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Fenestration Canada: April 2016

The use of commercial glazing in residential applications is becoming more and more common for many new single-family construction styles. There is a sector of the custom home building market that is designing structures that take advantage of natural lighting, for instance, window walls that open up for maximum use of living spaces.

The positioning and size of the window area has become a critical area of home design. Vinyl windows are now being considered for many multifamily dwellings that were once the strict domain of aluminum systems. It is pretty hard to keep up with all of the changes in products, systems and construction techniques.

Canada’s most influential window and door trade show – WinDoor North America – is moving to Montreal. The Palais De Congres de Montreal will house the event, which will be held November 15 to 17. Quebec’s window and door association, the AVFQ, is looking forward to collaborating with Fenestration Canada in staging this world-class event. The event will feature exhibits from leading suppliers of components, machinery and services important to both the residential and light commercial window and door fabricator. With the crossover of product use between commercial and residential fenestration suppliers there is sure to be plenty of discussion regarding the new fire code legislation regarding combustibility. WinDoor provides a platform for education and technical discussion between all levels of fenestration professional.

Technical discussion and the interaction between industry and government is always an area of great interest to our members. The process to update the building code has begun. Fenestration Canada is being very proactive to ensure that fenestration professionals are involved in the initial process of determining these changes. These issues speak to the very core of our business success. The ability to influence and participate in these changes is critical. The Fabricator Council and Technical Committee are two ways to become involved and will provide valuable insight into what the future of our industry might look like.

There have been several new additions to the board of Fenestration Canada. The additions include Laura Weil of Euro Vinyl Windows in Woodbridge, Ont., J.F. Kogovsek of Maxam Marketing in Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Que., and Ryan Dudeck of Paramount Windows in Winnipeg. Robert Jutras of Air-Ins in Montreal rejoins the board after a one-year hiatus. Jennifer Small of Screenco Manufacturing in Concord, Ont., has been appointed third vice-president. Allan Doyle of Global Window Systems in Richibucto, N.B., will become president this June at our AGM taking place in Mont Tremblant, Que., June 8 to 10. Please be sure to check our website – fenestrationcanada.ca – for information regarding the window and door industry.

We also have some changes to announce in staffing. After three years, Fenestration Canada and Robert Rivard have made a mutual decision not to renew the existing management contract. On behalf of the board of directors I want to extend my thanks to Robert and his team for their dedication to Fenestration Canada and for their accomplishments. We will miss him, Denise and Mireille and we wish them great success in their future endeavours.

Looking forward to the future, Fenestration Canada is pleased to announce a new partnership with Zzeem Association Management. Zzeem will provide full service management for Fenestration Canada including the WinDoor North America trade show. The Zzeem team delivers a highly accomplished and experienced complement of association professionals with decades of experience in managing associations like Fenestration Canada. Their commitment to serving our members and to the success of our organization, were key determinants in the board’s decision to engage Zzeem.•

Skip Maclean is president of Fenestration Canada. He is business development manager for Tru-Tech Doors and has over 40 years’ experience in the window and door industry.