Sunnyvale, Calif. — January 20, 2009 — Serious Materials announced today that it has acquired assets of former Kensington Windows. Kensington Windows, based in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania, produced vinyl replacement windows and doors. Kensington employed more than 150 people when they were forced to shut down all operations in October as their parent company Jancor Cos lost its financing and filed for bankruptcy protection last year. Serious Materials plans to reopen the plant within the next 30 days, installing new equipment to make super-insulating windows and commercial glass, and immediately creating new green collar jobs.
This acquisition, along with additional expansions already in process for Serious Materials in Colorado and California are driving a 10 fold increase in manufacturing capacity for their super-insulating Serious Windows™ and Serious Glass™ product lines which save more energy than virtually any other window or glass available today. The majority of this new capacity is coming on line in Q1, 2009.
“We are committed to getting this plant re-started and back in operation as quickly as possible. We want to get people back to work” said Kevin Surace, CEO of Serious Materials. “While building material companies that make commodities are having a hard time in this downturn, we continue to expand operations and hire more people for our unique energy saving products.” Surace continued, “We look forward to adapting this plant to produce Serious Windows & Glass which reduce energy use and costs well beyond today’s Energy Star-labeled products.”
Pennsylvania State Senator Don White, Chairman of the Banking and Insurance committee greeted today's news with great appreciation. "During these very difficult economic times, it is a testament to the cooperative efforts of all parties involved that this facility will reopen and again provide quality, family sustaining jobs in southwestern Pennsylvania. I appreciate Serious Materials’ investment in our community and PNC Banks' willingness to coordinate the effort to bring this facility back to life."
Kensington Windows manufactured and sold vinyl replacement windows and doors using the latest technology and high quality components including foam-filled frames. The average tenure of the Kensington work force was 18 years, with 9 percent having more than 30 years with the company. Kensington Windows had a capacity of 13,000 windows per month with 100,000 square feet of manufacturing space. This acquisition enables Serious Materials to continue to increase their capacity to deliver world class products and service to the east, mid-atlantic and central regions.
Serious Materials will immediately rebrand the products from Kensington Windows to Serious Windows.
The Armstrong County Board of Commissioners stated, “We are extremely happy to welcome Serious Materials to the Armstrong County business community. We look forward to working with the company and pledge our assistance as they establish operations in Parks Bend.”
Serious Windows with high-R values are available in a full range of commercial and beautiful residential styles, including single-hung, double-hung, gliders, casement, sliding doors and swing doors as well as glass for curtain wall and storefront systems. Additionally, residential windows are available in a composite stainable woodgrain interior finish for high-end homes. Residential windows may be ordered now through authorized dealers across the U.S. Customers may call (800) 797-8159 for more information or go to
www.SeriousWindows.com .
About Serious Materials
Serious Materials develops and manufactures sustainable green building materials that save energy, save money, improve comfort and aggressively address climate change. The company was voted #1 at Cleantech Forum XII, won Global Gypsum Product of the Year 2008, won the first Aspen Institute award for innovation in Energy Conservation and was awarded Green Product of the Year by Popular Science. It has also been recognized by TIME/CNN, Fortune, Business Week, AlwaysOn and Red Herring as one of the top green technology companies. Serious Windows and Glass reduce heating and cooling energy costs by up to 49% and improve occupant comfort. QuietRock® soundproof drywall and QuietHome Windows® reduce material use, enhance livability, and support dense sustainable urban construction. And EcoRock™ uses 80% less energy in its core production and has the potential to save billions of pounds of CO2 annually making it the only true green alternative to gypsum drywall and five times more environmentally friendly. The company is working to create thousands of cleantech jobs here in the U.S. For more information visit
www.SeriousMaterials.com .
