Glass Show Seminars I Would Like To See

The big show is coming to Atlanta. I was looking over the list of seminars, and while they looked very interesting and informative, there were some I thought were missing. Since I can see the future, here are some seminars from a glass show of the future:

• How To Read The Calendar (Section I)--For Glass Shops---learn how to smudge dates on purchase orders; how to prove your fabricator was late and can be back charged; discover why your vendor's payment terms of 30 days really equals 75.

• How To Read The Calendar (Section II)--For Fabricators---learn how to easily add a week for delivery and keep most of your customers happy; Why does saying Monday really mean Tuesday, in English and Spanish; How to blame: a) the fax machine b) the clerk you fired yesterday; 10 surefire excuses for missing delivery dates

• How To Order Chinese Glass--It Is Easier Than You Think---Pick a building owner planning to sell the building within six months, eliminating concern with impossible re-orders; prepare a press release saying you believe in the international economy for all peoples; Have the glass delivered at night in plain, unmarked crates

• A Seminar On The Many Uses For Failed IG Units---Our speaker told us he had nothing to discuss...we will reschedule this for next year

• A First Timer's Look At Tempered Shower Doors---They are so easy that any glazier can do them; Why the phrase "out-of-square" means nothing; How to measure doors to a 1/4" tolerance; How to order a Mickey Mouse notch without out the need for the Goofy drawings; 5 ways to place your own tempered logo on annealed glass

• A Presentation on Sexist and Racist Jokes That Are Acceptable In Every Glass Shop---Our presenter will tell you how to offend everyone without breaking the law; Why sexist jokes work better with props; Telling racist jokes in multiple languages

• How Smoking Pot On The Job Will Help You Lift Those Heavy IG Units---(There is an additional $20 fee for the hands-on section of this seminar) Smoking pot gives you super-human feelings...How to channel this energy to productive work; Sharing the good stuff so every one can work at the same pace; The timing of giving pot to your customers...before the final inspection or with the presentation of the invoice; Discover the list of employers who don't drug test

• Fashions Of The Glass Worker---10 different blue jean styles that will show the top of your butt; Wearing T-shirts with foul language and obscene pictures actually makes you feel better; Why changing your clothes at least once a week will be good for business

• Why The Wage And Hour Laws Don't Apply To You---Paying taxes restricts your rights; Overtime laws are for sissies; The proper amounts to offer as bribes for various situations

A Eulogy for Cheshire

This is an odd blog. I lost an old friend this past week. The passing was quite unexpected, but then again, I hadn't seen the reports prior to the death announcment. Oldcastle Glass announced the closing of their plant in Cheshire, CT., which was one of the plants I was involved with for twenty years at Floral Glass, and then with Oldcastle Glass.


This one hit home with me. This is not some statistic. I hired or promoted many of the people there, worked with them, praised them, and when necessary, took them to the wood shed. It was a simple plant, back in the day. Our parent plant provided a lot of their material, and they did a good job redistributing tempered and making IG. They were a dominent force in southern New England, more based on the personality of the players than on the glass pricing and service levels. This was a plant based on people's interactions with customers.


And yet, things must change, must move on. Oldcastle Glass invested heavily in this plant, placing a modern tempering line and handling equipment there. They upgraded the computers, and trained folks in the Oldcastle Glass systems. So, with great people, and new equipment, what happened?


Damned if I know. Oldcastle Glass does not have me on their speed dial list any more. They didn't ask my permission to close this plant. In fact, they probably blamed me somehow. Such is life. The scuttlebut I heard was that the profitablitly of the plant just wasn't there, and the number crunchers had to make a tough decision.


I hope this was a tough decision. I hope they considered the forty or so families that this impacted. I hope they debated this for quite a while in the home office, maybe came up with ideas to hold on somehow. I guess, in the long run, they didn't come up with that magic idea that would change the economy around Cheshire, CT. There was on going conversations with a local union and this might have had some impact. Who knows. We are not supposed to know. America is based on private enterprise, and Oldcastle Glass has to do what is in the best interest of their stockholders. It is just that I knew these people who lost their jobs.


If you are in the glass industry in central Connecticut, keep your eyes open for a lot of good employees who are looking for work. Dig around, they are there, and are really good people.

Are You Ready For The End Of The Recession?

