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August 25, 2015
Good communication with your installers is important, but good communication between you, the installer, and your customer is even more so. That’s Not What I Meant, my latest column, discusses a costly communication lesson I learned the hard way. It wasn’t the first time, and it probably won’t be the last but ultimately, the experience reduced errors.
During my installing days,...
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August 8, 2015
You might be wondering: why should I join WDDA? Or, is it worth me taking time away from my business, and what can I possibly learn that I haven’t already seen or heard? I’d like to take this opportunity to address those commonly asked questions here.
The WDDA understands the concerns of dealers and, over the past several years, the Alliance has focused on getting specialty window and...
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August 8, 2015
The entire team at NGA\WDDA headquarters has been gearing up for GlassBuild America and Window & Door Dealer Days literally all year. And, in actuality, this event has been many years in the making. The Dream Showroom, Express Learning, the Keynote address—they’ve all been ideas that have been incubating for quite some time now. So you can only imagine what the energy is like now...
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June 22, 2015
Three keys to successfully adding new equipment
In order to successfully integrate equipment, it’s critical to think through every piece of the process. It starts even before specifying equipment and soliciting quotes. The first step is to identify the problem the equipment will solve.
Improved ergonomics, enhanced craftsmanship and/or increased production output are all good examples of issues machinery can solve. Make sure you have a...
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June 22, 2015
There are a few specific areas that have a large impact on the integration of new equipment into the production cycle. Rob Macaulay and Mitchell Heckbert, Urban Machinery, have the following tips for each of the critical areas.
Machine Acceptance
Often referred to as “factory run off,” once the machine build is complete, schedule one to two days to visit your supplier’s...
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May 9, 2015
10 pre-purchase considerations when buying new equipment
New equipment has the ability to transform a business. Modernizing or investing in essential technology can increase capacity and open doors to new markets. But, adding machinery can also strain workflow and cause other issues if it isn’t successfully integrated into operations.
To have a successful integration, it’s important to have a vision for what the equipment will mean for your company as...
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April 7, 2015
We now live in a world of smartphones and tablets. Sure, laptops still get plenty of use and desktop computers are still hanging around, although sales dropped a full 10 percent in 2014.
But, by and large, people want portability in their computing. Whether the device of choice is a tablet, smartphone or even a smartwatch, most people have gotten used to using apps for many personal needs. But I...
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March 20, 2015
How the deficiency of qualified talent impacts the window and door industry
It’s hard to find good help these days, especially in the window and door industry. It’s particularly challenging to find skilled labor or even simply to find applicants looking for work in this trade, according to industry professionals.
One of them, Jennifer Lawler, president of Fenessco Inc., a Californiabased window and door dealer, had a particularly interesting perspective. Here...
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March 11, 2015
Is outsourcing an option to labor shortages?
In Window & Door’s recently published article, “The Industry Pulse,” many dealers and manufacturers indicated positive growth in the last year. But, positive growth has brought with it certain challenges—one of which is finding qualified workers.
According to The Associated General Contractors (also cited in the Window & Door coverage), “83 percent of...
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February 24, 2015
I just returned from the AAMA industry conference held last week in Fort Lauderdale. I arrived a day early—the same day my home city of Memphis was being pounded by an ice storm and completely shut down for the next two days. The conference, on the other hand, was just cranking up.
As I texted images back and forth to my wife (hers of ice, mine of sand), it was almost humorous trying to...
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