Why Architects Are Paying Attention to Thin Glass

Last March, the Wall Street Journal published a story about Alpen’s thin-glass powered triple and quadruple pane windows that exposed the rich but unknown history of thin glass to a wide audience. This history spans Apple, Steve Jobs and Corning, the inventors of the thin “Gorilla Glass” that has protected our smartphones and tablets for two decades.  

Its cousin, Corning® Enlighten™ serves as an insulating, middle layer of thin glass that is embedded between thicker soda panes in some of the world’s most energy efficient windows, doors and IGUs. Prior to making it public knowledge, Corning spent years testing and refining Enlighten, along with Lawrence Berkeley National Labs (LBNL), Alpen, Regency, Anderson Windows, PGT and others.

Why are architects paying attention now? Because thin glass helps solve a problem the building industry has wrestled with for years: how to improve thermal performance without dramatically increasing window weight, frame size, or installation complexity. Manufacturers can now deliver triple- and even quadruple-pane performance in a package that is lighter and easier to integrate into real-world projects.

As awareness of thin glass grew, architecture and specification-focused publications began taking a closer look at the technology and its applications.

1. Thin glass gained visibility in the architectural community when The Architect's Newspaper featured Alpen's triple-pane Tyrol window in its 'Windows, Walls & Doors’ issue last June.

2. In April, Alpen Chief Revenue Officer Avi Bar contributed a 2,000+ word article about thin glass to Construction Specifier, one of the architecture industry's most widely read technical publications. The article, which appears in the April print and digital issue, starts on page 6, is over eight pages long and is beautifully laid out.

3. Architectural Record recently featured Alpenglass triple and quad-pane IGUs in its May issue. This is the first time Alpen’s history that its products have appeared in Architectural Record.

Thin Glass in Action

The real test of any building innovation is adoption.

We plan to show the world what thin glass looks like installed in commercial, government and residential buildings. The world needs to see it in action, because millions of square feet of thin glass are already operating at scale in some of the most demanding building environments in the world, including the Empire State Building:

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Thin glass is also proving itself in affordable housing. Through its work with the Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH), Alpen's thin triples have already been installed in numerous multifamily and senior housing projects. From New York City (the Atrium) to Boston (the Kenzi Building), Washington DC (the Asberry) and now Chicago (5th City Commons), the inhabitants of these buildings are learning what high performance really feels like.

Warmer in winter. Cooler in summer. And when they want to shut the windows? Silence.

One of the most compelling examples is Ponderosa, a multifamily affordable housing community in Boulder, Colorado, where high school students are helping build passive house-inspired modular homes powered by Alpen's thin triples. These homes are currently being constructed in a modular factory built and managed by Habitat for Humanity, and which is located on a Boulder Valley School District campus.  

Soon, Alpen’s thin triples will protect the homes that dominate the American landscape. High performance is coming to the suburbs.

Stay tuned...

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