"Hey, Bieber, what are you talking about...I'm not worried about the end of the recession...I just want to survive during the recession." So I said to Negative Norman, "You have to look ahead, and here is what you can do."

First, accept the fact that the recession will end. They always do. Your job is to decide when it will end for your business. You want to be taking actions three to six months before the business turns around. When will it turn around? Look at the leading indicators in your business area. Are there building permits being pulled? Are the drafting services starting to get busy? Are the architects calling for specs? Is there a new Dunkin Donuts or Starbucks going in the area, or being renovated? Watch the big companies, and you don't need your own economist to advise you.

Once a month, call the human resources office at the biggest company in your area and ask if they are hiring. If they say no for the next two months, and in the third month, they say yes, that can be your signal.

OK, you feel the economy may start growing again, what do you do?

• Get all vacations out of the way now. You don't want people taking time off when you want to respond to business.
• Get your trucks fixed up, painted, cleaned, and ready to roll each day.
• Finish painting and decorating your showroom; people will be coming in. Replace the burned out light bulbs and update your displays!
• Finish the computerization you have been working on. You don't want any distractions.
• Meet with your vendors to get current pricing on your main products, with the intent of increasing volume. Most glass fabricators are hungry and will respond well to this.
• Look at a few new items to carry in your showroom...maybe a wood or vinyl window, how about a sandblasted shower door.
• The hottest thing I keep seeing is color infused glass. Lear more about this from your fabricators.
• Get current literature and specs on the products you currently work with. Be ready to quickly respond to architects and builders about the energy-efficiency numbers of low-e.
• Spend a couple of bucks and get your crew new T-shirts. Nothing spells success like a sharp looking installation team, and nothing is worse than a poor looking team when someone walks into your shop.
• Get rid of the trash around your building. Customers don't want to buy from a junk dealer, and if they do, they are not the customers who will be spending the big bucks.

The single most important thing you can do? Set your attitude to positive. Let your employees know how you feel, and make it infectious.

You may be off by a month or so; so what. The economy will turn, I personally guarantee it. I just don't know when for your area.

Yes, Labor Day Is Important

Labor unions are declining to their lowest membership . Economic realities of this year say, "you are lucky to have a job...don't complain, don't ask for more money, and you had better be a team player." So, why is labor day, when we pay people not to work, important to us in the glass industry?

Because we are not an assembly-line industry. Just about every piece of customer glass has to be measured, cut, fabricated, delivered and installed by people. People who have skills; people who have relationships.

As glass shop owners, plant managers and foremen, we need to remember that machinery does not build a plant. Bricks and mortar only keep the rain out. It is people that make things happen...it is people that create revenue which leads to profit which leads to reinvestment and growth.

Just as it is not a good time for an employee to complain, an employer should never complain openly. Your job for Labor Day is to thank each and every employee for working up to their capacity and helping your organization stay afloat. Wait-a-minute...you have a couple of people who don't work up to their capacity and you don't want to thank them? Go hit yourself with a baseball bat! By now, you should have changed your workforce so that every employee is working at their best level. It is an employer's market. Git rid of your malingerers, and hire rising stars. There are millions of people looking for work, most who will work very hard for a new employer.

How do you get the best out of your employees? Simple.

1. Have an employee manual which states the goals and obligations of the company and of the workforce.


2. Have simple job descriptions for each employee, to measure if the employee is meeting the needs of the job.


3. Have an annual review system that gives feedback to and from the employee so that management and the workers have a solid understanding of what to do.


4. If you follow one, two and three, then four is easy...your business will be profitable, and you will have less headaches, so....be happy coming to work.

I hope you enjoyed the long weekend. Now, enjoy the short week.

The Final Steps in Hiring

You have decided to hire Richard Newguy. He fits the job to a T. You interviewed him twice, checked his last job reference, and you are ready to call Richard and offer him the job. The next couple of days determine whether Richard will be a success at your shop, and Richard has nothing to do with it. It is up to you!

Two different processes here. One is getting Mr. Newguy ready, and the other is preparing your current people to accept him and make him feel part of the team.

Let's work on Mr. Newguy. After he says "'YES", plan one short meeting with him to give him your employee manual and insurance sign-up paperwork. (If you don't have an employee manual, start now planning to create one) Have Richard read the employee manual front cover-to-cover.
Send Richard for his drug-testing at this point. (If you are not drug testing, what are you waiting for--more on this another day.) Make a copy of his driver's license to send to your insurance company for a motor vehicle department background check. (We'll cover this another time, too.)

