Clearview National August 2019 - Issue 213 | Page 8

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GGF Get Together and
say Farewell at GPD
» » THE RECENT GLASS PERFORMANCE
Days in Tampere proved insightful and enjoyable
for the GGF and Members alike as over 1,000
delegates from around the world participated
in four days of workshops, conference sessions,
seminars, forums and an exhibition from
hundreds of companies in the global glass
industry.
The events continued into the evenings
with a Get Together Party, Conference dinner
and memorable Farewell Party that this year
was combined with organiser Jorma Vitkala’s
retirement – and he went out in amazing
style – hovering 100ft above a lake at midnight
in water jet boots to the gasps of hundreds of
GPD visitors on the lakeside in the land of the
midnight sun.
Jorma Vitkala who has been instrumental in
the organisation and promotion of the event
since GPD started 27 years ago. Though Jorma
is retiring, he is not making a sudden departure
and will continue in a consultative role for
GPD.
“I want to personally thank everyone who
has contributed to and attended GPD over the
last 27 years. It has been a great journey and
this year’s GPD has reached new higher levels of
excellence. With over 1,000 participants in total,
including all the speakers, Helsinki High Rise
seminar, management forum guests and local
Tampere workshops, GPD 2019 has set new
records in many ways. An all-time high of 280
first-timers attended, marking a new era of next-
generation participants. These will be some of
our upcoming ambassadors to carry on making
GPD a truly one-of-a-kind forum for openly
sharing ideas, innovations and inspiration.
GPD Organiser
Jorma Vitkala
Guy Hubble (left) with GGF’s James Lee at GPD
GPD 2019 was very special to me as it was my
last as Chairman of the event. Being Chairman
of the Organising Committee has been a special
highlight of my lifelong career. This year’s
Farewell Party – along with my retirement party
– was literally one of the highest points in my
entire life. Although I may have look utterly
horrified when being lifted up by water jets on a
flyboard, I was thoroughly enjoying myself.
Kevin Buckley commented: “My principal
interest in the Glass Performance Days
conference was to attend the seminar on
Vacuum Insulated Glazing. This is an emerging
technology that some of our Members are
already using because of its performance in terms
of form-factor and thermal efficiency.
The seminars, led by Dr Cenk
Kocer of the University
of Sydney, were both
excellent and we will be
issuing some information
on the evolution of this
technology for the benefit
of interested Members. I have
made some interesting contacts
from GPD and the evening events were a great
opportunity to meet representatives from global
companies, other trade bodies and members of
the international trade media for our sector.”
MEMBERS COMMENTS:
Francis Serruys,
Director, Technical Sales
Support and Business
Development of
Saint-Gobain who
said: “I have attended
GPD since 1995.
Soon after I became the
chairman of the GPD ‘Tempering
& Pre-processing’ session. Since then
the evolution in the glass processing
industry has been considerable, from
the introduction of post-temperable
coatings, to the Heat Soak Testing
according the EN-standard and recently
the progress made in reducing the
appearance of anisotropy in heat
treated glass.”
Regalead visited GPD for the first
time and Guy Hubble, Managing
Director commented: “From the
opening night’s high level presentations
right the way through to the closing
party on the Friday, the conference
was inspirational, educational but also
fun. It was a fantastic opportunity to
learn what’s coming down the road in
terms of architectural glass technology
and of course, the chance to catch up
with industry experts from around the
world.”
GGF Member, Gailord Nepp,
Business Development Manager at
Wintech Testing & Certification, a
GPD regular commented: “Attending
GPD is like attending school with
good teachers. The speakers, give
relevant, up-to-date and innovative
presentations. It’s a joy to participate,
catch up with business friends but
more importantly to have real time
access to a pool of exclusive industry
knowledge. I look forward to the
future of GPD, and seeing how it will
reinvent itself after the departure of
Jorma Vitkala.”
SPONSORS:
Eckersley O’Callaghan, Sika, EVguard,
DOW, Glasstress, Bohle, Polypane,
Sedak, Trosifol, Buhler, Dormakaba,
Fenetech, Le Gruyere Aop, Glaston and
Frintrup.
www.ggf.org.uk
8 » AUG 2019 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M