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WDMA Legislative and Regulatory Update and Outlook Webinar

Following an historic month of infighting on Capitol Hill that paralyzed the House of Representatives without a Speaker for three weeks, brand new leadership in Congress is now confronting a looming government shutdown deadline in mid-November amid massive party differences on federal spending priorities. Join WDMA for a webinar that will examine the political dynamics and legislative landscape in Washington as lawmakers work through a contentious appropriations process, along with an update on key state and federal issues impacting the window, door and skylight industry.

WDMA members will have the opportunity to ask questions and hear from WDMA’s Director of Government Affairs Jacob Carter on issues ranging from PFAS and plastic packaging laws to taxes and labor regulations, while also learning about the remaining agenda on Capitol Hill for 2023 and the political outlook in the House and Senate.

The webinar will be held on Wednesday, November 15 at 3:00 p.m. ET.

Register here.

WDMA Welcomes PGT Innovations as Newest Member

The Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) announced today that PGT Innovations is the newest member of the association.

The Window & Door Manufacturers Association defines the standards of excellence in the residential and commercial window, door, and skylight industry and advances these standards among industry members while providing advocacy resources, educational and professional programs, and ways for members to provide greater value to their customers.

PGT Innovations manufactures and supplies premium windows, doors, and garage doors. Its highly engineered and technically advanced products can withstand some of the toughest weather conditions on Earth and are revolutionizing the way people live by unifying indoor and outdoor living spaces. Through its brands, PGT Innovations is also the nation’s largest manufacturer of impact-resistant windows and doors and holds the leadership position in its primary market.

The PGT Innovations’ family of brands include CGI®, PGT® Custom Windows and Doors, WinDoor®, Western Window Systems, Anlin Windows & Doors, Eze-Breeze®, Eco Window Systems, NewSouth Window Solutions, and Martin Door. The company’s brands, in their respective markets, are a preferred choice of architects, builders, and homeowners throughout North America and the Caribbean. Their high-quality products are available in custom and standard sizes with massive dimensions that allow for unlimited design possibilities in residential, multi-family, and commercial projects.

"We are excited to join the Window and Door Manufacturers Association, an organization that embodies the very standards of excellence we hold ourselves to at PGT Innovations," says Jeff Jackson, President and CEO of PGT Innovations. "With decades of leadership in the industry, we've always been committed to inventing, building, and delivering solutions that enhance lives. We look forward to contributing our passion and expertise to further drive WDMA's mission, ultimately providing greater value to our customers and the industry as a whole."

For more information on PGT Innovations visit their website

WDMA Welcomes Engineered Custom Coatings as Newest Member

The Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) announced today that Engineered Custom Coatings (ECC) is the newest member of the association.

The Window & Door Manufacturers Association defines the standards of excellence in the residential and commercial window, door, and skylight industry and advances these standards among industry members while providing advocacy resources, educational and professional programs, and ways for members to provide greater value to their customers.

ECC engineers and manufactures custom coatings to fit specific window and door OEM application and performance needs. ECC’s core focus and mission are simple; to protect and enhance customer assets and brands to the highest standards.

With over 90 combined years in business and several patents, ECC has the broadest array of chemistry technologies in the window and door industry, ranging from high-performance, 1K H2O Urethane, to Opaque UV, and 1K H2O Acrylic technologies, for applications on vinyl, aluminum, and fiberglass.

Since no two OEM coatings requirements are alike, ECC prioritizes technology as well as research and development. Over 25% of their staff is dedicated to R&D and Engineered Custom Coatings takes a customer-centric approach to all products developed in their labs.

“Engineered Custom Coatings is new to WDMA, but not new to high-performance coating solutions for the window and door industry. We are thrilled to join WDMA and are looking forward to growing with the esteemed members and this great association," states CEO & President Steven Hughes.

For more information on Engineered Custom Coatings visit their website.

WDMA Welcomes North American Specialty Laminations as Newest Member

The Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) announced today that North American Specialty Laminations (NASL) is the newest member of the association.

The Window & Door Manufacturers Association defines the standards of excellence in the residential and commercial window, door, and skylight industry and advances these standards among industry members while providing advocacy resources, educational and professional programs, and ways for members to provide greater value to their customers.

North American Specialty Laminations is the trusted source for innovative lamination, fabrication, and finishing solutions to the global building products industries. With five locations across North America, NASL delivers products and services to empower our customers to deliver high-performance integrated architectural solutions to their customers, in virtually any color, texture, or pattern.

Their scale and growing production footprint, coupled with their proprietary FACTOR Program creates shared efficiencies in capital investments, labor, and transportation for a streamlined supply chain. NASL is the single source solution to deliver color via lamination/paint/stain to a broad range of product offerings to our valued customers.

