INTERIORS & INTERIOR DESIGN
GLASS PROCESSOR AND ARCHITECT
THE TRANSPARENT PARTNERSHIP
Modern glass products can answer a number of challenges in the construction process , allowing architects to realise their more ambitious new concepts , or to reimagine entire spaces completely in refurbishment projects . Susan Sinden , Commercial Manager for award-winning Glass Company of the Year 2023 , ESG Group , looks at the importance of partnering with your glass processor to make the best laid plans a reality .
It is increasingly important that architects and glass processors talk to each other . Without doubt , many of the advances in glass processing have come from the challenges provided by architects creating ever more daring designs . However , it is equally true that the advances in glass product development have freed the architect to dream more imaginatively .
The toughening and lamination processes have allowed us to produce stronger , lighter and larger glass panels , which facilitate the realisation of architects ’ designs for wide expanses of glass . As we increasingly value natural light and lower carbon footprints once the building is in operation , glass facades are increasingly popular , and are now a realistic aspiration . Products such as ESG Tufflam can also be bonded together to create apparently seamless glass walls which allow architects to push the building envelope .
The use of technical interlayers to create a wide range of toughened laminated glass products has also allowed us to tackle a number of other challenges in addition to simply glazing doors and windows . The interlayers now available allow us to add a number of properties , including sound attenuation in windows , doors and even in partition walls . This is useful not only for the avoidance of nuisance noise for urban dwellings and offices , it is also critical in sound recording studios and a bonus , for confidentiality purposes , for modern boardrooms , meeting rooms and medical consulting rooms , to name a few .
Confidentiality can also be enhanced by using LCD privacy glass , which is created by the using a highly technical interlayer through which a small electrical current is passed . When switched on , the electricity causes the glass to become transparent , or optically clear ; when the current is switched off , however , it becomes opaque , providing discreet screening . This allows the end user to choose transparency or openness at the touch of a button .
These technical interlayers are extremely useful in interior designs which use glazed partitioning to
create smaller areas within a large open commercial space . This might be in a commercial office , but can also be used to create meeting rooms or offices in car showrooms or studios . In a domestic setting , it can be used to allow light to flood through from a bedroom to an ensuite , or to separate a home office , increasingly in demand with the growth of remote working , from the general living space . In open-plan homes , privacy glass can be used to screen the kitchen from the living room area on demand , without sacrificing either the open plan feel or the natural light .
Glass can be cut to any shape , pre-drilled or notched to fit any of the common fixing systems used in the UK market . The use of multiple interlayers is also possible , to provide almost any combination of sound attenuation , privacy , transparent colour , and even intruder-resistant high security characteristics .
Security no longer relies entirely on locks and bars , but can also depend on the glass itself . We can now produce intruder resistant , ballistic resistant and even blast resistant glass products , using thicker multiple sheets of glass , laminated with specialised interlayers to produce extremely robust curtain walls and building facades .
Whatever the architect ’ s concept or the designer ’ s aim , it pays to consult your glass processor before finalising the building ’ s specifications , as the versatility of glass products may surprise you . The glass processor is now the repository of much technical information , and is more than happy to be used for advice and guidance . It ’ s certainly time for a more transparent relationship .
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