Page 55 - Glass-Technology International no. 4-2019

®
Endless Super Spacer
application from the roll

strains, then more effi- are able to supply coated
AUTOMATION cient production becomes XXL insulating glass units
COMBATS SHORTAGE a must. The manufacturing of the highest quality. Lon-
OF SKILLED WORKERS processes do not have to be don’s Embassy Gardens,
Demographic change in completely turned upside featuring the spectacular
workforce is also having a down. Sometimes exist- Sky Pool, the extension
marked influence upon the ing areas of potential can of the Columbia Business
glass industry. According be opened up by applying School in New York, and
to the 2018 Labour Market relatively simple means, as Google’s “Landscaper”
Report of the Association of AGC Interpane demon- in London, with a rooftop
German Chambers of In- strates at its Plattling site in landscaped park and run-
dustry and Commerce, 86 Lower Bavaria. There they ning track, are just three
per cent of the processing upgraded an existing insu- of the flagship projects that
companies in the glass, ce- lating glass line through the are now pending for which
ramic and stone sectors are addition of an applicator for the company is producing
very frequently in search of the automated application giant panes of glass. Di-
skilled workers due to the of silicone-based spacers in mensions up to a size of
fact that older employees are 2017. This resulted in pro- 3,210 mm x 18,000 mm
retiring. 60 per cent of the ductivity increases of up to are possible.
companies feel the shortage 50 per cent. The production is tailored
of skilled employees consti- to ensure the greatest pos-
tutes a risk for the develop- EASY WORKABILITY sible levels of flexibility. The
ment of their business. None IS A HUGE fully-automated produc-
of these things are new ADVANTAGE tion line, which has been
phenomena but the need AGC Interpane based in upgraded using the Super
®
to solve them is becoming Plattling describes itself as Spacer application robot,
increasingly urgent. The fill- a specialist for logistically produces the entire range
ing of new positions has also complex cut-size and insu- of double and triple-glaz-
been a permanent issue in lating glass orders. At first ing units. The dimensions
the region of Lower Bavar- glance it sounds very basic, are varying from 200 mm
ia, which is a hotspot of the but in reality, it involves x 300 mm extending to the
European glass industry, for the constant showcasing of so-called “Giga Lites”, i.e.
a number of years. If orders major global projects. The oversized glazing, measur-
can no longer be completed, company in Plattling ranks ing 3,210 mm x 9,000 mm.
and the existing workforce among the illustrious circle However, Interpane can
is subject to ever greater of flat glass processors that coat glazing units that are
even greater in size, up to
a length of 18 meters. Float
glass, laminated glass,
EDGETECH SUPER SPACER laminated safety glass or
®
toughened glass are pro-
cessed up to a maximum
®
The benefits of Super Spacer warm edge:
thickness of the insulat-
ing glass unit of 115 mm.
• economical, automated production of double to quadruple insulating glass units
• appropriate for maxi formats and free forms
®
Super Spacer T-Spacer™
• exact edge seal thanks to precise, parallel application
Premium Plus with widths
• up to 70 per cent reduced condensation
of between 10 mm and 20
• flexible foam matrix with desiccant plus vapour barrier
mm is used as the spacer.
• 3-step processing - automated or manual
The silicone-based spacers
• 100 per cent resilience after compression
are set in parallel down to
Glass-Technology International 4/2019 53