Lionel Dubé founds Vitrerie Générale Ltd glass company.

The company relocates its operations to Cartier boulevard, the current site of its head office.

Prelco legally registers its company name—PRELCO—which combines the founders’ names: PRE for the Prévost brothers, Aubert and De St-Denys, and L, for William John Lees, with CO, for company.

Vitrerie Générale hires Roger Lavoie, a young mechanical engineer graduate. He’s the first engineer to work for the company and in Quebec’s glass industry.

Prelco, the pioneering glass tempering company, is created.

A group of employees, under the name Gestion Roger Lavoie et associés, acquires the shares for Prelco and Vitrerie Générale.

Prelco merges with Vitrerie Générale.

The company invests heavily in state-of-the-art processes and machinery, and an R&D lab.

Richard Langlais, R&D Director, becomes a shareholder.

Legend: Board of directors: Roger Lavoie Eng., Nicole Goulet, Administrator, Yvan Thibault CPA, and Richard Langlais Eng.

Prelco’s quality management system becomes ISO-9002 certified

Keeping up with technology is more crucial than ever. At the turn of the century, Prelco is a leading Canadian safety glass manufacturer.

“We wanted to prove that development driven by cutting-edge technology could make a company economically viable, even in a rural region… It’s safe to say that our gamble has paid off.” – Roger Lavoie, CEO.

A new production site is built in Edmundston, New Brunswick. At this time, the factory manufactures the largest silk-screened glass surfaces in North America.

Prelco acquires Industries Thermalite, a Montreal-based company specialized in high-performance insulated glass.

Prelco acquires Veralex, in Princeville, Quebec, a company specialized in windshields for boats and recreational vehicles.

Prelco acquires Beclawat Manufacturing in Belleville, Ontario, a company specialized in sophisticated weathertight doors and windows for marine and rail industries.

Prelco receives an award from Glass Magazine, recognizing its place as one of the top high-performance glass manufacturers in the United States and Canada.

Industrial engineering graduate Dominic Lavoie joins the planning, processes and transportation team as Corporate Director of Logistics.

At the APTA Expo in Houston, Texas, Prelco showcases its innovative new passenger windows for the Montreal metro’s AZUR cars. The windows can be replaced in 120 seconds without causing any service interruption.

Dominic Lavoie becomes a company shareholder and Prelco Group board member.

Prelco US is founded in Rouses Point, New York and an assembly line is established there to serve the American market.

Roger Lavoie’s son Dominic Lavoie succeeds him as the CEO of the Prelco Group. Lavoie Sr. remains president of the board for the parent company, Prelsecur inc.

The Prelco Group expands and doubles the surface area of its Montreal production site. New automatic cutting, tempering and assembly lines have been installed to meet growth, deadline and production capacity needs.

The Prelco Group celebrates 65 years of expertise.

The Prelco Group inaugurates a new plant for its Veralex – Recreational Boats division in Princeville, QC. A modern plant that improves our range of products while supporting our development.

The Prelco Group expands its product range by launching a new bird friendly glass. This type of glazing is in increasing demand since adoption new regulations encouraging the use of safe glazings for birds.Unique in North America, Prel-AirSecur glass is available in an oversized format up to 5180 mm (204 in).

After 7 years in operation at Rouses Point, Prelco US moves to Plattsburg, NY. The growth of activities requires a new plant layout.