| Events |
A practical approach to glass processing
|
New high performance low E coatings open up new opportunities to increase architectural applications of glass. However, glass processors need to pay attention to a number of issues in order to produce the quality expected by their clients. Consequently, while coatings keep developing and glass becomes an increasingly visible element in our environment, the proper handling of glass during its various processing stages becomes more important than ever. The next GPD will feature practical workshops and case studies in order to offer glass processors an opportunity to become familiar with the challenges of new products and to find solutions to meet these challenges.
|
 ?Whereas the first heat treatable coatings used to be available as a ?tempered only? or ?to be tempered? product, the latest high-performance Low-E coatings are ?temperable?. The difference being that the former must be tempered for use, whereas the latter can be used as an annealed glass or it may be tempered,? comments Mr. Francis Serruys, Project & Marketing Manager of Saint-Gobain Glass ?
Exprover and the Chairman of the tempering session of the GPD 2005.
Special care in handling new types of coated glass
Adaptation is needed in glass handling and adjustment of tempering methods in order to enable the correct tempering and use of heat treatable or post temperable high-performance Low-E coated glass. The workshop ?Handling and Tempering High Performance Coated Low E Glass? by Francis Serruys is very topical. In his presentation he is aiming to offer glass factory supervisors and workers a learning package with a practical approach. ?We want to show how to handle and process the newest coated glass types in order to meet the quality requirements of the market.?
Attention to all process phases
?Issues that need attention may sound quite irrelevant at first, but research has shown that they have a considerable impact on the quality of tempered glass,? Francis Serruys points out. As an example he
points out that coating should never be touched with the hands. ?This may be a hard habit to break, especially if one has become used to handling glass in a certain way over the years.? A glass sheet should never be stopped in a washing machine, either. ?Grit deposit containing a lot of silicon from the edgeworking may damage the coating when insufficient amounts of water are used. Unfortunately, any
scratches generally only become visible after tempering ? and then, of course, it is too late.? Francis Serruys emphasizes that those coatings do not require any special glass processing rules. People handling hard coated or normal float glass need to change their habits, and this will automatically bring the entire glass processing industry to a higher quality level.
Hands-on training
The workshop is mainly aimed at glass factory workers and supervisors. It comprises a short theory session, followed by a practical test run in the Tamglass R & D center. Saint-Gobain Glass and Tamglass experts will demonstrate how furnace settings affect the quality of glass and its coating. Process specialists will analyze the state of the coating after processing. Saint-Gobain Glass will supply the latest temperable Low-E glass SGG Planitherm® T for the test runs while Tamglass will provide the processing using state-of-the-art machinery.
The number of participants is limited in order to ensure that everybody in the group will have the opportunity to follow the process as closely as possible and to allow thorough discussions.
Processing and end product viewpoint
According to Francis Serruys the one-day tempering sessions will also take a practical approach towards the subject: ?Our target is to facilitate the audience?s choices and to enable the most efficient conference by dividing the session into two individual parts. One half will focus on the tempering process itself, while the other will deal with the architectural design of buildings using tempered glass.
Introducing the latest solar control solutions
A Case Study ?Advanced Solar Control with Integrated Techniques ? processing challenges and solutions?, also with a presentation by Saint-Gobain Glass, presents the challenges and business opportunities in modern architectural glass applications. ?This hands-on case study will provide interesting information on the latest glass processing technologies and opportunities to diversify the glass business. Glass industry suppliers as well as glass processors themselves will share their expertise on the diverse options providing state of the art light and solar control solutions,? comments Mr. Frank Lefebure, Technical and Quality Manager of the Factory Saint-Gobain Glass Solutions / Sas van Gent B.V.
A different event
Having participated in every GPD since 1995 Francis Serruys highly values the opportunity to gather the maximum amount of information in a short period of time. He appreciates the ideal opportunities to meet people and participate in discussions during the conference: ?That is what differentiates GPD from trade shows. The atmosphere is very hectic at trade shows, and the audience is scattered around a wide exhibition area, making it very difficult to get in touch with the people that you want to meet. Certainly there is a lot happening at the GPDs too, but reaching people and fixing meetings is a lot easier.? In his opinion GPD also differs from other glass conferences: ?While GPD offers a wide range of topics with an opportunity to learn new things outside one?s own expertise, other conferences focus on a narrowly defined areas of topics.?
|
Photos: GPD
Last review: June, 2005 |
Add a Comment
|
You have to be registered in order to add your comment.
If you already have an account, please sign-in to comment.
|
|
|
|
