Large Area Coatings On Glass: A Technology Dilemma?

The global organisation of Asahi Glass - the Flat Glass Company and the Automotive Glass Company (GC) has co-ordinated research projects among three R&D centres: Glaverbel in Belgium, California's AFT in the US and Jpan's AGC. The R&D co-ordination team has been established at the Glaverbel R&D centre. Glass coatings are becoming useful in more and more fields. The use of coated glass is no longer restricted to thermal use in buildings; the applications have extended to transportation vehicles (automotive glazings, railway glazings), to solar energy capturing systems, to appliances (oven doors, freezer front panels) and to the display fields. This article looks at the most common techniques and asks which method is best.