The Pilkington Pyrolytic Advantage

For years, glass manufacturers and fabricators have been changing the appearance and performance properties of float glass by applying coatings to it.

Usually, coatings are applied after the glass is produced, cut, bent or otherwise fabricated, by a process called "sputter coating", where various chemicals are deposited on the surface of the glass, forming a layer on the outer surface of the glass that changes its aesthetic or performance properties. These coatings are sometimes referred to as "soft coats", because the coating can be susceptible to scratching and degradation over time, and may require special handling. Soft coat glass products have a limited shelf life, cannot be heat treated after coating, and require edge deletion for insulating glass fabrication, all of which adds to its processing costs and longer lead times.

While most of the industry was focusing on soft coat glass products, however, Pilkington decided to go in a different direction, developing an entirely new way of coating glass during the float glass manufacturing operation called "pyrolytic" coating. As the name implies, a pyrolytic glass is one where the coating is chemically-bonded to the glass at the molecular level while it is still in the semi-molten stage by a process we call "Chemical Vapor Deposition." Because this results in an extremely durable and stable coating that is impregnated right into the surface of the glass, pyrolytic products are often referred to as "hard coats".

What does 'pyrolytic' mean?

Pilkington's proprietary pyrolytic process produces glass products that have a lot of real-world benefits to you:

• Virtually unlimited shelf life - They can be stocked for an extended period of time and used without a change in appearance or performance.
  
• Readily available - Because of their long shelf life, they are inventoried across the country by local glass fabricators, which means shorter lead times and better project cost control.
  
• Temperable and bendable - They can be tempered and bent after coating for greater flexibility in designing curtain walls, facades and other building components.
  
• Can be laminated after coating ...for skylights and other special uses.
  
• No edge deletion or special handling required.  Because of the durable coating, Pilkington pyrolytic glass requires no edge deletion or special handling, which, in turn, helps prevent delays in installation and keeps projects on schedule.

So what does 'Pyrolytic' really mean?

It means a lot more advantages to you!

One of the first such pyrolytic glass products was Pilkington Eclipse Advantage™ Solar Control Reflective Low-E Glass. While we've improved the technology considerably in recent years, the basic advantages of the pyrolytic process enhanced the durability, long shelf life (which, in turn, frequently means quicker availability) and its ability to be bent and tempered after the coating is applied - have continued to make Pilkington Eclipse Advantage™ Solar Control Reflective Low-E Glass a popular choice for architects and fabricators alike.  Pilkington Solar-E™ is our latest line of pyrolytic solar control low-e tinted products.

Breakthrough Technology

There are many other important benefits to the pyrolytic process, however. Because we can bond together multiple, extremely thin layers of various substances, we can literally engineer glass to specific performance requirements.

One of the best examples of this is Pilkington Energy Advantage™ Low-E Glass, which employs an innovative combination of coating materials to produce the first color-neutral Low-E glass, while at the same time, improving visible light transmittance . . . a breakthrough so significant that it was honored by Popular Science magazine as one of the most important inventions of the year.

Today, thanks to the Pilkington Sun Management System, you can achieve an almost infinite variety of performance and aesthetic combinations by combining Pilkington Energy Advantage™ Low-E Glass as the inboard lite with various reflective and tinted glass in insulating glass units.

And that's just the beginning of the potential for pyrolytics.

We can also create glass with specific electrical and conductive properties that are already being used in such applications as flat screen displays. Someday, this technology may bring your flat screen computer monitor in a room where the windows lighten or darken as the outside light changes.

Please visit our Product Directory to learn more about our pyrolytic coated products.