Viracon receives Governor’s International Trade Award

Viracon, Owatonna, Minn., received a 2010 Governor’s International Trade Award, according to a Feb. 14 release. The award honors a select group of Minnesota companies that have shown exceptional progress and success in international trade.

“We are extremely honored to receive this award and be recognized for our global trade efforts,” said Joe Effertz, director of international sales, Viracon, in the release.“For the past three years, we have been steadily growing our international presence.We have 25 sales representatives serving markets outside of the U.S., and we are now actively engaged in projects in more than 20 countries across the globe.Not only does that help our business, but it also helps us keep jobs and revenue in our local, state and U.S. economies.”

To expand its international presence, Viracon has reached out to overseas customers both personally and virtually. Viracon sales and technical teams travel to meet with customers and architects overseas, and the human connection has made a difference.An enhanced Web site has made it easier for architects and glazing contractors to find technical information about Viracon glass products, and a new product selection tool allows architects and building owners to determine site-specific energy performance and cost savings achieved with different glazing configurations.

In addition, Viracon recently expanded into Latin America with the acquisitionof Brazilian fabricator Glassec Vidros de Seguranca Ltda.Glassec Viracon will serve the Brazilian and Latin American markets.

Effertz accepted the Governor’s International Trade Award at a ceremony Oct. 29.He and Bob Randall, Viracon’s vice president of business development, also personally met with Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty at the State Capitol Nov. 8.