Articles Association News Community
Fenestration Canada – Spring update

The winter months are key planning months for most organizations and Fenestration Canada is actively planning in several areas including education, governance, membership, our AGM and, of course, WinDoor17.

The education committee is planning several webinars this spring to update the membership and the country on the status of code developments and changes. The webinars will offer content specific to each region and will be open to members and all industry stakeholders. These webinars will be offered in French and English by Jeff Baker of Westlab and J.F. Kogovsek of Maxam Marketing. The webinars will be produced by our management team at Zzeem and participation is free to members.

New members from Quebec, Western Canada, B.C. and Ontario are very promising for Fenestration Canada. The ability of Fenestration Canada to support the member programs is significantly dependent on membership fees. While we will continue to explore and grow non-dues revenue sources, the fact remains the membership fees are the number-one source of revenue for Fenestration Canada. Growth in membership is key to the long-term viability and relevance of the association. Since October of 2016 we have processed over a dozen new membership applications from both fabricators and suppliers.

Since May of 2016 Fenestration Canada has added three member programs that provide services at discounted rates. Perkopolis offers Fenestration Canada members (and their staff) access to discounts on a wide variety of products and services: tickets to events, travel costs (personal and business), holiday and shopping discounts and suggestions. HASCO (who recently exhibited at WinDoor 16) is a leading provider of health safety training courses and consulting services with a suite of around 35 instructor-led training programs from which to choose. In late January we added a new membership partner, Penske truck rental and leasing. Details of this program will be announced in the coming months.

Changes are coming to terms for directors and executive. The executive committee will be making a significant proposal to the board of directors at the next AGM. The proposal will limit the terms for directors to four two-year terms. In addition, the length of service for president, vice-president, second vice-president and treasurer will be one year. The past president would become an ex officio member of the executive committee.

These changes are being recommended due to the influx of new members and the need to give new members the opportunity to participate at the board level.

The executive and the board are committed to a major rewrite of our bylaws in 2017. It’s an ambitious goal, but we hope to vote on a new set of bylaws at our annual general meeting in Halifax.

On March 9, the board of Fenestration Canada will gather in Toronto for a one-day strategic planning session. We’ll be discussing Fenestration Canada’s role in codes and standards development; defining our role in advocacy with government; looking at ways to increase the member value proposition and exploring how Fenestration Canada can work more effectively and collaboratively with regional associations and affiliate industry associations. As with every planning session, we will be discussing the future of the WinDoor show and how it can continue to promote relationship-building in our industry and be the premier industry event in Canada.

Everyone is invited to our AGM in Halifax at the Westin Nova Scotian hotel. Spring is the time to elect the new executive and board and a chance for committees and the industry as a whole to have face-to-face meetings. While conference calls can be very productive, it is often difficult to get all committee members on a call. The AGM is usually a time where committees have a chance to reset their goals for the year, renew their teams and generate fresh ideas.

Allan Doyle is general manager and partner of Global Windows and Doors in Richibucto, N.B., and president of Fenestration Canada. He has over 30 years’ experience in the fenestration industry.