A Closer Look at Some of the Industry’s Most Popular Tools
by Abby Bowman
An extremely long time ago, a group of humanity’s early ancestors decided there had to be an easier way to remove meat from the bones than by using their hands. Modern fossil finds in Ethiopia show they started carving it off with sharp stones instead. That’s one of the earliest examples of tool usage in human history.
The auto glass industry is approximately 3.4 million years of evolution and tool development away from that pivotal moment. Yet, every tool on the market started with the same question that those hunters asked: “How can I make this process easier?”
The materials may have changed from stone to steel, but the mindset remains remarkably similar. Some of the industry’s most popular tools began as rough ideas in garages and shops, created by technicians who grew tired of fighting the same problems day in and day out. Here are the stories of how just a few of those tools evolved.
The PowerPump
Equalizer
The PowerPump faced a fair amount of skeptics when it first came out, says Equalizer CEO Eric Asbery. Some of that skepticism came from the price.
“It was kind of expensive at first, because it was an expensive process to design and make the tool,” he says.
That process spanned the better part of a decade, and started with a simple question: “Can you automate pumping a vacuum cup onto glass?” says Asbery.
“It’s not a manually difficult task, but getting the cup to stick to the glass isn’t always so simple,” Asbery says. “It can be hard to approach it from a good angle in a tight space, or, if you put a lot of vibration on a piece of glass while pumping, the cup doesn’t cling to the glass the way that it’s supposed to.”
Equalizer started developing the tool around 2015, but quickly ran into a problem.
“Technology wasn’t small enough at the time to power a reasonably-sized pump,” says Asbery. “Every prototype was too bulky.”
Equalizer introduced its “Air Force” technology around 2017, which Asbery says allowed the company to create a vacuum small enough for the power pump.
“Long story short, it worked,” he says. “We finally received the patent in October 2025.”
Equalizer had already started working on the first update while waiting for the patent. The recent model is lighter and slightly quieter than the original, according to Asbery. It also costs less.
Price aside, Asbery says many customers were initially unsure why the PowerPump would even be useful for them.
“That’s the funny part about introducing something new — you get a lot of questions from people who don’t like change and are confused about why it came along,” he says.
So, Asbery and the Equalizer team decided to let the product speak for itself.
“At trade shows, we’d just stick the power pump to the display glass and not say anything about it,” he says. “We’d demonstrate it for people who asked, and they’d get excited that they wouldn’t have to pump the cup themselves … People might have been negative about it at first, but now, we hear a lot of people saying they can’t live without it.”
PowerPump will be on display at Auto Glass Week™ 2026 in San Antonio.
The VaccuFlex
The VaccuFlex wasn’t meant to be an auto glass tool, says Dell Skluzak, owner of The PipeKnife Company.
“The inventor designed it from hardware store parts after he had to clean out moths and debris from an outdoor chandelier in their Phoenix home,” Skluzak says. “He developed and patented the product and sold it on Amazon and other home shopping platforms.”
Skluzak first saw the tool while visiting Phoenix, but it wasn’t until his car was vandalized in Columbus, Ohio, that he realized the VaccuFlex’s potential auto glass applications.
“Thieves smashed the windows of my car, and about 30 others, looking for guns,” he says.
Skluzak got glass locally from Import Glass Corp. and Mygrant Glass, which connected him with an installer.
“The installer complained about how hard it was to remove broken glass, saying it often took him twice the amount of time to remove broken glass versus just changing the glass,” Skluzak says. “That incident made me think that the VaccuFlex would be a good way to suction out the glass. I contacted the owner of the tool and eventually bought his company and the patent.”
That was about three years ago. Skluzak says he rebranded the packaging right away and gifted several of the tools to technicians and auto glass influencers.
“I got immediate positive feedback,” he says. “I took several to Auto Glass Week™ (AGW), and virtually everyone wanted one. It became clear the tool was a hit.”
Skluzak says multiple distributors contacted him after that and asked to carry the line. He says the VaccuFlex has also received attention from other industries because its small tubes allow people to vacuum in tight spaces.
“People from the chimney sweeping, cleaning and food grinding industries have all found the tool helpful, too,” Skluzak says.
VaccuFlex will be available for a “test drive” at the PipeKnife booth at Auto Glass Week™ 2026.
www.autoglass.pipeknife.com/product/vaccuflex-vacuum-attachment/
The Fit Glass
The Fit Glass tool was born out of a life-altering accident, says Mark Holmes, director of Panther Pro.
“I used to be an auto glass technician, but I got run over by a car when I was in my mid-20s,” he says. “That messed my back up, so it was hard to continue installing.”
Holmes knew he wasn’t the only technician whose pain, injuries or age kept them from being as successful as they might like, so he set out to create a tool that would literally take the weight off their backs.
Holmes developed the initial Fit Glass system in 2010 at Panther Pro in the U.K. The system has changed since then, according to Holmes, but not where it counts.
“The core concept remains the same 16 years later, though it has evolved with the industry,” he says.
The current design provides a higher lift and can handle more weight, Holmes says, allowing it to handle “modern, larger glass” more efficiently.
Panther Pro talks to technicians to figure out the most practical and useful qualities they’re looking for in a tool, says Holmes. He designed the tool and continues to improve it with those suggestions in mind.
“The system does not attach directly to the vehicle, reducing the risk of damage, and can be used in both shop and mobile environments,” he says. “It also enables single-technician installations, helping reduce labor needs while improving control and consistency.”
Panther Pro revamped the tool about five years ago, and Holmes says technicians reported it was more efficient, easier to use and good for lifting larger pieces of glass. Holmes has found that it helps owner/operators and mobile companies work by themselves.
You can see Fit Glass in action at the Panther Pro booth at Auto Glass Week™ 2026.
panther-pro.com/product/complete-fit-glass-system/
Abby Bowman is the editor of AGRR magazine. Email her at abowman@glass.com and follow her on LinkedIn.
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