ProductsAboundAtWin-door_feature_DWM

Volume 12, Issue 1 - January/February 2011

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North American Showcase
Attendees Check out the Latest Introductions at Win-door North America
by Tara Taffera

Is the economy picking up? Are manufacturers looking to purchase new components to incorporate into their manufacturing processes? Well, at least for software, the answer seems to be yes. Emmanuel Perdikis, vice president of marketing for 360 Innovations, confirmed that software products are in demand during the recent Win-door North America show held November 16-18 in Toronto.

“The show has been great,” said Perdikis. “We’ve been really busy and we’re getting a lot of interest in our software.”

Win-door traditionally features exhibitors and attendees from both the United States and Canada but one exhibitor said customers appreciated the opportunity to attend a show where products made in Canada are prevalent across the trade show floor.

“People are excited to see our Canadian-made products,” said Richard Moldovan of Vi-Lux.

The company featured its PVC cellular door frame and Moldovan reported that “people are excited about the quality of the product.”

Yolanda Sanguilano of Ameri-Can Machinery also said that interest from the Canadian market definitely is getting stronger.

More than 135 companies from Canada and North America exhibited at Win-door and attendance was 2,850, “up 10 percent from the previous year, showing continuing strength in the Canadian marketplace,” said Canadian Window and Door Manufacturers Association president Kevin Pelley. There was plenty to draw attendees, with lots of exciting new product developments in eye-catching display in the more than 135 booths. During the show, the James Parker Best Booth Award was
presented to Edgetech IG. Runners-up were Trimlite and Apricot Coating Systems.

Components, Coatings and More
The message Caldwell Manufacturing gave Win-door attendees was that larger glass sizes can still be accommodated even as manufacturers move toward triple-glazed units.

“We’re showcasing different balances that can balance a sash up to 72 pounds—with no modification to the extrusion,” said Caldwell’s John Kessler.

He added that some sashes can even accommodate up to 100 pounds, perfect for light-commercial applications.

“This can be achieved without major investment,” he said.

Ultrafab introduced its new Enviro-Pile weatherseal, which the company says can help manufacturers achieve a green option in pile weatherseals. The product features raw material selections that allow for recycled content and reuse of all scrap related to product manufacturing. It is made using new manufacturing practices that reduce scrap during the entire process and new packaging options are used that eliminate cardboard and reduce labor. Lastly, the product features new insertion technology for extruders that results in more precise utilization/yield and less scrap at the point of fabrication.

Amesbury showcased its TruLock, which converts any door with a multi-point lock (see November-December 2010 DWM, page 39).

A company representative reported that “almost everyone making doors who stopped by has shown interest.”
Glasslam’s focus of late, as displayed in its booth, has been on continuous improvement.

“We are always trying to do things better than the year before,” said Glasslam’s Matt Hale. “We are focusing on our Airtight S silicone spacer that has more desiccant than competing products.

“We’re trying to live up to our reputation as innovators and address customer demands,” he said. “We expect a good year next year.”

Allmetal also displayed a spacer product. The company says its SWISSPACER offers homeowners lower heating costs as it excels when it comes to heat transfer resistance. The SWISSPACER V spacer bar reportedly enables heating costs to be reduced up to 5 percent.

ITW featured its new foamseal E-Z fill plus window foam, which the company reported increases the energy efficiency of vinyl windows. The foam offers a 3 to 8 percent improvement in U-value and improves condensation resistance, according to the company.

Aquasurtech introduced its AquaUltra Stain System, an ultra-low-VOC stain system specifically formulated for fiberglass and composite products. Company representatives shared that the quick drying time allows both sides of a fiberglass door to be stained in one day.

Wood and Related Products
G-M Wood Products featured a variety of its products for doors including DuraPlast frames, which the company describes as an alternative to traditional door jambs. The poly-fiber door-frame system combines the strength of wood with enhanced properties that the company says makes it moisture-, rot- and insect-resistant. The frames can be machined the same way as traditional wood jambs, according to the company. G-M also showcased the ProEco product it describes as a certified renewable substrate, double-primed with a premium low VOC latex acrylic exterior primer, that is finger-jointed with a durable D4 classified glue and end sealed with a polymer latex acrylic sealer that prevents water absorption.

Franklin Adhesives and Polymers, a division of Franklin International, featured Advantage Trio, a line of three adhesives developed specifically for manufacturing wood doors and windows.

Advantage 415 is a highly water-resistant, two-part crosslinking polyvinyl acetate emulsion adhesive that can be used for finger jointing, edge gluing, hot pressing and radio frequency gluing. When mixed with aluminum chloride, the product surpasses both ASTM D 5572 wet-use finger joint and ASTM D 5751 wet-use edge glue standard. In addition, it features a low minimum use temperature, according to the company.

Advantage 425 is a two-part crosslinking PVA emulsion adhesive for high performing finger joint products available as measured by ASTM and Hallmark standards, according to the company. When mixed with aluminum chloride, the product also surpasses the ASTM D-5572 wet-use finger-joint standard for flexures and tension.

All About the Glass (in Doors)
Many companies offered a variety of new glass options for entry doors. Novatech featured four new designs of its Thermacrystal door glass. The company also featured new silkscreen designs to fit all tastes, as well as three new stained glass options. The company’s Sonia Brossard said the company will launch mini-blinds between the glass in some of its doors in March 2011 as there is a lot of demand for this type of product.

Trimlite also introduced new door lites and a variety of those new options were showcased in its booth. “Generally we’ve found that everyone is concerned about privacy levels [they don’t want clear glass] so that’s the angle we took for next year,” said a company representative.

Machinery and Software
JRC Machinery is distributing a new machine for its supplier, EuGénie Technologies Inc., which featured a new 3-axis vertical machine designed for the door pre-hanging industry. The vertical door input system allows for easy handling and also reduces the space needed on the plant floor as it only occupies 60 square feet of plant space. The machine, Sandy, allows the machining of the entire door (front and sides) in one short and efficient step, according to the company. Capable of machining grooves needed for multi-points and standard lock systems as well as hinge holes, the machine comes pre-loaded with up to 200 different cutting designs. An added bonus, the company says, is the fact that the machine is flexible enough that it can cut up to 200-250 doors per day as well as cutting custom designed doors.

Colleen McKeegan of McKeegan Equipment also reported getting good contacts at the show. DWM talked to McKeegan about the variety of equipment the company offers such as gas filling equipment, and she reported that some manufacturers say they are getting “100-percent fill rates.”

Several software suppliers were in attendance, including Windowmaker, and Diane Huybers reported that the company has new options available for customers. The company added that its software features the complete solution from specification to sales to scheduling and production solutions.

Win-door North America 2011 will be held November 15-17 in Toronto.

For more product news from Win-door go to www.dwmmag.com and click on the studio to watch the November DWM newscast. The following companies are featured: Royal, PH Tech, WTS Paradigm, Truth Hardware and Erdman Automation/Edgetech IG.