NGA releases new Glass Informational Bulletins

The National Glass Association (NGA) has announced the publication of three resources for the glazing and glass products industry.

Task groups comprised of member volunteers within the Fabricating Committee worked diligently to update two existing and create one new Glass Informational Bulletins (GIBs) for the industry.

GIBs which underwent the regular five-year systematic review process per NGA policy are Recommended Applications for Heat-Treated Glass (FB45-14 (2019)) and Approximate Weight of Interlayer Used in Laminated Architectural Flat Glass (FB23-09 (2019)).

“These GIBs were developed five and 10 years ago at the initiative of member volunteers. They are excellent entry-level resources that provide foundational knowledge on two important elements in the fabrication process,” said Urmilla Sowell, NGA advocacy & technical director.

Thermal Stress in Heat-Treated Spandrel Glass is the newest addition to the NGA library of resources. The GIB addresses the unique and unanticipated demands on spandrel glazing due to growing energy efficiency initiatives. Recently, attention has been drawn to incidents in which spandrel glass has experienced solar-induced thermal stress breakage. This document discusses the phenomenon of thermal stress build-up, the factors that contribute to it and potential mitigation options.

Task group chair Nathalie Thibault, Prelco Inc., said “this document will be beneficial for many industry stakeholders as it is very helpful to understand the evolution of spandrel applications, the resulting consequences of increased energy efficiency requirements for such products and the mitigation strategies that exist in order to manage them properly.”