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HP: What year did Simonton first start
offering hurricane-resistant products, and what was the first product
line?
Mark DeSimone, Coastal Products Manager:
We launched our Simonton StormBreaker and Simonton StormBreaker
Plus product lines in 2002. The StormBreaker line requires shuttering
up to meet Florida Building Code approvals, while many of the StormBreaker
Plus products, with their impact-resistant glass, require no shuttering
system to meet the Dade County code. Both product lines are AAMA-certified
and can meet Energy Star® guidelines.
The Simonton StormBreaker Plus product line really stands out in the marketplace.
The windows and doors are constructed of an outer layer of tempered (breakable)
glass and an inner layer of impact-resistant glass. A heavy invisible
plastic interlayer sandwiched between panes of the inner glass prevents
the puncturing of the glass from flying debris. When impacted, glass may
shatter, but it will not break out of its frame so the home and its contents
are protected. In addition to its resistance to severe weather (including
winds up to 140 mph), these products offer superior energy efficiency
benefits, protection for the home against noise and solar penetration,
and they impede intrusion efforts.
HP: Who are your coastal customers?
What parts of the country do you service?
DeSimone: We sell our coastal
products to distributors and dealer-direct customers in coastal states
from Maine to Texas. We particularly sell products to distributors servicing
remodelers and builders in areas on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.
HP: How many sales people do you
employ?
DeSimone: Nationwide, Simonton
has a team of 60 sales representatives. Fourteen of those sales representatives
are located in coastal states, plus five coastal product specialists that
deal specifically with the Simonton StormBreaker and Simonton StormBreaker
Plus product lines.
HP: What best describes your niche
in the marketplace related to coastal products?
DeSimone: Simonton has the
most extensive vinyl product line in the marketplace, which definitely
sets our company apart. We are positioning ourselves through our products,
programs and services to be a leader in the coastal marketplace. We continue
to focus attention on expanding our product offerings to include upscale
features and product improvements that will be appreciated by our customers,
builders, remodelers and homeowners.
HP: What are some of the key factors
involved in your company’s coastal product growth and success?
DeSimone: We find it extremely
beneficial that Simonton Windows operates its own Product Development
Center (PDC) in West Virginia. Home to some of the most advanced equipment
and technology in the fenestration industry, Simonton’s PDC includes
certified test labs that enable us to perform thorough on-site impact,
structural, condensation and thermal testing.
Simonton’s state-of-the-art laboratories replicate rigorous weather
conditions that would otherwise be found only in severe, real-life applications.
Much of our testing (including air-cannon tests done to simulate hurricane-force
weather conditions) helps our Simonton engineers create impact-resistant
windows and doors that are ideally suited for coastal environments.
Simonton has also focused heavily on creating awareness of our product
line by participating in the International Builders’ Show (IBS).
Our booth, which features a 37-foot tall moving weather system, has a
major focus on coastal products. This exposure for our coastal products
to builders at this national show has helped us build our brand name awareness
in the marketplace.
HP: What are your strengths in the
marketplace related to coastal products and your overall company?
DeSimone: First of all,
2006 marks our company’s 60th anniversary. Since 1946, Simonton
Windows’ hallmarks have included the production of superior quality
products, outstanding customer service and delivery of made-to-order standard
vinyl replacement or new construction windows in seven days or less under
normal business conditions. While our Simonton StormBreaker Plus products
require additional manufacturing time, we’re working diligently
to reduce production time for our coastal products and hope to also be
offering them within the seven-day timeframe during 2006.
Additionally, our Product Development Center and dedicated testing staff
members are a strength that many window manufacturers do not have. This
team of engineers and window experts has allowed us to advance several
products within the past few years and will allow us to rapidly develop
other new products in the future.
Finally, Simonton is dedicating more manufacturing space and attention
to coastal products than ever before. We recognize, and are responding
to, the escalating need for impact-resistant products. To meet that need
we’re expanding our manufacturing capabilities and working hard
to cut down on product lead times.
HP: What trends and cycles do you
see occurring in the industry? How is your business addressing them?
DeSimone: Obviously the
increase in severe weather, and hurricanes in particular, over the past
several years has elevated interest in, and demand for, hurricane-resistant
products. According to weather experts, this trend of strong storm seasons
will continue for several years to come. As a result of that, plus the
constant changes in building codes in many coastal areas, there will be
an increased need for hurricane-resistant products.
Simonton has positioned itself to meet that demand for more products by
increasing our production capabilities for our Simonton StormBreaker Plus
product lines. We’re dedicating more attention to developing new
products, such as our low- to mid-rise product being introduced in 2006
and our expanded sizes of double-hung windows. We’re also directly
communicating more with coastal builders and remodelers through our new
Coastal Nitpickers program and our sponsorship of educational coastal
conferences for builders and remodelers in key coastal areas.
Overall, our combined marketing and manufacturing efforts are dedicated
now more than ever to coastal products and the people who sell and install
them.
Simonton Windows
5300 Briscoe Rd.
Parkersburg, WV 26102
(800) SIMONTON
fax: (800) 542-9116
www.simonton.com
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