Blogs

The idea of a strategic partnership is to find other companies that have something that you don’t have in your bag of tricks. If this analysis passes the mirror test where the “fit” looks the same from the other side, then you have a strategic partnership in the making.

Thermal breaks in metal windows dates to the aluminum window and door designs that needed to compete with steel windows on thermal efficiency. 

Custom steel doors cost more than their wood, aluminum, and vinyl cousins because of the extra processes and labor that goes into building them.

Sliding screen doors work well and can stack over each other when not in use.
If the sliding doors are pocketed, where the panels retire into a hidden pocket in the wall when opened , the sliding screen panels can do the same. Unfortunately, the screen door stack is always visible through even the closed glass panel where they reside when no

How It Happens and How You Can Avoid It
Innovators are the ultimate optimists. They seek to make things more functional, productive, and resilient. Many of these innovators are entrepreneurs. By nature, entrepreneurs are individuals or small groups often with limited resources. An

How It Happens and How You Can Avoid It
Innovators are the ultimate optimists. They seek to make things more functional, productive, and resilient. Many of these innovators are entrepreneurs. By nature, entrepreneurs are individuals or small groups often with limited resources. An

The steel window and door industry has long been resistant to adding thermal insulation to their products. We need a little history here to help explain the reasons behind the reluctance. Steel was the metal window profile material of choice until the 1960s, when aluminum came onto the scene. Aluminum extrusions were a lot less expensive

Inside lake view window wall with an operating out-swing door Hope’s and Crittall have been around since the earliest parts of last century. They are

Hope’s Windows is to steel windows and doors what Coca-Cola is to soft drinks. They are the brand by which all the other manufacturers of steel windows are compared. After being a Hope’s agent in the NYC area for about 16 years, I came to understand the company from the inside out.

95% of a doors life will be spent closed and so the view should be a primary concern. A great view can be made or broken when it comes to outfitting the perfect home. The large opening that looks out onto the deck or patio is the space in question. Before you begin, you need to identify your goal. Most of the time, this

Custom manufacturing is in my blood. And challenges in meeting unique client driven solutions are what I live for. Over the years I have been asked to create many new window and door designs. I’ve never built a standard product that could be mass produced. But, there have been times when I’ve given in to overly optimistic engineering and manufacturing practices.

Custom manufacturing is in my blood. And challenges in meeting unique client driven solutions are what I live for. Over the years I have been asked to create many new window and door designs. I’ve never built a standard product that could be mass produced. But, there have been times when I’ve given in to overly optimistic engineering and manufacturing practices.

Custom manufacturing is in my blood. And challenges in meeting unique client driven solutions are what I live for. Over the years I have been asked to create many new window and door designs. I’ve never built a standard product that could be mass produced. But, there have been times when I’ve given in to overly optimistic engineering and manufacturing practices.

Custom manufacturing is in my blood. And challenges in meeting unique client driven solutions are what I live for. Over the years I have been asked to create many new window and door designs. I’ve never built a standard product that could be mass produced. But, there have been times when I’ve given in to overly optimistic engineering and manufacturing practices.

Hope’s Windows is to steel windows and doors what Coca Cola is to soft drinks. They are the brand by which all the other manufacturers of steel windows are compared.

Funny that you should ask. It is one of the most misunderstood components in the construction of steel windows and door. In almost all cases they are NOT made out of steel. You wouldn’t know to look at them because they are painted to match the hot-rolled steel profile sections.

The most common installer of windows and doors is a carpenter. As a generalization, these individuals are well versed in handling a multitude of wood products and materials. They think like carpenters. They think in terms relative to lumber and a certain amount of

To make the best decision about anything, you need to identify your goal before you begin.  Most of the time this means that you have a single vision or concept about what your life will be like when this goal is attained and some idea about what it will look like. 

Yesterday, I had the pleasure to meet a project architect from a firm I have worked with for many, many years on a job site. We showed some samples and discussed her project’s design intent and special needs. It was a lot of fun for me because

The steel window and door industry has long been resistant to adding thermal insulation to their products. We need a little history here to help explain the reasons behind the reluctance.

