Guardian expansion complete

Date: 7 June 2002
Source: Zwire

Date: 7 June 2002

The 75,500-square-foot expansion is on the east side of the 83 acres owned by the company in the Industrial Park on Forge Avenue.

It houses a control room and one machine that is 730 feet long and 18 feet wide.
The machine enables an energy-efficient coating to be placed on glass manufactured at the plant. The 10-step process includes loading, coating, inspecting, cutting and packing the glass.

"There's a need for this type of coating process in the glass business," said plant manager Mark Mette, noting that the product is in demand.

Mette said the machine is working on a trial-run basis, with the finished product being distributed as samples. The machine should be in production around mid-July and running around the clock, five days a week, by the end of the year, he said.

The addition will mean 42 new employees over three shifts; 36 have already been hired. The $120 million Guardian glass plant, which opened on May 1, 1998, now employees about 300 workers.

Mette said roughly 100 truckloads of the treated glass should be shipped out per month to Guardian's customers in the Northeast, Southeast and Midwest and Canada. The product will be cut to order.

Brendan Culloty, operations manager, said the coating machine is the fastest and largest of its kind in the world, although a larger one will be built this fall for Guardian's plant in Luxembourg.

The machine was built in Germany and brought to Hamilton, Ontario, on a cargo ship. From there, it was trucked to the Geneva plant.

Most of the glass treated with the coating will be used in residential windows.

Culloty said the coating acts as a filter, allowing more light inside the home while blocking out heat and ultra-violet rays.

"It's more energy efficient," Culloty said, adding that the coated windows also re-reflect heat in the house, making it warmer during the winter months.

A total of 11 layers of coating could be placed on the glass. More layers increase the efficiency of the glass, Culloty said, adding that all 11 layers combined would be about the width of one human hair.

While the coated windows are more expensive, several window manufacturers offer the product free as an incentive to purchase their products.

600450 Guardian expansion complete glassonweb.com

See more news about:

Others also read

William A. Wulfsohn, vice president and general manager of Nylon System for Honeywell International, has been named vice president of European coatings for PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) and managing director of PPG Europe. "Bill will play a vital role in helping our European coatings businesses achieve their full potential," said Michael A.
Apogee Enterprises Inc. reported level sales but an increase in earnings for the third quarter of its fiscal 2003. Bloomington-based Apogee, which makes glass products and services, said the earnings increase was mainly the result of improvements in its architectural glass business.
Bystronic is to take over Armatec Vierhaus GmbH with effect from 1 January 2003. For Bystronic, a global supplier of system solutions for the manufacture of architectural and automotive glass, the takeover of Armatec, which specialises in laminated safety glass and handling systems, ideally complements the Bystronic portfolio.
The butterflies at Melbourne Zoo have gone upmarket with a new accommodation wing featuring Pilkington glass.
Owens-Brockway Glass Container Inc., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Owens-Illinois, Inc., (NYSE: OI) announced today that is has closed on the sale of $175 million principal amount of its 8-3/4% Senior Secured Notes due November 15, 2012.
UCB reached an agreement with Solutia to acquire Solutia's Resins, Additives & Adhesives activity for $500 million, plus a $10 million exclusivity fee.

Add new comment