Commercial Glass | Northern Utah Glass

Commercial windows might not sound like a crucial component, but they’re gateways to natural light, fresh air, and the soul of a building.

Windows are an essential part of any commercial building. They provide ventilation, light, and a connection to the outside while also serving aesthetic purposes and contributing to the overall building design.

Today, we’re sharing everything you need to know about commercial windows, from their types to their functions and more.

An Abundance of Natural Light

Windows allow natural light to enter the building, reducing the need for artificial lighting during the day. There’s nothing worse than sitting inside, working to the glow of fluorescent lights. You might not feel it in the moment, but once you step outside, you realize just what you’ve been missing.

Natural light has been linked to improved mood and increased happiness. With these benefits, employees will be more excited to spend their time in the office, increasing productivity.

Not only will your employees’ moods rise, but you should also think about patrons visiting your building. The refreshing glow of natural light will boost your clients’ moods, and they will generally have a better experience with your company.

Proper Ventilation

A lesser-known pro of commercial building windows is their purpose for ventilation. Windows play a crucial role in ventilation in buildings. Proper ventilation provides many different benefits, such as healthy indoor air quality, controlling temperature and humidity levels, and ensuring the comfort and well-being of everyone in the building.

Proper ventilation and clean air benefit everyone who steps inside your building, just like natural light. Healthy air quality can increase mental well-being and productivity. This also inhibits the spread of airborne diseases and protects against outdoor air pollutants like smog and wildfire smoke.

Aesthetic Appeal

Windows can play a significant role in improving the aesthetics of an office space. Well-designed windows can transform the appearance of an office, creating a visually appealing and inviting environment. How can commercial windows do this? Let’s go over some of the possibilities below:

1. Windows helps bring the wonder of nature inside. This connection can add depth and interest to the office’s aesthetics, whether it’s a scenic landscape, an urban view, or a well-landscaped courtyard.
2. Well-designed windows are often used as the focal point of interior design, drawing attention to specific areas of the office. Unique window shapes, sizes, or placements can create a visual masterpiece.
3. Window frames significantly impact the look of an office. Thin, minimalistic frames can provide a sleek and contemporary look, while thicker frames convey a more industrial aesthetic.

Commercial building window’s design, placement, and treatment choices can greatly influence the aesthetics of the space, creating a visually appealing and harmonious environment that reflects the character and goals of the organization.

Save Money Through Energy Efficiency

Commercial windows are a significant source of heat gain or loss. Energy-efficient windows with low-emissivity coatings, double glazing, or insulated frames can help reduce energy consumption by minimizing heat transfer– just think about the savings! Not only will this benefit your wallet, but you’ll feel satisfied knowing you’re playing a part in helping the environment.

Privacy and Security

This might seem counterintuitive, but windows can help provide your building with both privacy and security. The trick is trying to balance the need for natural light and outdoor views with the need to protect sensitive information and ensure the safety of occupants. Here’s how windows can contribute to privacy and security in an office:

1. Privacy-When discussing privacy, here are some ways Windows helps secure the privacy of the business, employees, and patrons.
- a. Window coverings – Blinds, curtains, shades, or frosted films allow privacy at the hat’s drop. These coverings can be very user-friendly and help control the level of visibility from both inside and outside the office.
- b. Window placement – Window placement is critical to ensuring the privacy of an office. If there are meeting rooms or offices where the occupants may want a little more privacy, consider placing windows higher up so you can enjoy their benefits while maintaining privacy.
- c. Window films – Many different types of window films can be added to help protect the privacy of others while adding a nice touch to the overall look of the office.

2. Security – Security is something no one should worry about when entering a commercial building. Windows can help improve the security of everyone inside, and here’s how:
- a. Emergency exit – Windows can serve as an excellent option for an emergency exit. When making emergency plans for the buildings, make sure that windows are equipped with the necessary safety features.
- b. Security cameras – While installing security cameras, make sure they are positioned near windows to monitor activity around the perimeter of the building, enhancing overall security.
- c. Laminated glass – Laminated glass is designed to resist shattering upon impact. It enhances security by making it more difficult for intruders to break the glass to gain access.

Commercial windows can provide diverse functions, from providing natural light and ventilation to enhancing aesthetics and energy efficiency. Commercial building windows are the key to creating a comfortable, efficient, and beautiful workplace while meeting the safety and privacy needs of the organization.

Commercial Window Replacement

Now that we have gone over the endless benefits of commercial windows, let’s talk about commercial window replacement. Commercial window replacement is a significant project that requires careful planning, proper execution, and compliance with building codes and regulations. Here are the steps to guide you through the process:

1. Assessment and Planning – If you have plans to improve your windows, first examine the existing windows in the space. Assess the condition of the current windows to determine if they are damaged, inefficient, or outdated. Consider the reasons for replacement, such as improving energy efficiency, enhancing aesthetics, or complying with building codes.
2. Project goals – Nothing is worse than going into a project without a clear direction. Ask yourself, “Why are we replacing these windows?” and “What are we trying to achieve?” With these questions in mind, you will have a clear vision and direction for the commercial window replacement project.
3. Budget – After the goals have been set, ensure a clear budget is in place. This will also help guide your choices.
4. Window Type – Choose the type of windows that best suit the needs of the project. Your project goals and budget will drive the type of windows you are looking at. Consider factors such as energy efficiency, durability, aesthetics, and maintenance requirements.
5. Choosing a Company – Do your research! Choose a reputable window supplier or manufacturer. Consider factors like product quality, warranty, and installation services. If there is a commercial window replacement project, check out Northern Utah Glass. We are here to help you with every step of the way.
6. Professional Installation – Hire a licensed and experienced contractor for the installation. Ensure they have expertise in commercial window replacement projects. Here at Northern Utah Glass, we have the experts to help install your glass without any worry.
7. Proper Installation – Here at Northern Utah Glass, we ensure that windows are installed following manufacturer guidelines, including proper flashing, insulation, and sealing to prevent leaks and drafts.
8. Safety Measures – Any reputable glass replacement company will ensure all safety measures are followed before, during, and after installation.
9. Communication – Clear communication with everyone in the building is vital to a smooth project. Let people know about the project and the schedule to occupants in advance.
10. Final Inspection – Congratulations! Now that the project is complete, it’s time for one final inspection. It’s also time to obtain any required certifications or inspections from local authorities. Make sure that everything is up to code.

