Mid-Atlantic Glass Expo hosts its 23rd show

The Mid-Atlantic Glass Association held its 23rd Annual Glass Expo on April 21 at Martin’s Crosswinds, Greenbelt, Md. Seventy companies exhibited at the show, and 809 people attended. Last year, 73 companies exhibited and 815 people attended.

Guardian Industries, Auburn Hills, Mich., showed its high-performance, low-E coated products, the Satin Deco line and other specialty coated products. “This is a pretty well-attended show with lots of vendors, local glass companies and suppliers,” said Rosie Hunter, architectural sales manager, Southeast Region. “We attend to network, develop relationships and be informed of new products in the market, in the region. We have lots of direct customers and customers’ customers here.”

My glasstruck.com, Glassboro, N.J., used to sell locally, but now sells throughout the country. “We’re a localized company, so we wanted to meet all the folks in the tri-state area,” said Michael Frett, sales representative. “This show is a great place to do that.”

Standard Bent Glass Corp., Butler, Pa., has been attending the show the last 10 years, said Chad Snyder, architectural sales. The company exhibited this year for three reasons: to let people know that Standard Bent is now a licensee of Sentry Glass, only the third company in the U.S. to be a Sentry Glass licensee (he other two are Pulp Studios and JE Berkowitz); to re-emphasize that Standard Bent bought Coastal Glass last fall; and to see its customers.

“The Baltimore-Washington area is a key market for Hawkins Glass Wholesalers,” Stafford, Va., said Ed Turner, sales representative. “There’s a lot of energy at this show, and we come here to stay current on products and everything that’s Division 8. This is the only show in the region that focuses on glass and fenestration.”

Vitro America, Memphis, has been coming to the show for the last 15 years, said Earl Duley, senior estimator/sales envision products. “We’re showing all the lines, and keeping our name out there,” he said. “It’s a good show, well-attended, and for five hours you see all the local glass folks.”

Schodorf Truck Body & Equipment, Columbus, Ohio, also has been coming to the show for the past 10-15 years, said Paul Schodorf, vice president of sales. “Business is picking up since last year,” he said. “It’s a third or fourth of what it was before the recession hit. We didn’t come last year.”

Gina Palmer, Maryland sales representative, Oldcastle Glass, Santa Monica, Calif., agreed. “The market’s slowly coming back, it’s better than last year, and there’s more light at the end of the tunnel” she said. “This is a nice show to see our customers, it has good turnout.”

New this year, the show featured two presentations: Glass Fabrication and Design Issues by John Krajewski, national architectural account manager, JE Berkowitz, Pedricktown, N.J., and Acurlite Skylights by Ron Palombo, president, Acurlite Structural Skylights, Berwick, Pa.