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GLOBAL MARKET TRENDS

produced and account for oped, so interesting news
more than one third of the are to be expected.
greenhouse gas emissions. STRUCTURAL
It is not just about how GLASS
windows keep the heat in- APPLICATIONS
side (reducing the need for
heating) or outside (the Tim Macfarlane was one
need for cooling decreas- of the first ones to start
es). An intelligent facade developing the use of
can convert sunshine into glass as a structural mate-
energy. Integrated solar rial in the buildings in the
panels are also becoming 70s and 80s, and this has
popular in Finland and the given rise to the idea of to-
Nordic countries. Trans- tal transparency: wind and
parent solar panels are in- structural loads can also be
tegrated into windows, and borne with glass structures
the user does not notice and thus create new types
the difference compared of buildings. Of course,
to a traditional window. this has put demands on
With regard to solar collec- glass machine manufac-
tors, new ideas on how to turers and glass proces-
produce warm air and hot sors for new products and
water or to apply them to equipment for handling
cooling the building are al- and transferring large and
ready in use. heavy glasses.
In the digital printing on Cold bent glass has been
glass, a resolution up to used in buildings for over
1,400 dpi is achieved, and ten years, and because the
it is possible to create large experiences are good, the
surfaces, such as different use has increased and di-
views on the outside and versified. In cold-bending
inside walls of a building. the insulating glass element
At the same time, the en- made of tempered flat glass
ergy balance of the building is mechanically bent in the
can be improved as the ce- shape of the building frame
ramic ink used for printing when installed. However,
absorbs the excess energy. the sharpest bends are
The building of the future always made by thermal
produces at least part of bending. The latest and structural silicones on the are 3,3x20 meters. Growth
the energy it uses and au- most demanding process market. They enable mak- in glass sizes and new
tomatically balances its en- is the lamination bending, ing of even more transpar- coatings create particularly
ergy streams. Its windows which is carried out in con- ent structures and applica- strict demands for the tem-
can regulate the amount nection with the autoclave tions. pering and lamination pro-
of heat and light passing process. This method re- WORLDWIDE GLASS cesses, so quality control
through them and also quires a lot of experience QUALITY TRENDS and the various measure-
use infrared and ultravio- and know-how, but it will ment methods are impor-
let components of light to diversify the possibilities in Tempered glass sizes have tant.
produce electricity. Smart glass construction. grown considerably over Product development in
glass/media façade tech- The latest addition is the the last couple of decades; Glaston and Viprotron
nologies are being devel- introduction of transparent today the largest glasses has focused, among other

172 Glass-Technology International 5/2018