Huffer speaks at GANA Fall Conference

Keynote speaker, Russ Huffer, chairman and CEO, Apogee Enterprises Inc., Minneapolis, spoke on the State of the Glass and Glazing Industry.

“North America was a very protected market,” Huffer said during the speech, which was availableas a live podcast.“A lot has changed. We’re affected by the global market where any standard item can be imported at low cost; technology spread quickly; and distance has become less of a barrier. There’s nothing that you can’t find out about in real time, patents, research, etc.”

In the past protected market, technology was valued, efficiencies were rewarded and prudent business strategies were rewarded, Huffer said.

“In today’s environment, the cycle is slowing, yet value-added products are expanding,” Huffer said. “The market is projected to remain at high levels through 2012. Residential took off in the middle and they over-built. The bubble eventually burst. We’re all seeing the results of that today. These things do happen. There is no bubble now. The square footage that was put in during the dotcom era is not there now. There’s a commercial construction downturn now, but it’s going to be shallow because of the over-built. Dollar value had a shallower dip than the square footage because of the over-built.”