2016 marks year of business growth and expansion for Unicel Architectural

Increased demand for privacy and shading solutions drives both new business and company investments in people, products and manufacturing.

Unicel Architectural, the leading manufacturer of vision and daylight control solutions, today announced that it has significantly grown its business and customer base over the past year, which has correspondingly driven investments in expanded company and product capabilities.

"2016 marked significant gains for us in terms of new business growth and our investments in the people, products and production capabilities needed to meet the growing market demand for our solutions,” said Jean-François Couturier, CEO of Unicel Architectural.

"This growth trend stems from both an increasing market desire for greener, more energy-efficient building solutions and for privacy control products in healthcare facilities. To address these opportunities, we’ve added new team members, expanded our manufacturing functions, and are further developing enhanced product features to reinforce our market-leading position."

2016 business expansion included:

• Strong Sales Growth and Project Wins - Over the past year, Unicel recorded double-digit growth in both the number of new customers and revenue generation. Much of this came from the healthcare sector where Unicel’s Vision Control® integrated louvers provide an ideal patient privacy solution for hospitals and other related facilities.

• Product Investments - Unicel combined its ViuLite® Venetian blinds-within-glass with Pilkington Pyrostop® fire-resistive-rated glass from TGP for a privacy and shading solution with Underwriters Laboratories (UL) fire-resistive classification. ViuLite integrated blinds now incorporate glazing with fire ratings of 45, 60 and 90 minutes, which ensures optimal safety and performance for windows and doors in homes, schools, healthcare facilities and more. Additionally, the company is further developing new operational features for its Vision Control® louvered glazing solution that are expected to be officially launched in 2017.

• Manufacturing Investments - Unicel implemented new production facility machinery to accelerate its assembly line and product maintenance capabilities. This will further optimize production and quality processes.

• New Team Members - Unicel expanded its team significantly across sales, engineering and manufacturing functions. This will ensure the highest levels of product development and delivery, and customer care.