“We are pleased to be an active WDMA member and welcome the many benefits associated with our membership”, states Doug Rende, CEO – NASL. “With color becoming such an important growth aspect within our industry, we look forward to sharing our expertise in delivering cost and time efficiencies to our partners in business.

For more information on North American Specialty Laminations visit their website.

WDMA Welcomes Novagard Solutions, Inc. as Newest Member

The Window and Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) announced today that Novagard Solutions, Inc. is the newest member of the association.

The Window & Door Manufacturers Association defines the standards of excellence in the residential and commercial window, door, and skylight industry and advances these standards among industry members while providing advocacy resources, educational and professional programs, and ways for members to provide greater value to their customers.

Novagard manufactures a complete line of professional grade one-part and two-part silicone sealants, as well as hybrid sealants, designed for manufacturers, dealers, wholesalers, and contractors. NovaFlex silicones sit at the top of the Building Systems sealant hierarchy, offering permanently flexible seals that are VOC compliant, UV resistant, weather tight, and will not degrade over time.

Within the window manufacturing sector, Novagard glazing products meet or surpass all industry standards for window and door fabrication applications. Their approved formulations are trusted by window and door manufacturers for their high tensile strength, quick cure rates, and excellent adhesion to most substrates.

“We have been serving the window manufacturing industry for over 30 years, and are delighted to become a member of the WDMA”, said Joe Borak, Senior VP of Sales. “We look forward to working together with some of the best minds in the industry to continue to develop and support standards around high performance, quality windows and doors.”

For more information on Novagard Solutions, Inc. visit novagard.com

Maine Delays PFAS Reporting to 2025

Maine Governor Janet Mills (D) has signed LD 217, “An Act to Support Manufacturers Whose Products Contain Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances,” legislation that delays the new reporting requirements for manufacturers of products that contain PFAS.

The bill extends the January 1, 2023, deadline for reporting the use of PFAS in products for sale to January 1, 2025, and authorizes reporting the amount of total organic fluorine if the amount of each PFAS compound is not known. The bill also allows the amount of PFAS to be reported based on information provided by a supplier rather than testing and exempts manufacturers that employ 25 or fewer people from the reporting requirements. Further, the bill clarifies that the requirements and prohibitions of PFAS in products do not apply to used products or used product components, and makes other technical clarifications to PFAS reporting requirements. The changes made by the bill to the law regulating PFAS in products will be made retroactive to January 1, 2023.

WDMA has heavily advocated for extensions and is working with the state of Maine and a coalition of industry stakeholders to limit and reduce the scope of PFAS regulations on our membership.

More information about Maine’s PFAS registration program can be found here, and WDMA members with questions may contact Jacob Carter, WDMA’s Director of Government Affairs, at [email protected].

WDMA and Fenestration Canada Announce Agreement to Work Together to Advance Industry Interests in North America

The Window & Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) and Fenestration Canada (FenCan) announced a formal agreement to cooperate in a number of areas for the mutual benefit of WDMA and Fenestration Canada members. The associations believe the agreement will further both associations’ goal of promoting, protecting and advancing the window, door and skylight industry in North America.

Under the agreement, both associations are pledging to work closely on cross-border policy issues to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome for their members. By teaming up on these issues, WDMA and Fenestration Canada believe they achieve better and greater results.

"WDMA and FenCan have always had a great working relationship but we are excited to formalize our efforts and deploy the combined influence of both organizations in the policy arena," said Michael O’Brien, WDMA President and CEO.

Stéphane Labelle, Fenestration Canada’s Executive Director adds: "This collaboration represents a unique opportunity for both organizations to pool their expertise to advance the industry as a whole. By working together, we can better overcome challenges, drive innovation, and promote the interests of manufacturers and stakeholders across the fenestration sector."

Further, under the agreement, WDMA and FenCan members will have more opportunities to participate in each other’s events and the associations.

2022 North American Fenestration Standard Published

The 2022 edition of AAMA/WDMA/CSA 101/I.S.2/A440, North American Fenestration Standard/Specification for windows, doors, and skylights (NAFS) has been published. This standard is the result of a multi-year effort by CSA Group, Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance (FGIA) and Window & Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA). The updated 2022 standard replaces the 2017 edition, representing a continued evolution of the standard to improve harmonization across North America.

The 2017 NAFS standard is already referenced in the 2021 editions of the International Building Code and International Residential Code, with the recently released standard proposed to be included in the 2024 editions of these codes. The 2017 NAFS standard is also referenced in the 2020 edition of the National Building Code of Canada, with the recently released standard proposed to be included in the 2025 edition.

The Joint Document Management Group (JDMG), comprised of representatives from all three associations, stresses the importance of NAFS-22.

