Glass

With the opening of a new office in Dubai, Kuraray is strengthening its presence in the Middle East and underlining its long-term commitment to innovation, customer proximity and sustainable solutions for the glass and façade industry. The new location will serve as a central hub for one of the world’s most dynamic construction and architectural markets.

The Sanya International Duty Free Shopping Complex on the Chinese island of Hainan serves as a proving ground for high-performance façades in tropical climate zones. Using façade glazing from NorthGlass in combination with the Ködispace 4SG warm edge system by H.B. Fuller | Kömmerling, the building combines long-term corrosion protection, high energy efficiency and architectural freedom – even under typhoon conditions.

With the installation of the world’s first insulating glass line designed for 8 × 3.3 m glass panes, Lisec equips Chongzheng Shengda Glass with a state-of-the-art system. The highly automated insulating glass line is designed for the production of insulating glass units with thermoplastic spacer (TPA) technology.

Effective 1 January 2026, Nicole Wilming will succeed Reto Cometta as Chief Executive Officer of Vetrotech Saint-Gobain. Cometta is retiring after a distinguished career. Wilming brings more than 25 years’ experience within Saint-Gobain, where she has served in various roles in Germany and France.

The Z2 office building on the campus of Ed. Züblin AG in Stuttgart has undergone a comprehensive, energy-efficient renovation. Over a construction period of 18 months, approximately 450 workspaces were created in an architecturally attractive environment. The building will be awarded the DGNB certificate in Platinum.

The Fenzi Group has been awarded the EcoVadis Silver Medal, an internationally recognized rating that acknowledges the company’s commitment to sustainability. The assessment highlights Fenzi’s performance in environmental responsibility, social practices, ethics, and sustainable procurement.

Merritt Gaunt has been appointed the new President and CEO of Guardian Industries, part of the Koch Group. In this role, he assumes leadership of Guardian Glass, one of the world’s largest glass manufacturers. He succeeds Ron Vaupel, who has held the position since 2014.

Stefan Frye has now taken on the dual leadership role within the German and European profile industry. As Managing Director of EPPA Deutschland e.V. and the RAL Gütegemeinschaft Kunststoff-Fensterprofilsysteme e.V. (GKFP), he brings extensive experience to strengthening cooperation, sustainability and strategic development across the sector.

Glass manufacturer AGC is withdrawing from the business of chemically strengthened specialty glass, thereby ending production of the Dragontrail series previously offered. The company has been manufacturing this glass since 2009, primarily marketing it as cover glass.

A glass atelier dating from the 1930s in Paris’s 11th arrondissement has undergone an energy and acoustic refurbishment without altering its existing structure. This was made possible through the use of vacuum insulating glass, which achieves the building-physics performance of modern glazing despite its minimal glass thickness. The details below.

Glass for Europe has launched a new website on the revised Construction Products Regulation, which provides a comprehensive overview of how the glass industry is affected. The site is now live. Click here for the link.

A+W Software recently announced the official release of A+W Order Entry AI – their first solution bringing artificial intelligence to their software. This is a step forward for glass industry professionals, offering enhanced efficiency and greater user autonomy. Here are the details.

Pilkington UK has launched Texture by Pilkington - a refreshed and reorganised range of patterned glass. Designed to meet the rising demand for privacy, light and decorative design, Textures is produced in the UK. See here for more details.

For more than 50 years, Glas Natter – a family-run company with a long tradition based in Regensburg, Germany – has maintained a close partnership with Lisec. Its recent investment in the innovative Lisec SRP-A system once again underscores their shared commitment to digitalisation and greater efficiency.

The next generation of Insio vacuum glass from Saint-Gobain is the world's first tempered vacuum insulating glass to receive CE marking. Here are the details.

NovaSklo, part of the investment company EFI Group, today signed an Engagement Letter Agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, to support the establishment of Ukraine’s first modern float glass production facility, helping address the country’s rapidly growing demand for glass products to support its reconstruction.

A former department store in Berlin Neukölln has been extensively revitalised and transformed into the creative cosmos ‘Kalle Neukölln’. In the newly designed facades, energy-efficient Saint-Gobain solar control glass ensures optimised daylight entry.

Saint-Gobain is implementing a planned change in leadership: Raimund Heinl, CEO of the German and Austrian organisation since January 2019, will hand over the reins to Christian Bako, most recently Vice President Marketing & Development of the Saint-Gobain Group, on 1 December 2025.

On 13 November 2025, the Supervisory Board of Pilkington Germany, part of the NSG Group, appointed Tobias Breil to the Executive Board. At the same time, Dr Christian Quenett, Head of Architectural Glass Europe at the NSG Group and member of the Executive Board of Pilkington Germany AG, was appointed Spokesman of the Executive Board.

The Grand Egyptian Museum near Cairo has officially opened close to the Great Pyramids. Housing and preserving approximately 100,000 artifacts of Egypt’s ancient treasures, it is recognised as the largest archaeological museum in the world. AGC Glass Europe has provided most of the glass for the project.