The inaugural year of the Auto Glass Expo @ NACE was a rousing success. The consensus among exhibitors and attendees was more than enthusiastic. On the first day, Mike Mervene of Burco said “...I will be back next year, it is already the best show I have done in years.” Bob Rossey, sundries manager for PPG Auto Glass said “...Why didn’t we do this years ago?” Ray Asbery, President of Equalizer said, “I have talked with customers at this show that I have not seen in 10 years.” Ron Perris of EFTEC Aftermarket probably summed it up best when he said, “This reminds me of the great shows we had in the 1980s.” Even Kerry Wanstrath, Vice President and COO of Glass Technology told us that next year they would definitely be part of the AGX show because of its high visibility.

Adding to the excitement was the much anticipated Auto Glass Technician Olympics involving 29 competitors most of which had already won competitions within their companies for the right to compete. This heavily attended event was THE event of AGX.

The 2006 Auto Glass Olympics winners are:
Rob Grace of Cindy Rowe Auto Glass who won the grand prize of $5000.
Carl Sorrels was the second place winner and won $1000.
Third place winner of $500 was Jason Horne.
Fourth place was Lynn Lovetinsky.

Adding value to the success of this show and the effort to bring the entire auto glass industry together, the Independent Glass Association (IGA) and the National Windshield Repair Association (NWRA) have endorsed the AGX show. The Auto Glass Replacement Safety Standards Council (AGRSS) also held its annual meeting during and in conjunction with AGX.

Many thanks to all the competitors, exhibitors, speakers and attendees who helped make the first AGX such a success.

We will see you all again at AGX 07!