Laminated Glass
Our laminated glass solutions provide comprehensive performance that addresses safety concerns, security requirements, acoustic challenges, and energy efficiency goals simultaneously. Our unique “U” manufacturing setup provides lean processing for laminated glass ranging from 24″ × 24″ to 100″ × 200″, incorporating our Class 100 clean room that circulates air 24 times per hour to ensure pristine lamination conditions.
All of our laminated glass products block 99% of UV light transmission, assist in sound reduction, and provide enhanced security against forced entry. This combination of benefits positions laminated glass as an essential material for modern building envelopes where performance requirements extend beyond what single-pane or standard insulated glass can provide.
Laminated Safety Glass Technology
Laminated safety glass is a composite material consisting of two or more glass lites permanently bonded together with one or more interlayer materials. This construction creates a strong, durable product that maintains structural integrity even when broken. The critical difference between laminated glass and other glass types appears during breakage. When laminated glass breaks, the interlayer holds the fragments together rather than allowing them to scatter, preventing dangerous shards and maintaining a protective barrier.
The Lamination Process
Our lamination process involves several precision-controlled stages that ensure consistent quality and long-term durability.
Glass Preparation
Glass must be cut to required dimensions with exceptional accuracy, as any dimensional variations multiply when multiple lites are assembled. Thorough cleaning removes particulates, oils, and contaminants that could compromise lamination quality. Clean glass surfaces are essential for proper interlayer adhesion, as cutting oil, release agents, dust, and other impurities reduce bonding effectiveness and can create visible defects in the finished product.
Clean Room Environment
Our Class 100 clean room provides the controlled environment lamination demands. The room circulates air 24 times per hour, continuously filtering particulates that could become trapped between glass layers. This environmental control is critical because even microscopic contamination trapped during lamination remains permanently visible, compromising both aesthetics and performance.
Interlayer Application
Adhesive films are carefully positioned between glass layers within the clean room environment. The interlayer must be placed accurately and free of wrinkles to ensure consistent performance throughout the assembly. This stage requires both environmental control and skilled technicians who understand how different interlayer materials behave during positioning.
Pre-Heating Stage
The pre-heating stage eliminates 70% to 80% of air between glass panes and interlayer film. Heating temperatures around 120°C melt the interlayer and initiate bonding while removing excessive air that could compromise final quality. This critical step prepares the assembly for final processing.
Autoclaving
The autoclave represents the final processing stage where temperature and pressure combine to achieve complete edge seals and remove remaining air bubbles. Temperature ensures the interlayer flows completely and adopts the glass shape while eliminating surface roughness. Pressure maintains parallel glass positioning and increases solubility of dissolved volatiles. The time parameter ensures both temperature and pressure are applied fully and equally throughout the assembly.
Our autoclave cycles are carefully controlled, with temperatures around 135°C and operating pressures around 12.5 BarG. Pressure is released gradually to prevent thermal breakage. This controlled processing ensures consistent lamination quality across our entire production range.
Interlayer Options for Diverse Performance Requirements
We offer multiple interlayer materials, each providing distinct performance characteristics that address specific project needs.
Trosifol® Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB)
Standard PVB represents the most common interlayer material globally, offering excellent optical clarity, good sound insulation, and strong UV protection that blocks up to 99% of harmful rays. The thermoplastic film creates a tough and resilient safety interlayer that retains dangerous shards in case of glass breakage, providing the fundamental safety characteristic that makes laminated glass essential for many applications.
PVB’s flexible yet durable bond makes it ideal for windows, facades, and applications where optical clarity and UV protection are priorities. The material provides reliable performance for the majority of architectural and residential applications where extreme environmental exposure or maximum structural capacity are not primary concerns.
Trosifol® Translucent White PVB
For applications requiring privacy without sacrificing natural light transmission, Trosifol® Translucent White PVB offers a satin-etch-like appearance that provides visual obscurity while maintaining daylight penetration. This interlayer creates a white translucent appearance ideal for interior partitions, bathroom installations, and spaces where privacy matters but complete opacity is not desired.
Trosifol® offers a selection of white densities allowing for limited to zero light transmission, providing flexibility to match specific privacy requirements. The translucent white maintains colour consistency throughout its service life and requires no special maintenance beyond standard glass cleaning.
Trosifol® SentryGlas® Ionoplast (SG)
SentryGlas® represents the highest-performance interlayer option available, offering structural-grade strength and stiffness far exceeding conventional laminating materials. This ionoplast interlayer is five times stronger and up to 100 times stiffer than standard PVB, providing capabilities that expand what laminated glass can achieve structurally.
In stand-off railing applications, SG provides superior fallout protection for guard rails and windows requiring guard loads at higher elevations. The material excels in areas where wind loads present significant structural challenges. SGP will not delaminate when exposed to weather elements and demonstrates exceptional resistance to both environmental degradation and physical attack.
The structural capacity SG provides enables architects to specify laminated glass for applications that would require substantially thicker glass with standard interlayers. This can result in lighter assemblies, reduced framing requirements, and expanded design possibilities for curtain walls, structural glazing, and overhead installations.
SentryGlas® is available in both clear and translucent white formulations, accommodating both maximum transparency requirements and privacy needs.
Trosifol® SoundControl
Acoustic performance increasingly drives glass specification decisions in urban environments and buildings near transportation corridors. Trosifol® SoundControl uses specially formulated acoustic-grade interlayers that achieve substantial sound reduction, lowering OITC ratings in areas exposed to exterior noise.
