While everyone has suffered the negative effects of skyrocketing energy prices—whether in the home, at the gas pump, or in the workplace—the architectural glass industry has benefited from the corresponding increase in the demand for energy-efficient vacuum-coated glass products.

Across the supply chain—from primary glass manufacturing to the coating line to the construction site—we have invested heavily in new coating capacity to support the sharp rise in demand for low-emissivity glasses that improve energy performance. As buyers of both residential and commercial glass products have become better educated about the bottom-line benefits of installing energy-efficient low-E products, low-E glasses have gone from a “niche” product to an architectural standard—in the past decade.

Just how fast is the low-E architectural glass marketplace growing today? 

Currently, sales of low-E windows for the residential marketplace are growing at a compounded annual rate of 19.5 percent. While this growth will slow as the market becomes saturated, low-E glass is expected to represent an 80 percent share of the residential market by 2008. 

The commercial construction marketplace was slow initially to embrace low-E glass coatings; but, today low-E products are growing at a compound annual rate of 17.1 percent. By 2008, low-E should represent a 50 percent share of the commercial glass marketplace—and the good news is that this growth should continue, since this segment will not be saturated by low-E windows in the short term.

Here’s the Reason Why
Several factors have played a part in the strong recent growth of low-E glass products, including:

• Education and incentives for installing energy-efficient glass products, such as the U.S. Department of Energy’s educational program, Energy Star, as well as tax incentives from the most recent energy legislation.
• Local and state building codes that specify the use of energy-efficient products, including low-E windows, in all new construction.
• Private-sector financial incentives that encourage reduced energy consumption over the long term, reduced capital investments in the short term, and increased daily comfort for tenants.
• Sustainable design and “green” building initiatives, advocating the use of every energy-saving technology available—including windows that feature vacuum coatings.

Declining interest in reflective coated glasses for architectural applications, as builders and architects realize that low-E glass offers significant insulating advantages over reflective glass—a long-time staple of commercial buildings.

Thanks to these and other trends, there is little doubt that the marketplace for vacuum-coated low-E glass products will continue to grow, although there are questions about what direction this growth will take, as well as what new forces will shape the future of architectural glass.

While a “one-product-fits-all” approach used to characterize the architectural glass marketplace, impressive advances in both primary glass manufacturing and low-E coatings make product customization the dominant theme today. 

Fred Wallin is vice president of marketing for AFG Industries Inc., Kingsport, Tenn.

Architects' Guide to Glass & Metal
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