Window makers add capacity, seek new hires

Orlando, Fla. — Window and door manufacturers are adding capacity and looking for new hires to keep up with demand for products that offer energy efficiency, impact resistance and design possibilities.

At Wausau, Wis.-based Kolbe Windows and Doors, orders are strong for Forgent series windows, which are extruded with a proprietary material called Glastra that combines short-strand fiberglass and uPVC. The windows come with a choice of interior material: Glastra or wood. The all-Glastra products have wide appeal, according to Mark Harger, vice president of the Kolbe's Manawa division.

"This is driven by the popularity of the black/black design trend. We utilize acrylic films to create a completely consistent exterior and interior color palette that, along with AccuForge, has the appearance of an aluminum window but excellent energy results," Harger said in an email interview that coincided with the International Builders' Show.

AccuForge is Kolbe's miter joint technology, which the company introduced at IBS Feb. 8-10 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. The servo-controlled technology is a nip-welding process developed for profiles with substantial wall thickness. Forgent profiles have a ladder design created in multichambered extrusions for rigidity, strength and resilience.

"AccuForge technology has superior performance in terms of a permanent airtight and watertight bond, and it also has the aesthetics of a mechanically fastened traditional window," Harger said.

Founded in 1946 by brothers Herb and Ervin Kolbe, the family-owned company has three other product lines — two aluminum and one wood — in addition to Forgent.

"Full steam ahead is the outlook," Harger said. "The demand for our products is very strong, and adding capacity is our goal."

At its IBS booth, Kolbe showed the Forgent miter technology and impact-certified products that add safety and security without unsightly clips and brackets.

"We achieved a design that is robust enough to handle a wide range of performance requirements without any aesthetic differences in the window," Harger said.

The Forgent window series meets impact ratings for Wind Zones 3 and 4, where wind speeds can reach 110-150 miles an hour.

The AccuForge miter joint technology creates a stronger seam with a smooth, high-end finish for Forgent profiles extruded from fiberglass and uPVC. The exterior surfaces are 100 percent uPVC.

"Glastra is unique to the window industry," Harger said. "The extrusion process is similar to traditional uPVC, but because of the abrasive nature of the fiberglass content, the tooling is high-grade stainless steel."

The proprietary hybrid material requires a unique welding process. Harger said the technology removes excess material prior to final press. "And when the final press happens, very accurate nip blades push any excess material inward on the weld seam," he said. "The result is a surface that needs no further cleaning and the aesthetic looks like a mechanically fastened miter."

Harger described AccuForge as a significant improvement over traditional fusion welding, which has been part of the vinyl window industry for 50 years.

Forgent windows compete against vinyl and composite windows. "Traditional fusion welding requires parts to be cut longer than final dimensions, so when the parts are heated, melted and then pressed, the extra material [sprue] comes to the surface," Harger said. "This ensures a quality bond, but it creates surface defects, and this excess material then has to be cleaned off for the best possible aesthetic."

Deceuninck North America LLC is busy, too. The manufacturer of vinyl and composite window and door systems completed a two-year, 30 percent capacity expansion and is hiring at both of its production sites in Monroe, Ohio, and Fernley, Nev. The company should be able to properly service the existing customer base and meet manufacturing demands for 2022 and beyond, according to Joren Knockaert, CEO of Deceuninck North America.

With $175 million in estimated annual sales, Deceuninck ranks 32nd among pipe, profile and tubing producers in North America, according to Plastics News' latest ranking.

The company makes vinyl profiles for window fabricators to produce more than 7 million windows and doors a year.

"Our dedicated team has worked hard to adjust to market demands and position us for the future," Knockaert said in a Feb. 24 news release. "We leveraged alternate raw material resources in 2021 to mitigate external challenges and have successfully stabilized our supply chain over the last six months. We have made significant strides on that front and are excited to continue to serve our valued customers and partners."

Knockaert's comments came with the release of 2021 sales figures for Belgium-based parent company Deceuninck Group, which recorded sales of 838.1 million euros ($991 million), a 30.5 percent increase over the previous year.

For the first time in its 38-year history, vinyl windows were installed at the New American Home, which is built annually to demonstrate best practices by the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Home Builders, which puts on IBS.

Cary, N.C.-based Cornerstone Building Brands Inc. supplied the 33 Ply Gem-brand vinyl impact casement windows as well as the sliding patio doors. The windows are part of the company's 1570 series that will hit the market in the second quarter. The patio doors are set to launch later this year.

The wide variety of sizes, frames, colors, grilles, shapes and glass options make the windows suitable for any new construction project, according to Steve Hoffins, Cornerstone's vice president of windows marketing.

"The expansive product offering can be combined into stunning window combinations that create a focal point in a home," Hoffins said in an email.

Designers of the New American Home used extensive windows and telescoping patio doors to bring in natural light and blur the lines between interior and exterior spaces.

Buyers have a choice of five exterior colors — white, almond, clay, bronze and black — and three interior colors — white, almond and clay.

With $2.28 billion in annual profile sales, Cornerstone is the second-largest pipe, profile and tubing producer in North America.

The company added capacity and about 300 employees in May 2021 with the acquisition of Denver-based Prime Window Systems LLC. The deal also created new sales opportunities in the Western U.S. Prime manufactures energy-efficient, residential vinyl window and door products for the new construction and repair and remodel markets at facilities in Denver and Union Gap, Wash. The company generated sales of $60 million in 2020.

As vinyl fenestration products gain acceptance from some top builders and designers, one manufacturer is halting production to focus on the luxury market for aluminum and wood windows.

Medford, Wis.-based Weather Shield Windows & Doors plans to drop its Visions brand of vinyl windows and doors this year. The last day to place orders is May 16.

"This decision is a natural next step in our strategy to position the business toward the premium segments of the market. Our new Vue Collection all-aluminum product, along with our wood clad product lines, represent the product portfolio best suited to pursue the growing high end of the market," Robert Foote, president of Weather Shield Windows & Doors, told Window and Door.