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This year was the first of FGIA’s existence, and while there were some unexpected challenges, much was accomplished in the last 12 months. We wanted to share some highlights from 2020, including the most clicked-on news articles and blog posts. Though COVID-19 understandably dominated much of the news cycle globally, several important industry news topics were also addressed, including the Florida Building Code, an updated FGIA market study, virtual event pivots and window safety.

Top 5 News Articles

  1. Florida Building Code Changes Highlighted: Lynn Miller, FGIA Southeast Region member and Code Compliance Manager for PGT Custom Windows + Doors, summarized significant changes proposed for the 7th Edition of the Florida Building Code from a fenestration standpoint compared with the 6th edition published in 2017. This article appeared in a 2020 edition of Southeast Region e-News.
  2. Announcing the Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance: In a much-anticipated unification, AAMA and IGMA officially joined forces in January. This press release announcing the creation of FGIA was the news section’s second-most popular article this year.
  3. FGIA Releases 2019/2020 Market Studies, Offers Forecast of Fenestration Industry Trends: In even years, the full version of the FGIA market studies is released, and 2020 was no exception. Incidentally, because of 2020’s unusual activity, FGIA commissioned additional reports to provide FGIA members with the most up-to-date market information possible. Check out December’s report, which just came out.
  4. Early Bird Registration for Inaugural FGIA Annual Conference Open Through January 17: Many were excited for the first-ever FGIA conference, as evidenced by the popularity of this article. That event turned out to be the only in-person conference FGIA was able to host in 2020, but this inaugural event was a joyful celebration of the unification of IGMA and AAMA.
  5. FGIA Recognizes Industry Leaders for Excellence, Marketing, More During Inaugural FGIA Annual Conference: At that same event, members were recognized during the Annual Conference awards ceremony. This particular press release always gets a lot of eyes, because members love seeing who was commended during this special event each year.


Top 5 Blog Posts

  1. Changes Coming to Florida Building Code December 31, 2020: This April Member Edge blog post by Jason Seals, FGIA Certification Services Manager, Fenestration, was our most-read blog post in 2020, solidifying just how crucial the changes made to the FBC were to the industry. Jason’s post carefully laid out what FGIA members dealing in Florida needed to know and how much time they had to take care of their needs in the state.
  2. Window Safety | The Impact of COVID-19 on Window Safety: Angela Dickson, FGIA Marketing and Communications Director, wrote a very relevant Member Edge blog post in March urging members and the industry at large to help in spreading the message of window safety in the midst of the pandemic’s early days. As she wrote, “Teaching kids to properly wash their hands during the corona virus outbreak is not the only important safety tip children need to learn.”
  3. Use the FGIA Leadership Program to Strengthen Your Career Path: On the Trade Secrets blog this July, Janice Yglesias, FGIA Executive Director, extolled the virtues of the FGIA Leadership Program. A new series of this program is beginning in April 2021. Learn more at FGIAonline.org/BeAGreatLeader.
  4. FGIA to Cover Education Programs, Field Testing, Preventing IG Failures at GlassBuild Connect September 1-30: In August, Janice also wrote a helpful preview of the content FGIA provided as an industry partner of GlassBuild America. This year’s trade show took place online in the form of GlassBuild Connect, which shared interesting and educational sessions with registrants all month long.
  5. FGIA Summer Conference Transitioning to Virtual Event | Quality Information in a New Format: And finally, Janice’s April Trade Secrets blog post helped readers understand what FGIA’s pivot from a planned in-person Summer Conference to a virtual event would look like. That format carried over into Fall and will be even further improved upon for February’s FGIA Virtual Annual Conference.


We hope 2021 brings brighter news. Come what may, we will be sure to give you the rundown of what was most discussed and clicked on this time next year.