Operating Force
“Operating force tables were combined to include all product types and Performance Classes, and a single requirement identifies the maximum ‘force to initiate’ and ‘force in motion.’ This was done to both simplify and to harmonize requirements between Canada and the United States,” said Brad Fevold, Director of Regulatory Affairs for Marvin, who served as WDMA’s JDMG co-chair.

Door Requirements
“Another change is that the Limited Water (LW) rating and designations for sliding doors were added to provide consistency for all door products. Finally, folding door assembly qualifications were revised and updated to include an additional sixth configuration to better reflect the breadth of product offerings in the market,” said Fevold.

Material and Components
“‘Material and Components’ clauses were partitioned into ‘Requirements without Alternative,’ ‘Requirements with Alternative’ and ‘Design Guidance.’ In addition, prescriptive or redundant auxiliary and component tests were removed,” said Steve Fronek, P.E. and Vice President Preconstruction for Wausau Window and Wall Systems, who served as FGIA’s JDMG co-chair.

Concise Clauses
To maximize continuous improvement opportunities, every clause in NAFS-22 was subjected to review and enhancement using time-tested, inclusive, consensus-based processes at each of the JDMG associations. “The result is a concise, quality-focused standard, allowing for end-product performance evaluation, as well as meeting secondary goals including product comparison, durability assessment and addressing technical certification issues,” said Fronek.

Canada/U.S. Harmonization
Several Canadian-specific changes are reflected in NAFS-22. “NAFS-22 is a huge achievement for its impact on products intended for the Canadian market, as it has been harmonized to address both countries’ requirements”, said Robert Jutras, Chair of CSA’s Technical Committee and CSA’s JDMG co-chair. “In Canada, the selection of the water penetration resistance test pressure is still defined in accordance with the A440S1 Canadian Supplement to NAFS, and air exfiltration testing will now be required in the U.S.”, he added.

Mulled Products
Additionally, Jutras pointed out an important change regarding evaluation of mulled products. This change was the transition from AAMA 450-10 to AAMA 450-20, which now includes provisions for evaluating mullions for composite window products. Finally, Jutras noted that the tables for the Available Performance Grade Requirements have been consolidated. “This was done to provide clarity for specifiers,” Jutras said.

AAMA/WDMA/CSA 101/I.S.2/A440:22 is available online at Window & Door Manufacturers Association, CSA Group, or Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance.

WDMA Releases 2023 National Policy Agenda

Today, the Window & Door Manufacturers Association (WDMA) released its 2023 National Policy Agenda, a comprehensive guide and resource for federal policymakers that identifies priorities and offers solutions to the biggest challenges impacting U.S. manufacturers in the housing and residential construction industry.

“WDMA continues to work with Congress and the White House to collaborate and implement fiscally sound policies that are meaningful on issues ranging from housing, energy efficiency and energy independence to workforce development and immigration,” said WDMA Chair Steve Tourek, Senior Vice President & General Counsel for the Marvin Companies. “Our policy framework offers a comprehensive approach that will strengthen the U.S. economy and housing market by promoting sustainable manufacturing and residential construction across the country.”

The 2023 WDMA National Policy Agenda is divided into ten different policy areas:
  • Energy Conservation
  • Building Codes
  • Environmental Stewardship
  • Building Safety
  • Housing and Economic Policy
  • Tax Policy
  • Product Supply
  • Trade Policy
  • Workforce/Workplace
  • Immigration Reform
”Window, door and skylight manufacturers are essential to housing and building markets that are key to a thriving economy,” said WDMA President and CEO Michael O’Brien. “WDMA is focused on partnering with Congress and the Biden Administration to advance legislative and regulatory policies that will keep U.S. manufacturers competitive and the housing and construction markets strong.”

WDMA's 2023 National Policy Agenda will be distributed to members of Congress and key officials in the Biden Administration.

Upcoming Joint Webinar: ENERGY STAR | How Your Association Can Help You Report Unit Shipment Data

EPA is updating their ENERGY STAR Residential Window, Door and Skylight unit shipment data collection process for ENERGY STAR products shipped in 2023. They recently sent an announcement providing details on what information they intend to collect. It will be the responsibility of every ENERGY STAR Residential Window, Door and Skylight partner to submit the requested 2023 shipment data by March 1, 2024. 

In addition, WDMA and FGIA are partnering to anonymously aggregate shipping data from our member companies and provide it to EPA in order to satisfy your reporting requirements.

As a member of one of our associations, we would like to provide additional information on how you can prepare now to track the necessary shipment data in order to comply with the ENERGY STAR reporting requirements. A one-hour webinar has been scheduled for Tuesday, February 28 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern to provide details related to the data collection requirements. Doug Anderson from the EPA’s ENERGY STAR program will be present and will respond to questions. Registration is open exclusively to FGIA and WDMA members. 

