As you may have heard, registration is now open for the Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance (FGIA) 2024 Fall Conference! This special industry event is taking place September 16-19 in Minneapolis, MN, at the Hyatt Regency Minneapolis. I am especially excited for the theme of this conference: “Oktoberfest”! We will be celebrating this introduction to autumn with a fun night out at Surly Brewing, complete with a performance from a Minnesota Hall of Fame inductee, the Jolly Huntsmen Polka Band. But as you know, FGIA conferences are not all about fun and games – they are where the real work of the industry gets done, thanks to networking and committee and task group work.

FGIA events are the heart of FGIA membership. It is where our members can meet in person to talk about the issues that matter most to them and make plans for the future together. It is where documents and standards that guide our industry are developed and updated, by members and for members. It is where people who are newer to the industry can experience immersive training on a variety of topics in their new field and have the opportunity to ask questions of their senior-level counterparts. Thanks to the FGIA New Participants Onboarding Program, many of these newer members have even found mentors.

In addition to our many networking events, there is an array of technical topics being covered at the FGIA Fall Conference:

• Construction Mockups and Testing: Overview, Trends and Best Practices, presented by Christopher Grey (SGH)
• What Do We Need to Know When It Comes to New Commercial Energy Codes in Minnesota?, presented by Don Sivigny (Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry)
• EPDs: Where Do We Go from Here?, presented by Richard Braunstein (Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope)
• A color forecast and trends overview, presented by Kiki Redhead (Sherwin-Williams)
• How Will New Laws Help Reduce the Use and Presence of PFAS "Forever Chemicals" in Minnesota?, presented by Dana Vanderbosch and Kirk Koudelka (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency)
• Corrosion research, presented by Vicki Gelling (Sherwin-Williams)
• NAFS Committee | Decoupling Air-Water-Structural Performance Work Group (NAFS)

The 2024 FGIA Fall Conference will take place September 16-19, and registration is now open. Don’t miss out on early bird pricing, available through August 23! And if you are in the FENBC region, save the date for the next in-person regional event: the FENBC Region Technical Summit on November 6. See you there!