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Top Glass 2024 goes west

Since 2014, the Glass Canada B2B channel has hosted a one-day conference for the Canadian architectural glass industry in Mississauga, Ont., called Top Glass.

We take four ballrooms at the International Centre right next to Pearson airport and fill them with around 40 exhibitors and a lecture hall where we present four education sessions through the day. Those sessions are laser-focused on the “commercial” side of the fenestration industry, addressing topics of interest to glass fabricators and glazing contractors involved in building and installing facades for Part 3 buildings and engineered custom homes. Because of the in-depth technical information on offer, Top Glass has become popular with architects and glazing specifiers as well. They can spend a day at the conference and pick up four Structured Learning Credits that most professional organizations will count against their total needed to maintain their certifications. Because of the support from our exhibitors and sponsors, we can offer free attendance. I’m truly proud of some of the tremendous content we’ve presented on the Top Glass stage.

Over the last 10 years, Top Glass has become something of a meeting place for the community, as well. We’re proud to host the Ontario Glass and Metal Association’s Awards for Excellence at each show. It’s great to see the smiles on the faces of the honourees as the room applauds their amazing achievements. Canada’s other industry associations that are active in Ontario have piled in as well. At our last show, Fenestration Canada sponsored a large lounge area. Representatives from the Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance are always on hand and Amy Roberts delivered a terrific talk on bird-friendly glazing on its behalf. The Architectural Glass and Metal Contractors Association has a booth and we like to put them right next to their friends from the IUPAT union so they can get a jump on the next contract negotiations. There’s always a friendly and excited buzz on Association Row. With the PGAA and GAMA supporting and promoting Top Glass West, we’re sure this event will be no different.

Only one thing has been missing: our friends from western Canada. Some dedicated souls make their way from the Prairies and B.C. every year, but we realize it’s a long way to travel for a one-day event. So we’re bringing Top Glass to you. Calgary looks like the perfect location what with being relatively centrally located and a hotbed of stunning new architectural glass work in the last few years. Our goal is to put on such a compelling program that even people from Edmonton will be unable to resist coming. For details on what we have planned, please see page 28 then visit topglasswest.ca to register.

There’s a talented and dynamic architectural glass industry in Alberta and we hope you are as excited as we are to have Top Glass come to town. See you at Top Glass West!