Glaverbel, the Belgian glass group, announced in December 1995 that it has taken a 36% stake in the Brazilian glassmaker Savisa. It said in a statement it would provide technical and engineering suppo…
Glaverbel, the Belgian glass group, announced in December 1995 that it has taken a 36% stake in the Brazilian glassmaker Savisa. It said in a statement it would provide technical and engineering support to the Savisa venture which is aimed at building and operating a glass plant in Brazil. The plant is due to start up in the third quarter of 1997 and will have an annual production capacity of 150,000 tonnes. Total investments amount to US$ 136 million. The float glass produced at the new plant will be mainly for the construction and car sectors, the statement said. According to the company, there is a shortage in the Brazilian flat glass market which should continue in the future due to new investments by carmakers and growth of the building sector. Brazilian authorities approved the venture. The Banco Nacional de Desinvolvemento Economico e Social (BNDES) provided support to investors and financial backing for the project. The launch in August 1995 of Glaverbel“s Stopray Elite 67/37 glass marked the latest step in the battle among glazing producers to be the first to bring architects high-performance solar-control glass. Glaverbel consultant, Howard Blackie, says architects want glass that does not transmit solar energy but adds that they also want glass that can keep heat in during winter. In addition, more “natural-looking” glass is increasingly in demand. Environmentalists and, consequently, planners are moving towards neutral glass, because buildings with dark blue and dark green glass often do not blend with their surroundings. Clients favour neutral glass because it does not distort colours. So far, the demands of architects and clients have proved incompatible. Clear glass is a poor controller of solar energy: it lets through light of all wavelengths, including that in the infrared part of the spectrum that transmits heat. But now Glaverbel claims to have overtaken its competitors and produced a clear glass with a high solar-control factor. The Stopray Elite has a light transmission of 67%. This compares poorly with clear glass, which lets through 85-90% of light, but it has a solar factor of 37%. Clear glass has a solar factor of more than 85%. Other available solar-control glass can match the Elite“s solar factor, but their light transmissions are lower, claims Blackie. Glaverbel has the technology to achieve a light transmission of 75% and a solar factor of 20% for solar glass, but the cost is prohibitive, says Blackie. He believes Glaverbel“s edge over its competitors will not last long. He expects rivals to produce glass that can perform as well as, or better than, its solar-control glass by the end of 1996. So for now, Glaverbel is charging a premium price. The Elite“s coating lets through a large proportion of visible light (wavelengths 380-780 nm) but offers a low transmission for infrared radiation (wavelengths 380-2480 nm), especially for shortwave infrared, which is the major contributor to solar energy. Glaverbel faces competition not only from rival glassmakers, but from blindmakers too. Blackie is not worried, however. He says blinds, even when sealed in glazing units, are mechanical and, unlike coated glass, carry a running cost. Even though manufacturers claim blinds in sealed units do not need maintenance or cleaning, the glazing unit is twice as expensive as a comparable Elite unit, he says. Coated glass also enables building occupants to see out on a sunny day. Glaverbel is a unit of Japan“s Asahi Glass Co. Ltd.