Energy Efficiency

Q+A with Quanex | Warm Edge Revolutionizes Glass Fabrication

Warm-edge spacer technology boosts efficiency in modern automated glass fabrication.

3 Ways to Create Project Profitability

Building material prices are skyrocketing and wreaking havoc on the construction industry. Contractors are paying more and waiting longer, which leads to higher costs and extended schedules for construction projects of all kinds. Now, more than ever, it’s critical to evaluate project systems with…

2024's Record Heat: Driving Innovation in Window Technology

The summer of 2024 was the fourth-hottest summer on record for the contiguous United States, with an average temperature of 73.8 degrees Fahrenheit, which is 2.5 degrees above normal. The states of Arizona, California, Florida, Maine, and New Hampshire experienced the warmest summer in their…

Next Step in VIG: Planning for Growth

Though not a new product, vacuum insulating glass has seen major interest in the past few years as a high-performance product that can meet and exceed criteria for energy efficiency. In this conversation with Dave Cooper of VacuumGlass, we discuss recent advancements in the product, what the…

Glass Can Do That

Glass is a multi-functional building product that meets performance, life-safety and aesthetic goals. See all that glass can do in this interactive chart.

Next-Level Curtain Wall Performance Solutions

High-performance fenestration systems include low-conductivity pressure plate systems to help meet energy code needs.

DOE Launches $2 Million Prize to Advance Cost-effective, Energy-efficient Commercial Secondary Glazing Systems

The Building Technologies Office, part of the Department of Energy, announced that they will sponsor a $2 million dollar prize to encourage production of high-performance and cost-effective secondary glazing systems towards improving energy performance in commercial windows. The first phase of the…

DOE pushes for better energy performance/decarbonization for commercial

Decarbonization and advocacy for the glass industry topped the agenda at last week's NGA Glass Conference: Isle of Palms | Charleston. The conference welcomed around 100 technical and advocacy leaders to discuss decarbonization and advocacy, as well as celebrate industry leaders.

NGA Codes Report: 7 Need-to-Know Updates

NGA code experts Urmilla Sowell and Tom Culp gave a comprehensive rundown of developing codes and standards in North America. The session, originally presented at the 2023 GlassBuild Main Stage, gave updates and insights on Energy Star 7.0, bird-friendly glass, energy efficiency and EPD production…

Heat-Treated Glass Surfaces are Different

In this Glass Informational Bulletin, learn how heat-treated glass is a critical component of high-performance coated, insulating, laminated, spandrel, safety glazing, bullet-resistant, blast-resistant and hurricane-resistant fenestration products. As usage has increased in recent years, so has the…

Staying current with energy codes?

Increasingly stringent energy codes are pushing innovation in the fenestration industry. It benefits industry members to know about the codes governing the areas they work in so they can provide specification support to design teams.

Advanced Window Technologies: The Latest on Thin Glass

Interest in thin glass and “skinny triples” is picking up and drawing the attention of commercial builders eager to install energy-efficient products.

Spec the edge. High performance begins on the edge.

The frame and edge of glass are critical to creating a high-performance window system. Regardless of what is done with the number of panes, coatings and gases, if the frame and edge of glass are not well-insulated, heat and cold will find a way through. 

3 key considerations for capitalizing on EC glass tax credits

Glass industry companies have the opportunity to capitalize on the Inflation Reduction Act's incentives for electrochromic glass. Before entering this market, manufacturers should be aware of what EC is, how U.S. products compare, and what to know about installation.

How to keep people cool with thermally broken framing

Temperatures are heating up. Systems that are thermally-broken help reduce heat transfer, and thus keep building occupants cooler, which often results in happier, more productive employees, in case of businesses.

VIG’s Future-proof Performance

Vacuum insulating glass, or VIG, offers daylighting options with enhanced thermal and acoustic performance. Industry experts say interest in VIG is growing, but barriers to adoption remain.

Next-Gen Glass Can Save Billions in Energy Costs

High-performance glazing on the agenda at Glass & Glazing Advocacy Days.

EPA Webinar "Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions"

EPA Webinar "Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions"

Glaston Sets Sustainability Goals

In line with Glaston’s strategic focus areas, the company focused on reducing its carbon footprint in 2022. The greenhouse gas emissions from Glaston’s own operations decreased by 43 percent year-on-year. The result was mainly achieved by shifting to the use of renewable electricity at Glaston’s…

What's the Word on Thin Triples?

