Selecting & Using Laminated Glass in Architecture

Keith Boswell

The selection and use of laminated glass in architectural applications in the United States and internationally is dependant on several factors. These are the following:
1) Code required use due to safety glazing requirements
2) structural performance
3) design objectives
4) standard or custom confi gurations incorporating special finishes.

The Architect must become familiar with the glass material's basic strengths and limitations to select the proper configuration. These are dependant on its geometric properties such as slenderness factor, aspect ration and composition. Concurrent with understanding of the basic material geometric properties are the integration of other design parameters such as colour, solar control and performance, and how the glass support system is designed and detailed.

After initial glass options and selections are made, the glass components and overall assembly must be further engineered and evaluated to validate the glazing material selection. The glass fabrication process must be understood to evaluate heat strengthening or tempering application, available sizes, types of interlayers available, the limitations of fabrication and the glass fabricator(s) capabilities. Based on the type of project and client requirements, the Architect must understand how much of the responsibility they carry for the glass assembly and fi nal engineering and how much responsibility will be carried by either specialty consultants or the glass manufacturer.

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