Insulated Glass, often called double glazing, is a combination of two or more panes of glass spaced apart with a spacer bar and hermetically sealed with a primary and secondary sealant to form a single unit with one or more air spaces in between. IG units improve the thermal performance, thus significantly reducing heating and air-conditioning costs. IG units also reduce interior condensation in cold climates, and increase comfort near windows, thus maximizing the usable interior space.

By combining Low-E coatings, tinted glasses, reflective coatings, silk-screened patterns, laminated glass products and more, a wide variety of insulating glass configurations are available to satisfy a wide range of performance and aesthetic requirements. IG units can be fabricated to meet state energy codes, sound control requirements, seismic requirements, impact resistance, bullet resistance, and hurricane and blast resistance requirements. IG units can be designed to reduce heat loss and solar heat gain entering the building, with a minimal reduction of visible light transmittance.

Glass lites:
An IGU consists of at least two panes (or lites) of glass. Though IG units typically use monolithic glass, other types of coated and laminated glasses may be used depending on the application to enhance the performance of the unit.

Frame:
Frame, or the spacer bar, is the material used to separate the two glass lites in an IGU. Usually made of aluminium and filled with desiccant, it holds the unit together, provides thickness and mechanical resistance, and plays a key role in ensuring optimum performance of the unit.

Frames are of two types - ones joined with corner keys, and bent frames. In the first type, the spacer material is cut to the specific size and desiccant is filled. Then the four sides are assembled together using corner keys. As the frame created in this process has four joints, the heat loss is more. To address this, the frame or the spacer bar is bent at 90 degree angles and the frame is assembled with only one joint - this is referred to as a bent frame.

Laminated Glass - this Glass is best for reducing noise. It also resists ultraviolet rays, providing the highest degree of protection from sun rays to your home furnishings.

There is no doubt that the introduction of laminated safety glass has provided a versatile product that meets the needs of today’s safety requirements. As one of Valiant’s most popular products laminated glass offers a safe alternative to ordinary annealed glass for home and commercial buildings. Laminated glass is now used in a wide range of applications including doors, windows, shower screens, glass roofs, balustrades, displays and other situations where this product offers the best solution. It consists of two sheets of annealed glass bonded together with a plastic interlayer to provide one of the safest products in the market. Its main features are its added strength, safety and also security when subject to damage from vandalism or accidental breakage.

Types of laminated glass

The most popular laminated glass is the standard clear laminated which is used in domestic sliding doors, low level glazing, internal office partitions, office windows and shop windows and doors. Valiant stocks a wide range of sizes and thickness of clear laminated to cater for the requirements of all of these applications whether you require new installation or emergency glass replacement. In addition to clear laminated there are a number of alternatives including tinted, patterned, frosted and high performance coated laminates available for use in homes and businesses. Valiant even have the ability to have custom made laminates manufactured for unique applications upon request. As a superior glass product we highly recommend laminated glass for use in any of your future domestic or commercial projects.