Glass Structure. There are numerous structural glass systems offered by various suppliers that open up vast possibilities for architects, allowing them to create a complete glass envelope for buildings with frameless façades on any plane.

List of British/EU Standards and Codes of Practice. There are many British and European Standards which apply directly or indirectly to glass for use in building. Although not exhaustive, the following lists some of the most commonly used.

The strength of glass is determined by putting the glass under stress until it breaks. The surface strength is measured using a ring and the edge strength by 4 point bending. The test is repeated to derive a distribution for the break strength.

Pilkington Planar™ is used by architects to create expansive flush glass surfaces. The system utilises stainless steel fittings housed in countersunk holes to fix glass to its structure, making it more discreet while maximising visibility.

A quick guide to some of the Standards & Building Regulations used in construction that have implications for the choice of glass.

Structural glass: glass used in a manner where it may be supporting other building components (e.g. glass mullions) or where it performs a semi-structural role (e.g. free standing glass protective barriers). The term may also be used for glass fixed using bolted connections (frameless glazing), even if it performs no structural function.

Pilkington provide the service of determining the glass thickness and type to withstand wind and snow loads when the information is not available in the standards.

Solar control glass either reflects energy or absorbs it to reradiate the heat outwards. By its nature it gets hotter that clear glass and glass that is designed for thermal efficiency alone like Pilkington K Glass™ and Pilkington Optitherm SN™.

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a laminated glass with special interlayers with better acoustic performance than ordinary laminated glass. See Product Data sheet on Pilkington Acoustic Laminate and Technical Bulletin Glass and Noise Control.