Investment in software is on the rise in the glass industry

Glass Magazine recently published an article called Rise in Productivity, Capital Investment for Glass Manufacturers, detailing trends in both productivity and investment since 1990. While there was naturally a noticeable drop during the recession, recovery has been strong and investment is increasingly on the rise — particularly for glass software.

Spending on software increased by 45% from 2014 to 2015 (latest available data) to a total of $207.9 million. This is an important development for both glass fabricators and glass installers to be aware of — software is becoming increasingly common place in the industry and those who don't modernize risk falling behind the competition.

If you're thinking of implementing software in your glass business, there are a few important points to consider when choosing your supplier:

1. Will the product integrate with your existing systems? For example if you are implementing job management software, you should think about how it will integrate with your accounting software so data doesn't have to be entered twice.
2. Do they offer comprehensive training and support? You could buy the best software in the world but if you or your team struggle to use it, it will quickly be abandoned.
3. Is it future proof? Software that is only available on a CD-ROM is already out of date! When looking for a new provider, ensure they are keeping up with current trends in technology and the latest security developments.
4. Are updates included? You don't want to be paying through the nose every time new features are released.

Once you've decided on a supplier, check out our blog post on how to implement new software in your glazing business.

We know that new software is being increasingly adopted in glass businesses, the statistics are there to back it up. The diffusion of innovations curve (pictured) shows how new ideas and technology becomes the norm over time. With glass software, we're already exiting the late majority stage — don't be a laggard, now's the time to invest in quality software for your glass business.