer growth. Everything has to be right to get repeat business, and people talk about outstanding work. We know it’s going best when we see the same companies keep coming back along with new customers in the same areas.

USG: What are the advantages Doralco offers customers?
MJ: The easy answer here is always quality. The problem is that anyone can say they deliver quality because it is subjective and a customer won’t know until it’s too late …

I believe the real answer is value. Value is something that most can agree on, it is more about how we help our customers get their job done better, easier and at a lower cost. Usually, [our products] are one of the last things in the construction schedule, making it even more important that our work is perfect. We know how critical it is for buildings to open on time. We make sure our customers receive our products ready to install, instead of having to assemble or figure them out.

It sounds simple, but you would be surprised at how much we save our customers by just thinking the job through for them …

USG: Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
MJ: We don’t try to do everything. We stand out and have been growing because we stay close to our talents, making architectural metal products that are the highest quality and the best value …

USG
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