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GlassBuild America continued today in Atlanta.
The second day of GlassBuild America is in full swing. The National Glass Association (NGA) extended the show’s hours because the weather prevented many people from being able to arrive in time for GlassBuild’s first day.
The demand for larger glass, more customization and trendy materials is driving much of the exhibitors’ product creation in recent years.
Arizona Shower Door is showing its new double-sided barn sliding door and matte black shower hardware. According to Travis Garton, vice president of branch operations at Arizona Shower Door, the shower door industry is often reactionary toward the big companies.
As the economy continues to improve and people’s disposable income increases, more and more consumers are looking to customize their bathroom hardware. Arizona Shower Door’s product design is driven by the big shower head manufacturers. They create hardware to match, such as their new matte black products.
This same trend can be seen at Akzo Nobel Coatings Inc. The company is showing their new brilliance line of powder coatings.
“Architects want coating to have a metallic brightness, not high gloss. Imagine a sunset in New York and the building glistening when light shines upon it,” said John Sherman, account manager at Akzo Nobel.
Architect demand is also driving product creation at Wrisco Industries Inc. According to division manager Robert Todd at Wrisco, architects want unique products that pop.
“Before the Great Recession, there was a trend toward longer spans and lintels and less seams. That all went away after the recession. Now that the economy is improving, it’s getting back to that demand for bigger, customized pieces. That’s a lot of what we’re moving toward,” said Todd.
Wrisco is showing many new colors in its architectural metals to meet that demand.
Even machinery companies are working to accommodate grander design. Quattrolifts is showing the Vector 800, a glass lifting machine that can hold up to 1,800 pounds.
“Over the past three or four years, bigger glass is becoming popular in the U.S., and Quattrolifts is creating machines that can hold those heavier panels of glass,” said Chip Olson, a sales representative of Quattrolifts.
GlassBuild will continue at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center through Thursday afternoon. USGNN.com™ will provide coverage throughout the show’s duration.
