When I was offered the chance to take a look at how vinyl windows are made, I jumped at the opportunity. The offer was made by both Carrier Home Improvements and Atlantic Windows & Doors. So Terry Carrier and I drove to the plant located in Port Elgin, New Brunswick, just across the border on the road to P.E.I.

I was introduced to Rob Miller, the President of Atlantic, and after lunch we started the tour. The vinyl extrusion shapes for the window frames are made elsewhere and they are brought in to the plants in long lengths. Rob explained that before the vinyl is handled it must be kept inside for a while to allow the material to acclimatize. This is particularly true in cold weather, but also applies to hot sunny weather as well.

From the stock area the vinyl extrusions go to the cutting room where computerized miter saws make the cuts allowing for th least possible waste in a length. Within the computer are the various orders for the types of windows being made and the operator of the miter saw notes that particular order number on each cut.

The frame pieces are then transferred to the "welders" that are again computerized. The operator of this machine inserts the frame pieces into the machine where the mitered corders are heated to the melting point and bonded to the mating piece. A saw and a router clean the joints to make them almost invisible.