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Day 1: September 13, 2005 Day 2: September 14, 2005 Click here Day 3: September 15, 2005 Click here
Industry Education "One group of retail stores received 40 percent higher sales in its stores with unit skylights, all other things being equal," the energy efficiency consultant explained. "Another group of retail stores received up to 2 percent more transactions and up to 6 percent higher sales in those stores with unit skylights." For more information on the studies, go to www.pge.com/pec/daylight. The Do's and Don'ts of Washing and Cutting Incorrect cutting techniques lead to failures in IG units, with poor cuts creating eventual cracks in the glass. Replacing cutting wheels on a regular basis proves critical to preventing future cracks and breaks. "Don't be stingy with the cutting wheels," he said. "Replace them frequently, whether it's once a day, once a shift, every 7 miles or every 1,500 lites." Problems in washing range from careless handling along the line to dirty brushes, and can result in problems from visual obstructions to failed seals. Burk recommended: "Tell your washers on the line to eliminate glass-to-glass impact, because it's just chipping and banging away on your glass. Also, ensure your washer functions correctly, and don't allow your workers to hand wash the glass if it's not clean coming out of the washer. And make sure your glass is dry coming out, because it can't even be a little bit wet. The best assurance of good units, however, comes in the end from good quality control. Burk emphasized that tests have to be performed to ensure every step of the processes are working correctly. Changing Role of China in Fenestration Industry "In the first quarter of 1995, the gross domestic product of China increased 9.5 percent," Taylor explained, "and in the second quarter, 9.4 percent. And the United States currently spends only 1.34 percent of its GDP in research and development." Taylor's suggestions on how the United States can compete and win against China include: the U.S. energy policy needs to be revamped; the legal system needs to be brought in control; more money needs to be spent on infrastructure; and the Congress needs to stop blaming others. "For instance, there is more U.S. money spent on litigation than innovation," he said. "There hasn't been a new refinery built in the United States in the last 29 years. And look at New Orleans. The mayor takes no responsibility for 1,000 school buses being under water. Protectionism is not the answer. "Unless things change, US production will move to China," Taylor said. Lipski cautioned attendeess to be wary when they partner with a Chinese company and advised them to look for a vendor management with vision, integrity and credibility. "Communication could be a problem, [so] be explicit, precise and detailed," he said. "Everyone wants to be an entrepreneur, but not everyone has the integrity you're looking for." Impact versus Non-Impact Products "With impact systems, you're concerned with loss of life and destruction of buildings. You're spending your money up front rather than on the back end rebuilding the structure," said Robert Rencher, field technician for YKK AP America Inc. of Austell, Ga., and an instructor for the National Glass Association's Glass Installer Technical Institute. In his presentation detailing the differences between impact and non-impact systems at a Live Demonstration held Sept. 13 at GlassBuild Amerida, Rencher repeatedly emphasized the importance of testing impact systems as complete assemblies, including the framing, gaskets, glass and sealants. Once the system passes the appropriate small- or large-missile impact test, no component may be substituted for the original without retesting the complete assembly, he said. "There are certain things you have to do differently with impact versus non-impact systems," Rencher explained. Impact-resistant storefront systems, for example, require screw-spline construction, sill flashing with weep systems, a structural spacer installed prior to assembly and the use of structural sealants. Impact-resistant curtain walls must use the heaviest load anchor available, typically "F" and "T" anchors. "If you follow the manufacturer's instructions, the system will perform as intended," he told the group. Decorative Glass Witnesses Increased Sophistication, Infiltrates
New Markets Beaufils said he has seen decorative glass also infiltrate the residential market at an increasingly growing rate. Another important trend in the field, he said, is the increased sophistication found in decorative glass. By combining earlier technologies, Beaufils said many companies have created improved hybrid decorative glass products. "We're blending technologies," he said. "Architects and interior designers are calling for this." One example of blended technologies includes laminated glass with etchings inside and out. Beaufils predicted that these trends will likely continue, as more and more customers turn to decorative glass. Recent Spikes In Energy Costs Will Further Energy-Efficient Window
