The Houston Area Glass Association (HAGA) has named its 2011 Glass Professional of the Year: Irene Lopez of M.I. Glass Inc., who has been involved in the industry for 23 years, and has been a member of HAGA for the last 15 years.
Irene Lopez of M.I. Glass Inc. in Houston, Texas, has been named the 2011 Glass Professional of the Year by the Houston Area Glass Association (HAGA). Ms. Lopez received the award during HAGA’s dinner meeting on 12 January.
A member of HAGA for the last 15 years, Ms. Lopez has been involved in the industry for 23 years. “My husband and I opened our business, a retail glass shop, M.I. Glass, in Houston in 1989,” she says. “We fabricate, install and sell to the public. We do everything related to glass and aluminium.”
Since she joined HAGA’s membership committee last year, membership has gone up about 30%, she says. “I try to do more public activity,” she says. “We’re trying to get [Congresswoman] Sheila Jackson Lee [D-Texas] to get involved. We fix glass for the elderly free of charge once a year. This year we’ll do it in September. That’s how the association will get noticed, by giving back to the community. And all our members need to be involved.”
More glass professionals need to join the association, Lopez says. “There are companies that don’t want to support the industry; they just want to go fix glass,” she says. “They need to join the association, so they can get new information, keep up with the new products, and see news vendors. The association can help us with legislation, new ideas and new products. It can educate us. They have trade shows that we can go to and attend seminars. That’s how we’d learn. It’s not just about replacing glass anymore.”
The young are the future, Lopez says. “We need to train the young for the glass industry.” To that end she has all her five children – three in college and two in high school – involved in her shop. “They help out with the shop, fabricating shower doors, commercial doors, tabletops and shelves,” she says. “We fabricate for other glass companies also. We do full service here.”
The couple started their less-than-USD 5,000 business from their apartment, and now owns a 10,000-square-foot facility, six trucks and about 10 employees. “We’re planning to get part-time students to help, so they can start learning the trade,” Lopez says.
One of the other areas of her focus is new members, Lopez says.
“We need to give something to the glass shops that become new members,” Lopez says. “We’ll give links to new job sites to our new members. I’m trying to find health benefits for our members. We have discount pharmacy cards. We also want to notify the wholesalers to give a discount to the members of HAGA.”
“We have to give something back to them,” Lopez says. “We’re happy to support the industry.”
HAGA is a part of the Texas Glass Association (TGA), which is a co-sponsor of TEXpo 2012. The architectural glass event is scheduled to take place at the El Tropicano Riverwalk Hotel in San Antonio, Texas, 12-13 April.