The same acoustic properties that reduce exterior noise transmission also maintain privacy for interior spaces when used in partition glass, preventing conversations from carrying between adjacent rooms or through glass-enclosed conference areas. This dual benefit makes SoundControl valuable for both exterior glazing in noisy locations and interior partitions where acoustic separation matters.
Vanceva® Colour PVB
Vanceva® colour interlayers transform laminated glass into a design element rather than simply a transparent barrier. The system offers extensive colour options that can be combined to create custom aesthetics matching specific design visions. Vanceva® interlayers are available in both clear and opaque formulations, providing flexibility for everything from subtle tints through complete opacity.
The colour is integral to the interlayer material itself rather than applied as a surface coating, ensuring durability and fade resistance throughout the glass’ service life. This approach to colour integration prevents the scratching, peeling, or degradation common with surface-applied films or coatings.
Thickness and Configuration Options
Glass thickness and assembly configuration directly impact performance, with specifications tailored to specific application requirements.
Residential and Commercial Windows
Standard residential and light commercial applications typically utilize laminated glass ranging from 6mm to 12mm total thickness. This range provides optimal balance between safety performance, visibility, and cost-effectiveness for most window applications where moderate impact resistance and UV protection are the primary benefits.
Skylights and Overhead Glazing
Overhead installations require greater thickness to prevent failure from falling objects and to provide adequate structural capacity for sustained loads. Skylights and canopy glazing typically specify laminated glass from 8.76mm to 24 mm, with exact specifications determined by span, support conditions, and applicable building codes.
High-Security Applications
Security-focused installations may specify laminated glass from 12mm to well over 20mm depending on the threat level being addressed. Multi-ply construction with specialized interlayers creates assemblies that resist sustained attack while maintaining transparency. The specific configuration depends on security requirements, with consultation between our technical team, security consultants, and design professionals determining appropriate specifications.
Technical Consultation and Project Support
The sophisticated nature of laminated glazing requires early consultation between our technical team, design professionals, and building owners. This partnership ensures that product construction and inherent characteristics align with design objectives for safety, security, acoustic performance, and aesthetic goals.
We recommend full-size mock-ups for projects with specific aesthetic requirements or unusual viewing conditions. Mock-ups provide an inexpensive yet valuable process for evaluating laminated glass appearance under actual project conditions, lighting, and surrounding context. This practice significantly reduces the risk of misalignment between expectations and final installed results.
Our team works with architects and engineers throughout the specification process, providing technical data for performance calculations, guidance on interlayer selection for specific requirements, and recommendations on glass thickness and configuration appropriate to application demands.
Frequently Asked Questions About Laminated Glass
What is Laminated Safety Glass?
Laminated safety glass consists of two or more glass lites permanently bonded together with one or more interlayer materials. When laminated glass breaks, the interlayer holds the fragments together rather than allowing them to scatter, preventing dangerous shards and maintaining a protective barrier. This fundamental safety characteristic makes laminated glass essential for applications where post-breakage glass retention is required, including overhead glazing, security installations, and hurricane-resistant windows.
What Size Range Can Be Laminated?
Our lamination capabilities accommodate glass from 24″ × 24″ minimum through 100″ × 200″ maximum. This range serves everything from standard residential windows through large-format architectural panels for commercial curtain walls and structural glazing applications. Custom sizes within this range are accommodated based on specific project requirements.
How Does Laminated Glass Improve Security?
Laminated glass resists forced entry by holding the assembly together even under severe impact. The interlayer requires multiple strikes to create an opening large enough for entry, creating delay that allows security response time. Specialized security glazing can be engineered to pass rigorous testing standards for burglary resistance, with high-security configurations providing ballistic resistance appropriate to specific threat levels.
What Acoustic Performance Does Laminated Glass Provide?
Acoustic performance depends on glass configuration, total thickness, and interlayer selection. Standard laminated glass provides meaningful sound reduction over single-pane glass. Specialized acoustic interlayers like Trosifol® SoundControl achieve sound reduction ranging from 25 to 51 dB depending on specific construction, significantly reducing exterior noise transmission and providing acoustic separation for interior partitions.
Can Laminated Glass Be Combined With Other Glass Technologies?
Yes, laminated glass integrates with other glass technologies including tempering for maximum impact resistance, heat-strengthening for reduced optical distortion, Low-E coatings for energy efficiency, and tinted glass for solar control. These combinations allow projects to address multiple performance requirements simultaneously, such as combining the safety benefits of lamination with the thermal performance contemporary energy codes demand.
How Long Does Laminated Glass Last?
Properly manufactured laminated glass provides decades of reliable service. Longevity depends on interlayer selection, edge exposure conditions, and environmental factors. Ionoplast interlayers like SentryGlas® demonstrate exceptional durability even in demanding exposure conditions. Our controlled manufacturing process using Class 100 clean room facilities ensures consistent quality that supports long-term performance.
What Applications Require Laminated Glass?
Building codes mandate laminated glass for overhead glazing including skylights and canopies where fallout prevention is essential. Security-focused applications including banks and high-value retail specify laminated glass for forced entry resistance. Hurricane-prone regions require laminated glass in exterior openings for storm protection. Acoustic-sensitive environments near airports or highways benefit from laminated glass for noise reduction. Many applications specify laminated glass even when not code-mandated, valuing the comprehensive performance benefits lamination provides.
Architects Area
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