New York State is the home to more steel window and door companies and builds more of them than any other state in this country.  So you might want to ask why a company that had been based in Arizona wanted to move to this crowded market.  Well, the reason is that . . . well, it’s complicated

Interesting that you should ask (even though it is just me talking to myself at the moment).  The connection is not so direct, but for

Window wall by 2Fold. Steel windows are by far the best choice for openings that highlight a great view.  The thin and elegant frames allow

Hope’s and Crittall have been around since the earliest parts of last century. Their histories are intertwined and go back to the Henry Hope Company in the early 19th century. During the 1990’s there was quite a squabble between Hope’s

In every segment of every product category, there is an 800-pound gorilla. In the folding or bi-folding door market that product would be NanaWall. I can’t tell you how many times I talk to savvy architects and contractors that tell me about their “NanaWall” only to find out that what they are

Contemporary architecture features large expanses of glass with minimal framing to support it. Glass by itself can offer outstanding views of the great outdoors, but unless it is mounted in frames that can move the engagement is a passive one of “look, but don’t touch.”

Decks are thought to be wooden platforms built off the backs of houses to hold a grill, a table, and some chairs. Well, that is what they used to be back in the 70’s, but the trend is for decks to be architecturally

Almost 20 years ago I designed a pivot door that was 8 feet x 8 feet. It was painted bright red and was installed on a small interesting house designed with all corrugated paneling on the exterior. This all glass door with very thin

Perfection is in the eye of the buyer and the companies trying to sell to them. No matter how you slice it, perfection is most easily defined as Better, Faster, Cheaper! The cruel truth of the matter is that all three of these factors fight

Animals float, swim, slither and stand on all fours. The more developed of us can stand on our own two legs. This two leg thing is more like a parlor trick because we can’t do it without a lot of mental resources

Failure almost always ends in pain and injury (either physical or psychological), but seldom ends in death. When faced with a calamity of any proportion, my first response is always, “well, nobody died.”

While sliding doors predate World War II, they exploded onto the building scene in the 1950’s and 60’s. They became the staple of the ranch-style tract house and a regular component of apartments and hotel/motel chains, and of course, we can’t forget about mobile homes.

As anyone who knows me can attest, I am a lousy joke teller. I am impatient and simply can’t drag out the story line to create suspense. With that said, let’s jump straight to the punchline, Accoya® has been tested

I’m spending my week in Atlanta at DriveWorks World 2017. DriveWorks is an amazing, infinite customization configuration that sits on top of SolidWorks 3D software. Before you get turned off by this blog because

There are two general ways to go about the process of designing a new product. You can start with a revolutionary new idea or technology and evolve it, or you can start with a burning need and figure out what technology

Weatherstripping for doors is NOT ancient technology. The earliest of doors had none. The door just rested against the stop of the frame as closely as possible and you hoped for the best. Having a door at all

I would venture to say that most people don’t even know the words muntin and mullion, much less know what the difference is. In fact, as I am typing this, the automatic spelling checker in Microsoft Word has identified “muntins”

If I had heard this one a few decades ago, and heeded its warning, I would probably be much more successful at this point in my life. Instead, I have been played like a fiddle by partners and others who appealed to my ego

I’ve spent most of my 45-year career designing and selling beautiful windows and doors. Most of them have been mostly glass with relatively thin frames. Architects usually specified them because they fit into the modern, delicate aesthetic of their design.

A home in need of a 2fold product. Open spaces and connectivity leave exposure points that 2fold products can fill.
Bigger isn’t always better, although don’t try to tell most guys that. Despite that, I’m going to look at making your house bigger in obvious ways and less obvious ways. Let’s start with the obvious

Folding glass walls or folding exterior glass doors are used to create large openings in a building that can be fully opened to physically join the outside with the inside. This is why people are attracted to them in increasing numbers. Imagine having

Speed of delivery depends on a lot of factors. Most doors that you buy off the shelf in some lumber yard or home center are made to standard sizes and colors. There are some size ranges that have become “standards” over

Windows and doors were never made from aluminum until the mid 20th century. Steel was the metal that dominated the market before then dating back to the 19th Century. Cast iron storefronts can still be found in building of the late 1800’s, however

I have probably hit a new low in being pedantic and speaking down to you, but there is no depth to which I will not travel. Almost all of you if asked what is a door will create the mental image of the entrance door of your home or the door leading to

There is no such thing as bad publicity is something that you always hear, but we use the word memorable here as a positive description. Nobody wants to be the example that their competitor uses to explain

The oldest and most generic term to describe this group of products characterized by groups of paired sashes or leaves (the moving parts of a door or window vs. the frame that attaches permanently

Sunlight makes things grow, uplifts your spirits, and warms you up. It also provides a free alternative to electric lighting during daylight hours. There is, however, a tradeoff

Modern architecture loves huge expanses of glass. Who wants to be boxed into the dreary darkness of four bare walls when you could commune with nature within a climate