Supply Chain

2022 Industry Pulse Report

The annual Window + Door Industry Pulse survey had few surprises: the market is strong, business is booming and no aspect of the supply chain is exempt from the persistent supply and labor challenges.

Backlogs Ease, but a Potential Demand Surge May Be Coming

The R&R market and Inflation Reduction Act may generate an uptick in windows and doors.

Manufacturers Plan to Expand Despite Some Headwinds

Supply chain challenges eased significantly, while labor, inflation and rising costs put more strain on companies. Despite headwinds, the industry continues to invest in itself, grow and innovate.

Residential Backlogs Sustain Near-Term Homeowner Demand

Despite potential declines, long-term factors may be an industry boon.

Energy-efficient Windows Offer Reason for Optimism

While fenestration product manufacturers still face challenges meeting demand, post-pandemic consumer attitudes may offer some relief.

Q+A with Tremco: Deep Dive on Spacers

When Window + Door sat down with Tremco, we wanted to learn more about warm edge technology. That ended up as just the warmup to some great perspective on everything from the current challenges of the industry to the future of performance in windows and IG automation.

The Value of a Full-service Supplier

Consider these particulars closely as you work with your supplier network to best manage the current supply chain crisis

Policy, Regulation to Watch in 2022

Tax credits, trade, regulation around safety and supply chain issues are major players in the current legislative and regulatory landscape.

High-performance Facades, Recycling Top Agenda at Glass and Glazing Advocacy Day

Leaders in the architectural glass and fenestration industries met with Congressional representatives to discuss challenges and opportunities facing the industry, as part of the National Glass Association’s first-ever Glass and Glazing Advocacy Day, April 4-5. The largely productive discussions…

How to Prosper In Adversity

These market conditions can’t last forever. When we do finally return to something resembling normal, the skills we have learned along the way will be highly beneficial for ongoing success.

Delays, Freight Rate Hikes Likely as Ukraine War Disrupts Shipping Operations

The key port cities Odessa and Mariupol in Ukraine have suspended most operations, leaving over 1,000 commercial sailors unable to move cargo containers through the Kerch Straight and the Black Sea. The glass manufacturing and other commercial construction industry sectors that rely on Eastern…

Vinyl Institute Supports Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2022

The bill seeks to address the long-standing, systemic supply chain and port disruption issues that the COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated, especially the issue of detention and demurrage.

Supply Chain Issues Continue to Slow Housing Starts

"The market needs more housing, but chronic production bottlenecks, including ongoing price increases for lumber and OSB, continue to raise housing costs and harm housing affordability."

Housing Affordability Will Remain a Significant Challenge in 2022

Low existing home inventory and strong buyer demand will keep housing moving forward in 2022 even as builders continue to grapple with ongoing building material production bottlenecks and labor shortages that will limit the pace of construction and keep upward pressure on home prices.

Supply Chain Struggles Continue

The industry prepares to enter another year rife with supply chain and labor concerns. Hardware supplier INOX shares its perspective about how companies can navigate this tricky time.

Job Openings Rise as Manufacturing Slows

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showed a slight increase in available manufacturing roles in December, while the ISM Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index highlighted a reduction in manufacturing activity between December and January.

5 Takeaways from the 2022 Industry Pulse

This year’s annual Industry Pulse survey takes stock of how the industry is responding to labor and supply chain challenges, as well as where companies are focusing on business and product growth.

Biden Administration Expands Trucking Apprenticeships

Supply-Side Disruptions Push Single-Family Production Down in October

Overall housing starts decreased 0.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.52 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.

Supply-Side Challenges Threaten Housing Affordability

Housing affordability held steady at its lowest level in nearly a decade, as higher home prices offset lower mortgage rates to keep the affordability rate flat in the third quarter of 2021.

Chris Yankowich Appointed as CEO of The RiteScreen Company

Action on Supply Chain Bottlenecks, Tariffs Needed to Boost Housing Affordability, says NAHB

Testifying before the House Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations, NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke told lawmakers that disruptions in the building materials supply chain that have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic are having a disproportionate impact on smaller…

Port of LA to Operate 24/7 to Ease Cargo Congestion, Spur Economy

The Port of Los Angeles is beginning around-the-clock operations as part of an effort to move stranded container ships and relieve the supply chain bottlenecks that are driving up U.S. prices and slowing the country’s economic recovery from the pandemic, according to a release from the ReBuild…

Software Standards and the Supply Chain

Creating software standards for the supply chain can reduce barriers to entry and allow all manufacturers to participate.

The Power of Relationships Amidst a Supply Crisis

Whether it’s vinyl extrusions, screens, spacer technology or any other critical component in high-performance windows and doors, alignment with the right suppliers is one of the most important things manufacturers can do right now to ensure reliable supply channels.

Time to Reevaluate

Chances are very good that your company is currently experiencing either a raw materials shortage or difficulty hiring new employees. And there is no indication that either of these challenges will end soon. As is so often the case in business, it may be time to reevaluate and pivot, and here are a…

The Tight Supply Side

Companies in every part of the supply chain are wrangling with material shortages, high costs and long lead times.

5 Takeaways from the 2021 Top Manufacturers Report

This year’s Top Manufacturers report revealed several key takeaways about the manufacturing and housing markets as a whole, and how residential fenestration manufacturers fit into it.

Logistics and Material Shortages in Hardware: One Supplier’s Story

Dan Gray, director of sales, Roto North America, sat down with Window + Door in February to discuss current supply chain challenges, logistical considerations and how to work through them.

Construction Supply Chain Struggles Could Worsen Following Suez Canal Blockage

The U.S. construction industry will likely feel ripple effects of the blockage of the Suez Canal, adding to a series of ongoing supply chain and material acquisition concerns.

The Importance of Supply Chain Technology

The pandemic has increased the risk for every business with many experiencing shocks in both supply and demand. As factories continue operating through the pandemic and beyond, how will businesses navigate these wider risks, specifically with an eye toward supply chain resilience?