Clearview North December 2013 - Issue 145 | Page 44

CLEARVIEW EXCLUSIVE

GLASS&SEALEDUNITS

‘TRIPLE-SHOT?’
Outside of passivhaus-type high end developments
and energy-focussed new build, triple glazing has
secured only limited traction. Clearview reports…
Triple-glazing was to be the new ‘big thing’.
Glass and spacer manufacturers extolled
its benefits to the end user and its sales
potential to fabricators and installers. But
while not ‘out’, triple-glazing sales have
remained ‘down’ - at the very least on the
forecasts – delivering only a minimal dent
on double-glazed sales.
So does this make triple-glazing something
of a white elephant? Well not if you use
to deliver a much wider energy efficiency
message, argues Mike Crewdson, Sales and
Marketing Director, Emplas.
As one of the UK’s leading fabricators
Emplas, by definition, offers a triple-glazed
option. This features a unit manufactured in
Pilkington Optiwhite ‘E’ (outer pane), an
argon or krypton gas filling and Pilkington
K Glass ‘OW’ (toughened middle and inner
pane), plus spacer bar with warm edge option
to achieve a suitably impressive installed
0.8W/m².K. U-value.
“We offer a triple-glazed unit and frame
because we don’t ever want any of our
customers to miss out on a job because

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DEC 2013

we can’t supply them. But is triple glazing
currently a main stay of our business?
Absolutely not”, he says.
“If you’re selling a triple-glazed frame you
have to sell it at additional cost, there is extra
glass, an extra spacer bar, the middle pane
is toughened and not least extra weight in
transport and in installation.
“For the majority of homeowners, other
than those with a specific interest in the
environment, that additional outlay and also
the trade off against loss of light and solar
gain, doesn’t add up - Triple-glazing simply
hasn’t had the impact in the retail sector.”
Crewdson argues that in the new build and
commercial sectors, where developers are
under pressure to deliver Code for Sustainable
Homes Level 4, 5 and 6 properties, the appeal
of triple-glazing may be greater. “Even here”,
he adds, “because the energy performance of
the building is taken as a whole it’s probably
more cost effective for developers to bump up
the specification of wall and roof insulation,
than it is to specify triple glazed windows and
doors.”
But while Crewdson’s assessment of tripleglazing is ‘grounded’ to say the least, this
doesn’t mean that he fails to see potential in
it. By contrast, he argues that it has significant
value as a sales platform, particularly in the
retail sector, ironically the market where
to date, it has failed to make a meaningful
impact.
“Forget the product, it’s the message that
it [triple-glazing] allows us to deliver as an
industry, which is of biggest advantage”,
says Crewdson, pointing to the second time
replacement market.
Crewdson continues: “The majority of
windows we now replace as an industry
are already double-glazed. So aside from
aesthetics, how do you convey the benefits of
a new generation of double-glazed windows to
the homeowner? The answer is that you do it
through triple-glazing.”
He argues that despite the lengths the
BFRC has gone to convey the benefits of
new windows to homeowners through the
Window Energy Ratings Scheme, the retail
message can sometimes be lost. But throw an

extra pane of glass into the equation and you
have an immediate and very tangible point of
differentiation.
“The second time replacement market is
challenging” says Crewdson. “I’m going to
show my age but back in the day it was a
comparatively simple proposition to argue that
two panes of glass were better than one. But
how do you convey that to Mrs Jones that new
windows will make her home far warmer and
more secure when she already has doubleglazing?
“Of course we know that low iron argon
filled units will perform much better and that
multi-point locking mechanisms will make her
property more secure but how do you explain
it effectively? The answer is triple-glazing.
“If she’s prepared to pay a premium for
triple-glazed products then great but if not,
once you’re talking it’s very easy to then
explain that top double-glazed units will
deliver comparable levels of performance at a
more affordable price point.”
And with homeowners still smarting from
the latest round of energy company gas and
electricity price hikes and with the chill of
winter now firmly biting, this January may be
a good time to push the energy efficiency and
triple-glazing message.

To read more, visit www.clearview-uk.com