New Republic Windows Owner Visits White House

By Kevin Robinson in News on Mar 26, 2009 3:40PM

Paul Holland, the vice chairman and lead investor for Serious Materials, the California-based company that recently bought Chicago's shuttered Republic Windows and Doors plant, introduced President Barack Obama at a White House conference on green technology Wednesday. Serious Materials, which bought the shuttered Republic Windows and Doors plant on Goose Island, plans to re-open the plant later this spring. "Serious Materials is dedicated to reinventing the American building materials industry with a full commitment to green solutions, while reemploying today hundreds and tomorrow thousands of American workers," Holland said before introducing the President.

Obama met with about 60 researchers and business leaders from clean energy companies as he highlighted provisions in both the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and his proposed budget. Obama commended Holland's company for rehiring displaced workers and focusing on energy-efficient manufacturing. "Innovators like you are creating the jobs that will foster our recovery and creating the technologies that will power our long-term prosperity, so I thank you for your work," Obama said. "Your country needs you to mount a historic effort to end, once and for all, our dependence on foreign oil," the President remarked. "And in this difficult endeavor, in this pursuit on which I believe our future depends, our country will support you."

The Recovery Act allocates billions of dollars to energy efficiency in federal buildings and installations, and over $4 billion in tax credits for homeowners that upgrade their houses with energy efficient materials and products. His proposed 2010 federal budget includes over $47 billion to help low-income families install green technology and energy efficiency materials in their homes.