Questions Abound
Digging into recent industry statistics
While the big news has dominated our landscape over the last few weeks or so, there’s been a lot of other nuggets and news I wanted to get to, so here goes.
The latest Dodge Momentum Index was up again. It is now at its highest point in 14 years. While that is exciting, it is also a bit of a mirage. There are still some dry pockets out there now, and in various backlogs, so it once again has me questioning these indexes. I’ll take the positivity, you know me, I live for it, but the reality is surely singing a slightly different tune.
By the way, the next Architectural Billings Index is this coming Wednesday. No way it’s above water. No way. But we will see.
The latest Gilbane supply report was released and I laughed out loud (Or LOL in text form) when I saw they noted pricing in the glass industry as “Stabilizing." I think we are all doing a great job of rolling with haymakers being thrown at us, but “stabilizing” is not the feel I have. Obviously, the report probably covers the time before the latest round of increases hit.
In the other two tracked categories, we are noted as “contracting” on inventories and “delayed” on shipping which I think is accurate. The only building trade that doesn’t have those two classifications is “Plumbing” where on inventory they are stable. So obviously the whole chain continues to challenge.
If you missed my most recent podcast, please check it out. Two tremendous guys from leading companies in our world, Ben Jayson from Bendheim and Will Pounds from TSI Corporations. Really impressive folks who will be around our space for a long time to come and that gives me great hope for the future of our industry!
Jeremy Hoy joins Hartung Glass
Congrats to Jeremy Hoy on his new position at Hartung Glass. Jeremy is a fantastic talent and just a very good dude. Great hire by the Hartung team and this match will be a nice one. Hopefully Jeremy will still be attending the various shows and events, as his positive presence is always welcomed!
Country Glass celebrates anniversary
Also congrats to the fine folks at Country Glass in Texas. They just marked their 38th year in business! Congrats to the great Brian Risinger, Joe Lambertson and the team there. They do things the right way and I really appreciate how they are always there to support the greater good of our industry. They also have the best-looking swag in the business.
Ed Hickey passes away
Sad news from my backyard in Michigan. Ed Hickey, a major presence in this market, most recently with his sons at Peterson Glass, has passed away.
Another market legend moves on and this one gets me as I was a huge fan of Ed, and his sons have always been great friends and supporters of mine. He built a strong and respected company that will carry on his legacy for years to come. My condolences to the Hickey family and all of Ed’s friends and industry mates.