You are giving Richard a "conditional" offer of employment, that is he is hired if he passes his drug test and driving background search. You cannot withdraw your offer if he does pass. Call him as soon as these tests come back and congratulate him on officially becoming an employee.

If he is working out a two-week notice at a previous employer, contact him every couple of days. If Richard is as good as you hope, his current boss will be attempting to retain him with offers of more money or responsibility. This will turn heads if the offers are enough. By keeping in touch, he is reminded of his commitment to you. Tell him, if an offer comes up, where was the current employer before this? Why did it require Richard giving notice in order to get his long overdue raise? This is a critical time in Richard's mind. He is weighing the devil he knows, versus your unknown.

Have his new supervisor call during this period also. You want to start to develop the relationship that will be so important. If Richard asks you questions, tell him his supervisor will call back with the answers. This helps cement the line of authority. Make sure the supervisor has briefed Richard on your dress codes, parking spaces, lunch options, and an overview of what his first couple of days will be like. Emphasize that he will get plenty of help and training so he can be successful.

On the evening before his last day at the current job, make one last phone call. Tomorrow he will probably have a small party and say good-bye to his friends. They will all say how much they will miss Richard and this will tug on him. Fortify him with the knowledge that he is joining a new family and a new career with your company. Also, remind him what he needs to bring with him for Monday morning, things like driver's license, immigration paperwork if relevant, and a signed copy of the receipt for the employee manual.

At your company, tell people that Richard Newguy will be joining you and what his responsibilities will be, who his supervisor is, and who may be reporting to him. Have your personnel office, or your secretary, or whomever handles this ready for him on Monday morning. Have his payroll created so that there is no running around. Get the paperwork out of the way as quickly as possible. Have his supervisor give Richard a tour of the whole place, introducing Richard as they walk through. Everyone should be expecting him and should greet him by name.

Changing jobs is traumatic for the individual. They always say: "Should I have done this? " There is Monday-morning quarterbacking for the first couple of days, until they settle in. Assign a buddy to work with Richard and show him the ropes. Have the buddy go to lunch with Richard for a day or two and generally be his guide to the area.


Check in with Richard after his first day and answer any questions. Do this again on his third or fourth day, and at the end of that session, declare him ready to go to work!

Follow-up on Cash for Glass

OK, it was a radical idea. Having our major floaters and fabricators all go bankrupt so the government would buy them, just like the car companies. But, I heard from many readers who suggested which glass companies should go down the tubes.


No one company led the race to the bottom. It seemed that just about everybody had someone willing to volunteer them for bankruptcy.


The disappointing part is that I didn't hear from any floaters or fabricators stepping up and doing the volunteer thing. Not one patriotic company out there, willing to give it all up for the good of the industry. I had the letter ready to go, the one to Congress urging that the US government buy___________Glass Company (just waiting to fill in the blank), and start the rebate program.


Such is life, another good idea from your friendly blogger goes down the drain. This year I have been cheering for the Mets, predicting a strong economy by the 3rd quarter, and now, hoping for a major bankruptcy.


I hope your summer has been better.



Next week we'll get serious again, going back to our series on interviewing.

Cash For Clunkers--The Glass Option

You have heard the news...everyone is getting their rebate from Uncle Sam for their old cars. What about us? Uncle is helping the car dealers. I demand a program for consumers who want to turn in their old, ineffecient insulating glass from the 70's and 80's.

I want a government handout program for each clear annealed unit replaced with sputter coated low-e on hurricane resistant lami. And then rebate a higher price for every unit with argon. Fair is fair. The government bought GM and is now putting together a sale to sell more GM cars. I want the government to buy some glass companies, and then start a Cash for Glass program.

Write your Congressman. Write your fabricators and insisit that they go bankrupt so the government can bail them out. It will be good for the economy if one of these big fancy fabricators voluntarily lost enough money to cause bankruptcy. Who will be the first to volunteer? Oldcastle, step up for the good of America. Arch, stick your neck out. Vitro, you almost did this last month...come on, due it now and you will help Mexico and the USA.


Energy savings with low-e is better than getting an extra mile per gallon, of course it is. Come on Barack, buy a fabricator or two, and then let's see the rebate program!