At the NGA Glass Conference: Miramar Beach January 24-26, Selkowitz will present considerations for the practical application of thin triples in commercial and residential construction. 

Vinyl is Worth Considering for Commercial Applications

Sustainability and energy efficiency are major, still-growing trends in the commercial construction space. Window and glass systems contribute significantly to a building’s efficiency. For commercial professionals, it’s worth exploring the available technology to meet today’s demands.

Sunshades as a Solution to Combating Solar Heat Gain

Properly specified and installed sunshades can help mitigate the effects of intense direct sunlight on the building envelope, particularly during the summer months when glass façades are most vulnerable.

Energy-efficient buildings are essential for a prosperous, decarbonized future

The urgency to create energy-efficient buildings is only increasing, complicated by supply chain issues that make the availability of building materials more difficult. Given the projected impacts of climate change, including to the economy, William Green thinks through ways to ensure the energy-…

A Guide to Earning LEED Points: Materials and Resources’ Building Product Disclosure and Optimization

The newest version of LEED includes a Materials and Resources’ Building Product Disclosure and Optimization, which can add two points to a total score. Manufacturers can earn those two points through two different methods: using reporting compliance or providing compliant material ingredient…

The National Glass Association Outlines Impacts of The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

NGA applauds the signing of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 today, August 16, 2022, by President Biden. Most notable to the glazing and glass building products industry, the bill provides almost $400 billion to fund energy and climate projects aimed at reducing carbon emissions by 40 percent by…

Deciphering LEED credits: Environmental Product Declarations

How do environmental product declarations affect your projects' LEED score? What should glazing contractors know? In this second installment of our blog series, we’ll cover EPDs, what they are, the types used for compliance, and how they can be used on your project to satisfy LEED requirements

All About Glass & Metals: New IGU Technologies for Carbon Reduction and Zero Net Energy

The last year has witnessed increasingly ambitious plans to meet carbon-neutral, net-zero goals in the next several decades. To reduce carbon emissions and meet these benchmarks, the building sector must be addressed.

All About Glass & Metals: The Importance of Thermal Bridging

For fenestration assemblies, the potential for thermal bridges may occur where the window framing meets the surrounding wall. An excerpt from Thermal Bridging Considerations at Interface Conditions Design Guide, available for download in the NGA Store.

Deciphering LEED Credits

More than 100,000 projects currently use the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED rating systems to meet and verify their sustainability goals. It’s great to see this commitment, but what does it mean for glazing contractors? In this four-part blog series, we’ll decipher how aluminum-framed…

All About Glass & Metals: The High-Performance Façade Equation

Glass Magazine’s 2022 All About Glass & Metals: Guide for Architects takes a closer look at three essential elements to the high-performance façade equation.

Time to Re-focus

As the fenestration industry works through production backlogs, satisfying demand means more than simply getting orders out the door.

Ally Charlotte Center First in City’s Skyline With Polycarbonate Panel Glazing System

The 26-story, 750,000 square foot Ally Charlotte Center is the first building in Charlotte, North Carolina to be completed with a long-span, high-load polycarbonate glazing panel system.

Little clip, big impact

Buildings’ energy usage was impacted significantly during the pandemic. Studies have shown that the energy consumption in commercial buildings decreased as many adjusted to the work-from-home approach. Building owners with fewer tenants and occupants may assume that energy use and costs also will…

On Good Stewardship: Balancing efficiencies with supply chain challenges

The industry continues to push for newer efficiencies while grappling with supply chain challenges. Responsible care and management of resources—in all forms—will be key to success in 2022.

Triple Glazing and Embodied Energy

As both national and local groups look for solutions to address climate change, decarbonize the buildings segment and greatly increase energy efficiency, it is clear that high-performance fenestration has an important role to play.

Andersen Corp. Invests in Ubiquitous Energy

Andersen Corp. announced a strategic investment in Ubiquitous Energy, a company in transparent photovoltaic technology that converts light into electricity using semiconductor materials while maintaining visible transparency. 

Halio Inc. to Showcase AI-controlled Smart Glass at CES 2022

Halio, a smart window manufacturer, will be exhibiting in the “Green Avenue” section of the SK CES 2022 booth located in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Central Hall, Booth 16761.

Andersen Publishes Environmental Product Declaration for E-Series Windows

Andersen's E-Series EPD helps designers and architects achieve their green building goals, including materials and resources credits for customers pursuing LEED certification and by providing data for embodied carbon calculations without compromising design aesthetics. 

