2024 Top 50 Glaziers
Leading glaziers achieve healthy sales, but costs continue to stymie growth for some
Above: One 22 One office building in Nashville features work from Top 50 Glazier Pioneer Cladding & Glazing Systems Inc.
Glazing contractor sales continue to grow, based on the Top 50 Glaziers featured in this year’s report. The top 50 companies, leading glazing contractors by sales volume working in the North American market, reported total gross sales of $4.17 billion, up from last year’s $4.07 billion and approaching the highest peak of recent history, 2017’s $4.3 billion.
But, as we’ve seen in recent years, higher sales volumes do not mean an easy market.
Leading glaziers report continued challenges with project financing, as inflation, interest rates and requirements for higher-performance glazing combine to create challenges. These accumulating market challenges could suppress building activity going forward.
“The continued rise in inflation and [Federal Reserve] holding off interest rate cuts will continue to make developers and owners hesitant to get new projects off the ground in certain regions, as the economics of private work may not pencil out a return on investment as it has in the previous decade,” says Tyler Kuenzi, project executive, Mission Glass. “Changes in the energy code are also adding costs to the project as a whole, driving up the overall value of projects, which is a hurdle to getting them off the ground and out of just concept stages.”
Finding labor remains widespread, and a check on growth for some leading glaziers. “We make sure that we sell enough to grow, but not so fast that we can still get the help we need to expand,” says Craig Carson, vice president, 8G Solutions.
2024 Top 50 Glaziers Report
More Top 50 Glaziers
The July print & digital edition of Glass Magazine contains additional information about companies on the Top Glaziers list and additional survey results.
Additional Information for Purchase
Find the 2024 Top Glaziers List at the end of this online report. More details about companies, including the location of additional offices, number of full-time employees, total number of employees and contact information is also available for purchase & download at the NGA Store.
Sales + Growth
64%
Higher gross sales
42%
Higher competition for projects
44%
Backlog of 1 year to 18 months
A significant majority of Top 50 Glazier survey respondents again reported higher sales in 2023 compared to the previous year. Fewer respondents reported decreased sales for 2023— 15% compared to last year’s 21% of respondents. Other indicators also suggest growth and stability, including backlog. More companies overall reported a backlog of over one year compared with last year’s report.
Other sales indicators were mixed. The number of respondents reporting higher competition for projects increased by 10 points for 2023. Respondents reporting higher profit margins remained fairly flat, though those reporting lower profit margins, 30.5% of respondents, increased by about five points. More respondents, 23%, report lower bid levels in this year’s report, compared to last year’s 17% of responding companies.
Southeast continues to dominate construction growth due to tech industry expansion
Last year’s report predicted the Southeast as the region to have the most building growth, which was confirmed by this year’s responding companies. Thirty-five percent said the region grew in 2023, and responding companies named several factors, including expansion of the tech industry, and the resulting investment in surrounding infrastructure for population growth.
“A steady increase in construction permits for both residential and commercial projects post-pandemic has been the result of increased manufacturing jobs, investment in infrastructure at state and local government levels, improved accessibility to ports and highways, and increased population growth,” says David Cannon, estimator, Key Glass.
The Southeast is again slated to lead regions in growth in 2024, according to respondents. Respondents also marked the Midwest as a growing region, largely due to data centers and IT industry construction, including a new facility for Intel in New Albany, Ohio.
Markets & Services
Commercial construction market contracts again, and health care poised to “surge”
The commercial office construction market continues to contract, according to survey respondents. Office construction comprises an average of 18% of responding glaziers’ work, compared to 25% in last year’s report.
While not reflected in the data for 2023, respondents also pointed to health care as a market segment that will “surge” in 2024. “The need for medical and treatment facilities has seen a boom, bringing in both new construction and renovation of existing facilities to serve the health care sector on the community level,” says Tyler Kuenzi, project executive, Mission Glass.
“[We’re seeing a shift from] office to residential and hospitality or health care,” says Scott Swanson, director of curtain wall sales, Crown Corr Inc. “There’s office vacancy rates, creating difficulty for developers to invest in projects with a low volume of tenants.”
The number of respondents reporting in-house curtain wall fabrication decreased in 2023—47% fabricate curtain wall in-house, down from 54% in last year’s report. Responding glaziers cited a few challenges with pre-fabricated systems, including facility space, qualified labor to construct systems, and remaining volatility in supply chain systems, which increases lead times on system materials, especially those sourced internationally.
Glaziers see more fire-rated and bird-friendly products used, but companies’ capital investments decrease year-over-year
Glaziers continue to install a wide range of specialty glazing. This year, 86% of respondents said they had encountered or installed fire-rated glass on a project, a significant majority. Use of bird-friendly glass continues to expand, based on glazier responses, as well as mirror and curved or bent glass.
