Las Vegas — Two companies introduced new plastic building products for window and door applications at the International Builders' Show.
Cornerstone Building Brands Inc. is expanding the reach of its multislide vinyl patio doors with the addition of the MaxView product line to its Simonton brand. The doors can be sized up to 10 feet tall and 30 feet wide to create transitional living spaces with the outdoors.
Marketed as the Perspectives door under Cornerstone's Ply Gem brand, the vinyl doors are produced at a highly automated manufacturing facility in Rocky Mount, Va. The Perspectives line was introduced in 2023 as part of a soft launch with the doors topping out at 24 feet wide.
"It had a great reception, and now we're expanding the sizes as well. We're scaling up with demand to open up your environment," Matt Bereda, Cornerstone vice president of marketing, said at IBS, which was held Feb. 27-29 in Las Vegas.
In vinyl, the expansive doors are more affordable than its aluminum competitors.
"We figured out how to build a product that's available to more people. At times, it's almost half the price of the uber-high-end doors," said Andy Karr, senior product manager at Cornerstone.
MaxView windows can achieve design pressure ratings for most coastal areas.
"We also offer it with standard design pressures, so if you live in a central suburban part of the country, you can put this on your home. It's very affordable," Karr said.
Consumer demand for wide-open views and spaces extends beyond premium heavy-metal profiles.
"We had feedback that people were interested. We've had a very great reception in the southeast and out West, where their weather is more conducive to open things up," Bereda added. "When you think about the popularity of transitional living, this really meets the need. You can open up a wall of your house to the outdoors."
To help installers, Cornerstone has color-coordinated hardware bags and components with holes already punched.
"When you're installing in Florida, for example, there are codes that tell you how you have to fasten the door to the structure," Karr said. "We punch all the holes so the contractors know exactly where a fastener has to go, and we color-coordinate hardware bags so they correlate the step in the installation with the bag color. A little innovation on the [installation] side of it."
The goal is to save contractors' time during this period of labor shortages.
"We spent a lot of time simplifying what can be a complex category from an installer perspective. For a typical three-panel door, they're saving a half-hour because we focused on installation challenges," Karr said.
The door products are manufactured in Virginia, where the Cary, N.C.-based company had announced in 2020 that it was investing $25 million over the next five years. The investment includes an automated insulated glass line.
"Big articulating robotic arms grab the glass and wash it and insulate it. People aren't touching it, so it's less prone to the issues people sometimes create. When you make glass for impact resistance, it gets to be really heavy. At times, the robot holds up to 300 pounds," Karr said.
Sensors monitor door production and other facets of the process that the human eye might miss, Bereda added.
"Automation brings efficiency and improves safety," he said.
That's especially true for joining and welding the components.
"The ability of a machine to create a weld compared to a human trying to do it is incredible. So appearance and aesthetics are being improved by automation too," Karr said.
Cornerstone is the second-largest pipe, profile and tubing extruder in North America with related sales of about $3.4 billion.