Questions to be addressed during the webinar:

  • How should your data collection system be set up?
  • What data is EPA looking to gather?
  • Do we have to report total units shipped in addition to ENERGY STAR shipments?
  • How does EPA define windows, doors and skylights?
  • What counts as a “unit shipped” according to EPA?
  • How are Version 6.0 vs. 7.0 products counted?
  • What determines if a product can be counted as ENERGY STAR?
  • How can you avoid double counting?


If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to Craig Drumheller for WDMA or Angela Dickson for FGIA.

OSHA Expands National Emphasis Program on Combustible Dust

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a revised Combustible Dust National Emphasis Program (NEP) to continue OSHA inspections of facilities that generate or handle combustible dusts likely to cause fire, flash fire, deflagration and explosion hazards. The Combustible Dust NEP was revised based on enforcement history and combustible dust incident reports and sets forth a new approach for locating and inspecting subject establishments. In 2018, wood and food products made up an average of 70% of the materials involved in combustible dust fires and explosions. Incident reports indicate that the majority of the industries involved in combustible dust hazards are wood processing, agricultural and food production and lumber production, but others are susceptible as well.

Notably for WDMA members, the updated NEP includes the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes for Metal Window and Door Manufacturing and Wood Window and Door Manufacturing as industries with a higher likelihood of having combustible dust hazards. This means that WDMA members are a specific target for OSHA inspections concerning combustible dust, especially as data from OSHA over the last decade consistently ranks window, door and skylight manufacturing as one of the top five industries with combustible dust hazards.

OSHA offers a variety of options for employers looking for compliance assistance. The On-Site Consultation Program provides professional, high-quality, individualized assistance to small businesses at no cost. OSHA also has compliance assistance specialists in most of their 85 Area Offices across the nation who provide robust outreach and education programs for employers and workers. WDMA members can find and contact OSHA’s regional and area offices by clicking here.

Visit OSHA’s Combustible Dust website, view the Combustible Dust National Emphasis Program, and read the official OSHA press release for more information.

For any questions, please contact Jacob Carter, WDMA’s Director of Government Affairs, at [email protected].

WDMA Technical & Manufacturing Conference Call for Speakers Now Open

WDMA’s Call for Speakers is now open and this is your opportunity to submit your presentation.

WDMA is currently offering speakers the opportunity to submit their abstract proposals to present at WDMA’s Technical & Manufacturing Conference to be held in Minneapolis, MN on June 27-29, 2023. The conference is the premier destination to participate in the leading-edge conversations on emerging technologies, market trends, regulatory issues, and a wide range of topics of interest to the window, door, and skylight industry.

This is an opportunity to build a program you would want to participate in and share with your colleagues. Stand out as a thought leader in an ever-evolving industry and share ideas, case studies, and best practices. Sessions are beginning to fill up, so do not delay. The deadline to submit your application will close on Friday, February 23, 2023.

WDMA Maine PFAS Regulations Q&A Webinar Recording Available

Last week, WDMA hosted the Maine State Chamber of Commerce for a members-only question-and-answer session on upcoming state regulations and reporting requirements for consumer products containing PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances). Maine’s deadline on January 1st is quickly approaching for manufacturers to either submit information on any products being sold in the state that contain PFAS or apply for a six-month extension. This webinar offered WDMA members the opportunity to ask questions and hear from Ben Lucas, Senior Government Relations Specialist, and Linda Caprara, Vice President of Advocacy for the Maine State Chamber of Commerce.

Access the recording here by logging into your WDMA member account. 

Background:
Beginning on January 1, 2023, Maine requires manufacturers to provide notification about any product being sold in the state that contains PFAS (perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances). PFAS are chemicals that are commonly found in adhesives and sealants. Your company should internally investigate its own use of PFAS and make a determination about whether this requirement applies to your products.  WDMA has contacted both Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) and DEP Commissioner Melanie Loyzim formally requesting that our members receive an extension for complying with PFAS reporting requirements that are currently scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2023 and the state has said it will consider extensions.

Take Action:
WDMA members can apply for an extension of the January 1, 2023 reporting deadline by contacting the Maine Department of Environmental Protection. Extensions are expected to be granted quickly and can be requested by emailing [email protected]. In your email, provide the following information:

  • A simple written request for an extension of the January 1, 2023, PFAS reporting requirement
    • Example: “I am writing to request an extension of Maine’s upcoming PFAS reporting requirement.”
  • Company name
  • Company contact information

Next Steps:
WDMA is working with the state of Maine and a coalition of industry stakeholders to limit and reduce the scope of these burdensome regulations on our membership. More information about Maine’s PFAS registration program can be found here, and WDMA members with questions may contact Jacob Carter, WDMA’s Director of Government Affairs, at [email protected].