Perhaps due to inflation and interest rates, capital investments ticked downward across the board in 2023. While an average of 65% of respondents bought some kind of equipment in 2022, 55% report doing so in 2023. Fabrication equipment was the most popular capital investment made by responding companies, compared to trucks in last year’s report.
Project delivery methods continue to present challenges for glaziers in terms of communication, expectations and timelines. “Design-build and design-assist projects are interesting from our perspective, as we have much more control over the final detailing,” says Jeff Lorentz, president, Aurora Glazing Solutions Ltd. “We have been challenged in this delivery method with clients being indecisive and changing designs frequently, which can cause the preconstruction phase to extend beyond reasonable timelines.”
Labor + Headwinds
66%
Interest rates will be a major headwind
45%
Recruitment is most difficult labor challenge
41%
Glaziers and field labor positions were difficult to fill
Glaziers face a plurality of challenges moving into 2024, with interest rates being the most impactful, according to survey respondents. Sixty-six percent of respondents marked it as a major headwind for the year ahead. Inflation, which topped the list of challenges last year, remains a top- three challenge, followed by the potential for economic slowdown.
“We continue to see a pause in project starts related to financing concerns with developers,” says Brock West, president, Glass Systems Inc. “I also feel that the upcoming presidential elections are giving an ‘excuse’ to some to hold and see what happens.”
Responding glaziers said the uncertainty about interest rates make it difficult to plan ahead. “If interest rates do not drop, there will still be very few projects and high demand to fill backlog, causing severe price competition and desperation,” says Thomas Cornellier, CEO, TSI Corp. “If interest rates do drop, there will be a significant amount of new projects that hit the market at a time when suppliers are facing labor shortages and raw material suppliers have adjusted capacity for a smaller market, making it more difficult to execute work.”
Glaziers invest in employee well-being as skilled labor shortage remains
Significantly more glaziers marked the growth in pre-contract work, as well as dealing with complex curtain wall, as likely to be challenges.
“Our major projects in 2024 involve long preconstruction phases with significant amounts of design work,” says Jeff Lorentz, president, Aurora Glazing Solutions Ltd. “As the preconstruction work grows, along with the complexity of the projects in general, material lead times increase, which presents issues for scheduling.”
Labor, and lack thereof, remains an entrenched difficulty for glaziers. “We continue to struggle with recruiting capable estimators and onboarding talented glaziers,” says Glass Systems Inc.’s West. “We are focusing on education, training and culture but still find it difficult to recruit.”
While recruitment remains a top challenge, responding companies are investing in employee well-being. When asked about workplace wellness programs, a significant majority said they offer several opportunities, including financial management education, financial assistance, counseling and mental health services, and addiction recovery.
The List
The Top 50 Glaziers are ranked by reported gross sales for the North American market. Any sales not submitted by glaziers were estimated using the previous year's information. Celebrating 32 years, the Top 50 Glaziers ranking is the longest-running glass industry ranking. Glass Magazine’s editorial staff cannot compile an accurate ranking without the full cooperation of the industry. If you think your company belongs on the list, please contact Norah Dick, senior editor, Glass Magazine.
*Sales were not confirmed by the company.
OVER $200 MILLION
1. Harmon Inc.
4. Enclos Corp.
5. Benson*
$100-200 MILLION
10. Architectural Glass and Aluminum Co.
11. Massey's Plate Glass & Aluminum Inc.
12. GM&P Consulting and Glazing Contractors Inc.
13. Dynamic Glass
$50-100 MILLION
17. SPS Corp.
18. Pioneer Cladding & Glazing Systems Inc.
19/20. Yuanda USA Corp.
19/20. Eastern Glass & Aluminum
21. Momentum Glass
22. seele Inc.
23. Roschmann Steel & Glass Constructions Inc.
24. 1st Choice Glass Inc. (1CG)
26. 8G Solutions
$30-50 MILLION
27. National Enclosure Company LLC
28. Architectural Wall Systems
30. TSI Corporations
33/33. Ranger Specialized Glass Inc.
33/33.Haley Greer Inc.
35. Aurora Glazing Solutions Ltd.
37. AAC Glass Inc.
38. Key Glass Inc.
$20-30 MILLION
41/42.Mission Glass
41/42.Crawford Tracey Corp.
43. Pacific Glazing Contractors
44. Dallas Glass
45/46/47/48/49. Progress Glass Co.
45/46/47/48/49.Anderson Aluminum Corp.
45/46/47/48/49.U.S. Glass & Aluminum Inc.
45/46/47/48/49.Helou & Sons Corp.
45/46/47/48/49. Herzog Glass
More Top 50 Glaziers
The July print & digital edition of Glass Magazine contains additional information about companies on the Top Glaziers list and additional survey results.
Additional Information for Purchase
More details about companies, including the location of additional offices, number of full-time employees, total number of employees and contact information is also available for purchase & download at the NGA Store.