Don’t forget the frame

Today’s commercial curtain wall, storefront and other fenestration systems can help protect us from extreme temperatures and conserve natural resources. While high-performance glass often is the first component we see, it’s essential to remember the role of the frame itself.

6 Reasons to Love Architectural Glass

Among structural materials, glass is worthy of our admiration, with many properties that make it uniquely suited to enhance the beauty, design and performance of buildings. It benefits people; it benefits the environment.  

Ubiquitous Energy and Antamex Industries Partner for Transparent Solar Commercial Glazing

Ubiquitous Energy, a manufacturer of transparent solar energy technology, and Antamex Industries agreed to form a partnership to bring transparent solar glazing to the commercial glazing market in North America.

Insulating Glass Production: the 3 Most Critical Points

All parts of insulating glass manufacturing are important. But uncompromising quality on these three points can best help prevent unit failure.

Here Comes the Sun

Mitigate the adverse effects of direct sunlight on the building envelope with sunshade systems.

Advanced Protection

Fire-rated glass and glazing has evolved. Manufacturers increasingly provide fire-rated glass and glazing solutions that are larger, more complex and better able to meet added performance requirements for thermal efficiency, daylighting, impact safety and more. 

What is Embodied Carbon and Why Does it Matter?

Clear Performance Solutions

High-performance building is no longer optional. Building codes require it. Owners and occupants increasingly demand it. And our global sustainability depends on it.

4 Trends in Building for the 22nd Century

At NBBJ, we are in the midst of designing a 55,000-square-foot behavior health facility in Monterey, California, that shares an architectural ethos with the Empire State Building. Although the project is not a skyscraper, not an office building, nor constructed of steel, it demonstrates, as does…

Embrace Calls for Performance Solutions

New requirements for better performing, more sustainable and thermally efficient glass and glazing products represent an important opportunity for the industry, said Apogee CEO Joe Puishys during his keynote address at the 2020 Building Envelope Contractors Conference.

LINETEC FOCUSES ON SUSTAINABILITY

Going green is becoming mainstream, and companies are finding many ways of embracing sustainability, from the manufacturing process to the finished product. Linetec is one company that has made sustainability a cornerstone of its methods and business practices.

Working Toward Real, Sustainable Solutions

A skinny triple insulating glass unit, from Quanex Building Products. In today’s industry, sustainability isn’t just about energy efficiency and performance. It’s about delivering solutions that meet those needs, but also stand the test of time.   Any commercial construction project is a…

Product Transparency FAQs

As green building becomes the expectation rather than the exception, building owners are asking for evidence that their facilities are as friendly to occupants and to the environment as planned. While building product manufacturers have responded with more sustainable products, many are also…

Did NYC’s Mayor Really Announce a Ban on Glass Buildings?

Last week, the glass industry witnessed some jarring headlines coming out of New York City: "NYC’s ‘Green New Deal’ to ban glass, steel skyscrapers"; "De Blasio vows to ban glass and steel skyscrapers in NYC"; "NYC mayor wants to ban new glass skyscrapers to cut emissions". The news came out of…

Looking Beyond Thermal Efficiency

Project Snapshot: The Siemens corporate headquarters in Munich exemplifies sustainable building. The company, which announced plans to achieve a carbon neutral footprint by 2030, built its head office to consume 90 percent less electricity and about 75 percent less water as a regular building.…

The Professional Services Perspective: Thermal Performance

The building industry is shifting in its demands for thermal performance and thermal analysis on wall systems. More projects require thermal analysis, factors such as dew point and edge-of-glass U-values have become more important, and collaboration across the project team is on the rise. In this…

Prepare Your Talking Points, the Battle for Glass is Back

Are architects turning their backs on skyscrapers? This was the question posed in a recent CNN piece that interrogated the sustainability and energy performance of glass. The article, through interviews with several architects and other building industry officials, seemed to posit that glass…

Vinyl Emerges as a Viable Option in High-rises, Despite Market Hurdles

Quanex’s Mikron 1250 vinyl window series at the AMLI apartment building in South Lake Union, Washington. One building solution that is gaining traction as a real, viable option in the architectural community, and as another step forward in the performance of the…

Code Conflict in Florida

Six months ago, the state of Florida enacted new energy codes, mandating that new building and renovation projects in commercial and residential applications meet requirements outlined in the 2012 International Energy Conservation Code, IECC. The updates to the energy codes led to disagreement,…