7 Things We Learned at the 2015 Vinyl Institute Annual Meeting

1. Vinyl is “the material of choice.”

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The Vinyl Institute unveiled a new strategic plan aimed at positioning the industry as the “material of choice” for architects and designers. After the plan was released, Scott McGillivray, host of Income Property on HDTV, talked about how and why he uses vinyl in a number of his properties.

2. Don’t sleep on the developing world.

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Jeffrey Rosensweig, a professor at Emory University’s business school, said that “populous emerging markets have really emerged.” He also talked about the three fastest growing economies (China, India, and Indonesia), noting that they are markets for vinyl and other U.S. goods.

3. Green building won’t be a thing.“Green” building won’t be a thing—it will just be, according to Tad Radzinski, Sustainable Solutions Corporation. He said that it is imperative to move from a “take, make, waste” mentality to a circular economy in which we design products for end-of-life recycling and reuse. He also suggested that while green building codes are now moving from voluntary to mandatory, “soon it will just be the way that people build buildings.” #Vinyl2015

4. Innovation is not optional.The business landscape is littered with companies that failed to forecast and take advantage of shifting market opportunities. Robert Brands, Brands & Company, said that “if you don’t innovate, you will die. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about that.” He detailed a 10-step roadmap to smart innovation, including how to embed innovation across your business and why you need to give your employees room to fail.

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5. The apartment market is hot.Kenny Emson, National Multifamily Housing Council, said that 1/3 of people in the U.S. rent—and smaller households like apartment living. Couple this with the changing composition of families and the number of millennials still living at home, and the market for apartments should continue to be strong. Ken Gear, Leading Builders of America, said millennials are “going to shape and dominate the market, so you better figure out how to get them to buy your products.” #Vinyl2015

6. Consumer education is key.Vinyl industry representatives from Brazil and Japan talked about promoting the value of vinyl. The Vinyl Environmental Council has public-facing programs in Japan that talk about the properties of PVC that contribute to the sustainability of products. The Institutu do PVC teamed up with the Ministry of Environment to put plastic shredders (think shredded credit cards) in government buildings in order to encourage recycling. The vinyl is then repurposed into new products.

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7. Architecture isn’t just about design.

Gordon Gill, Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill, says sustainability is “about performance that we can measure. We are accountable for what we say and bear the burden of proof for what we design.” Gill talked about thinking through all the elements of a building, including water use, energy use, waste, density, and more. He noted, for example, that his firm specifically designed for snow to fall off an Expo-2017 building in freezing-cold Astana.

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The Vinyl Institutewww.vinylinfo.org