Do You Need Assistance With Your Commercial Glass Windows? Northern Utah Glass Is Here To Serve You

Northern Utah Glass is here to help if you need new commercial windows, glass repairs, or anything in between.

Northern Utah Glass is your trusted supplier of high-quality glass solutions in Northern Utah. Our trust, hard effort, and honesty values motivate us to assure safety, customer happiness, energy efficiency, and affordability.

We specialize in high-quality residential and commercial window and glass installation and repair in Davis, Weber, and Salt Lake Counties. Contact our trusted team online or at 801-820-9705 today for a free quote, to schedule an in-home estimate, or to learn more.

To understand how you make commercial glass, it’s important to know just what glass is made of—liquid sand. By heating ordinary sand, made of mostly silicon dioxide, you can make glass; however, it’s not that simple.

Continue reading in today’s blog to learn how commercial glass is made and how Northern Utah Glass has the best glass products available.

What is Glass?

To turn sand into a liquid, it has to melt at incredibly high temperatures of 3090℉. When molten sand cools, it transforms into a completely different inner structure. It doesn’t matter how much you cool the sand, though, it never gets to a complete solid rather just a frozen liquid or an amorphous solid, as materials scientists call it. It’s a cross between a solid and a liquid involving some of the crystalline order of a solid and the random molecular structure of a liquid.

Origin of Glass

The ancient process of glass blowing and mold blowing was said to be invented by Syrians in the 1st century B.C. and has since evolved to the beautiful process of today. It wasn’t until the second half of the 19th century when glass changed from hand gathering, blowing, and finishing the neck to an automated process. After 1850, the raw materials were automatically mixed and fed into a furnace. Around 1904, manufacturers began using glass in light bulbs.

How Commercial Glass is Made

In a commercial glass plant, you mix sand with waste glass from recycling collections, soda ash (sodium carbonate), and limestone (calcium carbonate) and furnace-heated. The soda decreases the sand’s melting point, helping to save energy during the manufacturing process. The end-product results in soda-lime-silica glass—the ordinary glass we see everywhere.

When the sand melts, it’s either poured into molds to make bottles, glasses, and other containers, or in commercial glass, “floated” (poured on top of a large vat of molten tin metal.) This produces perfectly flat sheets of window glass you can use in many applications.

The method for making flat glass was first designed by Sir Alistair Pilkington in 1952 and is now the standard way of making it, with a six-step process. This process includes:

1. Melting and Refining: A furnace melts the glass at the required temperature and refines and homogenizes it to ensure the glass comes out at 2012℉ without any bubbles or insertions.
2. Float Batch: The glass is then pushed out of a spout and onto a layer of liquid molten tin. The high viscosity of the molten glass doesn’t mix with the liquid molten tin, so it sits on top and “floats.” With a little gravity, it creates a perfectly leveled contact surface. The control at which the speed of glass is spread over the line of molten tin determines its thickness.
3. Coating: According to customer specifications, coatings are added to the glass. It uses advanced high temperature wielding robots at the cooling ribbon of glass involving the area in the line.
4. Annealing: A long furnace cools the glass at varying temperatures, which keeps the glass perfectly suited to customer specs. It includes a sensor that detects the stress levels of the glass, which controls the temperature of the furnace.
5. Inspection: A sensitive automated method inspects the process to prevent any grain of sand or bubbles that could produce lower quality output.
6. Cutting to Order: Now, it’s time to cut the glass with a computer program and sell it to the client. Any waste material is fed right back into the furnace as cullet. (recycled broken or waste glass).

Types of Glass Processes

Glassmakers use different types of processes to create various kinds of commercial glass. They typically add other chemicals to change the appearance or properties of the finished glass, such as with the addition of iron and chromium added to molten sand to create green-tinted glass.

Stained glass is made up of metallic compounds added to the glass while it’s molten, and different metals create the separate segments of glass that give it different colors. Adding lead oxide produces a fine crystal glass that can be cut easier. Highly prized cut lead crystal shine with color as if refracts (bends) the light passing through it.

Different Uses for Glass

Glass has many uses and provides numerous options with which to choose. Whether you’re looking for windows for restaurants, schools, churches, storefronts, or apartments, there are a variety of sizes and styles. You can also use commercial glass for mirrors, screens, shower doors, sliding doors, windows, French doors, entry doors, tabletops, etc. with plenty of styles, colors, and materials to match your decor. There are many hidden places where glass is located, such as bulb thermometers, cement fillings in teeth, fiberglass hulls of boats, and more. Because of the attractive and inexpensive aspects of glass, decorating with it is commonplace in many buildings.

Contact Northern Utah Glass

If you need commercial windows or glass doors, give us a call. You can expect a professional and beautiful look from our expert technicians, regardless of the type of business or size of your property. We’re more than happy to provide a FREE quote and schedule a free in-home estimate. Contact us today!

Commercial Windows: Everything You Need To Know