Agenda "People are really going to feel the increase in energy costs when they try to heat their homes this winter," Baker said. "As a result, energy efficient windows are going to be more and more in demand." Decisions on frame, glass, fill and spacer types dictate heat loss in the windows, affecting home-heating costs for better or worse. One major solution comes simply through choosing less conductive materials, he said. "Aluminum has a higher conductivity, so with aluminum spacer bars, you're going to get a lot more conduction," Baker said. "Non-metal spacers drastically reduce conduction." Other recommendations included the use wood or vinyl frames that limit conduction. "The trend for over 10 years has been toward more energy-efficient windows," he said. "But with these recent jumps, the market will be pushed further in this direction." Glass Flooring Gains Popularity Daylighting, or using natural light to illuminate interiors, is the reason why glass flooring is gaining popularity, Beaufils said. Glass lites for floors can be transparent or opaque and come in different sizes. They can be made of annealed glass with holes and with plastic sheeting as an interlayer, or of tempered glass with no holes. The Underwriters Laboratories Inc. approves both kinds and up to .5 coefficient of friction, Beaufils said. "Most glass floorings have better coefficient of friction than marble or granite flooring," he said. "And it's not easy to scratch glass." There's a 95-year-old glass floor in the Maryland State Archives building, he said. Wayne Czechowski of Artwork in Architectural Glass, Long Beach, Calif., discussed liability issues of glass flooring. "We do UL certification," he said. "Glass balls are melted and stuck in to the surface of the floor [for traction]." Ceramic frits and etching are also used for traction. Currently, there are no standards for glass flooring except for the UL certification. ASTM International is working on a standard for strength, building code specification for load, wearability and more, Beaufils said. A task group of ASTM, operating under ASTM's E654 Committee, will meet on the glass floor standard Sept. 27 in Conshohocken, Pa. For more information, write to Valerie L. Block, chairperson of the group, at valerie.l.block@usa.dupont.com. News Briefs Cindy Coulter, marketing manager for Versalux Flat Glass of Tulsa, explained in an interview that the flat-glass division may use the Visteon brand name for three six months following the anticipated transition to Ford. GED Sold to Florida Private Equity Firm GED's current executive management will remain in charge of its operations in Twinsburg and Hauppauge, N.Y., according to the release. Salem Becomes Employee Owned Last year the company's total sales were about $28.5 million; this year, it is projected to be about $37 million, Willard said. Most of this growth is attributable to Salem's entry into the stone market, he said. "Using many of our current glass supply vendors along with a new line of equipment companies, we have been able to position ourselves as the high-end supplier of tooling and equipment, much like we have in the glass industry," he said. Salem also has a new logo. "It's not just a new moniker on an old tired company, but a new moniker on a new company full of energy," said Steve Brown, advertising director, who designed the logo. At GlassBuild America, Salem is displaying a new partial laminating line from Bovone of Italy, said Doug Mangus, equipment sales coordinator. It also is bringing a full line of equipment from Spain called Gadia, he said. Viracon To Add Third Fabrication Plant Apogee, parent company of Owatonna, Minn.-based Viracon, will invest approximately $25 million in the new plant, which will increase Viracon's capacity by 50 percent, Pyatt said. "It will be a traditional Viracon facility molded for the southwest market," he said. "There will be more tints and reflective coatings, because that's in demand in that part of the country." "This plant will help us meet demand that is outpacing capacity for complex high-performance fabricated architectural glass for commercial buildings," said Russell Huffer, chairman and chief executive officer, Apogee. "We have selected the southwest market for two reasons: We will be able to better serve the growing West Coast with value-added products; and having a plant in the southwest will provide us the opportunity to expand beyond core projects and penetrate the market." The southwest plant will have two insulating glass lines, as well as tempering, laminating, coating and silk-screening production lines. New Business To Come In Wake of Hurricane Katrina Grenzebach provided a tour of his Newnan plant for roughly 40 trade-show attendees; the facility manufactures robots and stackers. Product Announcements The strut has been distributed in the United States for two years and boasts a range of clients including EFCO Corp. of Monett, Mo. The strut has been fully tested for energy efficiency, Silverberg said in a GlassBuild interview. Parent Technoform Holding resides in Germany. He plans to open a U.S. manufacturing facility for each product during 2006, with these plants located in the Southeast and Midwest. For information, visit www.technoform.us. Razwick Takes on Pilkington Profilit |
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