Signs of Hope: Simonton Windows Rehires 100+ Employees

Simonton Windows (Parkersburg, WV), a leading manufacturer of top-quality windows and patio doors, has recalled 110 employees at its manufacturing facilities in West Virginia and Illinois. In addition, the company is actively seeking to hire employees at its Oklahoma facility.

“We’re hopeful that the increased product demand we’re now seeing will help us return more employees back to work in the coming weeks,” says Mark Wherry, vice president of manufacturing for Simonton Windows. “In the winter months we traditionally see a seasonal drop in business. With the arrival of spring, we’re now seeing an upturn in product demand, which allows us to hire back employees. We were able to start rehiring in early March and have done so on a weekly basis as we’re steadily seeing a rise in window production.”

Simonton has hired back 80 employees at its facilities in Ritchie County, W. Va., and 30 employees at its Paris, Ill., facility. Hourly employees are hired back based on tenure with the company and their particular skill sets. At Simonton’s McAlester, Okla., facility, new employees are being hired to fulfill production needs.

“In addition to the traditional increase in business that occurs each spring, we’re also seeing greater interest from homeowners in window replacement projects based on the newly-introduced tax credit for adding energy-efficient windows to the home,” says Wherry. “We’re hoping this provision of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 will provide more incentive for homeowners to take advantage of this unique opportunity to invest in Simonton windows and save on their energy bills.”

The legislation allows homeowners to gain a tax credit of 30 percent of the cost of qualifying energy-efficient upgrades to a maximum of $1,500 per household for 2009 and 2010. The new law has very specific restrictions, including:

1. Windows purchased must be equal to or below a U Factor of 0.30 and a Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) of 0.30.

2. The purchase of the qualified windows must be made during the taxable year for which the credit is being claimed.

3. The credit is only allowed on the price of the qualified windows themselves, not on installation costs, onsite preparation, assembly or sales tax.

4. The tax credit is allowable only for qualified window units placed in service in 2009 and 2010.

A list of Simonton products that qualify for the new tax credit is available here. The specially-designed site also includes case studies on energy efficient windows and links to sites with additional information. Homeowners may also order literature from the site and gain more specific details on the tax credit program.

Simonton Windows produces ENERGY STAR® qualified replacement and new construction windows and doors, including a line of impact-resistant products. Simonton ranked “Highest in Builder and Remodeler Satisfaction among Residential Window and Patio Door Manufacturers” in the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 Builder and Remodeler Residential Window and Patio Door Satisfaction Study.

The company was ranked #1 in quality in the 2007 Brand Use Study sponsored by Builder magazine and has won three Best In Class Awards from Market Research Associates. Founded in 1946, Simonton’s hallmark has been to deliver its made-to-order products in five days or less. Part of the home and hardware division of Fortune Brands, Inc. (NYSE: FO), Simonton delivers nationwide to key markets throughout the 48 continental United States. Simonton is a founding sponsor of The Weather Museum and a corporate partner of Homes for Our Troops.