Duo of awards for Saint-Gobain Glass at Glass Focus Awards 2022

Design of the year - flat glass.

The company was awarded Design of the year – flat glass (sponsored by Glass International) for The Spark, an inspiring, collaborative office space in Newcastle. The sustainable office space is designed to British Council for Office standards and to BREEAM Excellent with an EPC rating of A.

The glazing includes Saint-Gobain Glass’ COOL-LITE SKN 144 II, a product designed to offer exceptional solar and thermal performance.

Strengthening business through people.

It’s second award was Strengthening business through people (sponsored by Glass Worldwide) for the completion of the complex cold repair and installation of a new furnace at Eggborough – a £30m project that was successfully delivered, despite the challenges of Covid and Brexit.



Rising star 2021.

First Class Honours Accounting and Business Economics degree graduate Will Ruane also collected his award from last year’s event. The production assistant on the Eggborough Float Line was crowned the Rising Star in 2021 but was unable to collect his award at the time due to a life-changing injury that he sustained on holiday.

After a remarkable recovery and rehabilitation period Will is now working towards a position in senior management in Float Glass manufacturing and played a key role in the recent installation of the new furnace at Eggborough.

Steve Severs, managing director at Saint-Gobain Glass said: “It is so rewarding to gain this industry recognition for both our products and our people at the Glass Focus Awards. It was wonderful to see Will collect his award in person, and to receive the respect from his industry peers and the global glass supply chain. We know we have a strong business with some of the best people in the industry, and these awards are a great accolade that we really do appreciate.”

British Glass CEO Dave Dalton said: “It has been another testing year for the glass sector and while many of the problems we have faced still persist, it is a great pleasure to gather everybody together at the Glass Focus Awards again to celebrate all the achievements our great industry has accomplished. As always, the level of entries for each of the categories has been spectacular and wide ranging.

“From showcasing our talent for innovation and our status as pioneers on the journey towards net zero to the beautiful designs we see every day on our bottles and buildings and the unrivalled talent that makes up our workforce, it is a reminder of why the glass industry stands in a class of its own.

“We are all extremely proud of the work we have done over the last year, and we look forward to continuing to build on our successes in 2023 and beyond.”