The 2026 New American Home, unveiled every year as part of the National Association of Home Builders’ International Builders’ show, is built to showcase the latest innovations.
In today’s ever-changing environment, energy codes are becoming increasingly stringent and focus on many different factors including thermal performance, comfort, durability and long-term value. Residential window and door manufacturers, particularly, are increasingly confronted with a wider range of performance requirements across climate zones.
Lakisha Woods and Sheronda Carr, CEOs of the National Glass Association and the National Association of Women in Construction respectively, shared candid insights at GlassBuild America's Women Leaders Panel, urging women to embrace visibility early, share their journeys authentically, and show up with excellence regardless of readiness. They also sounded an alarm on the industry's retention crisis—noting that women are leaving faster than they're being brought in—and called on women to champion one another as the surest path to lasting cultural change.
Fenestration facilities that treat PPE as an adaptable system, grounded in living hazard assessments, task-specific specs, comfort-driven choices, and visible coaching, will shrink the gap between compliance on paper and protection in practice.
A retirement wave is crashing over the glass industry as 1980s-era founders reach their exit years—but many companies lack succession plans. The risk? Decades of craftsmanship, customer relationships, and institutional knowledge could vanish overnight.
Like many industries, the fenestration industry had a year of both challenges and growth in 2025. From global market disruptions to supply chain challenges, there was quite a bit of uncertainty around building materials including windows and doors. But with every setback comes opportunities to move forward stronger, and that’s what should propel us into the new year.
Most glass, window, and door companies think artificial intelligence, or AI, means million-dollar projects. That belief keeps them stuck doing nothing. The smart move is to start small with AI and visibility systems that deliver immediate ROI: content creation, research automation, voice agents for after-hours calls, and follow-up systems.