Clearview National January 2016 - Issue 170 | Page 60

GLASS&SEALEDUNITS

Glassolutions Expand Fire
Resistant Products Range
»»GLASSOLUTIONS Sector
Director for Exterior Glass, Steve O’Brien,
tells Clearview about the recent expansion
of its UK fire resistant glass manufacturing
operation to add the CONTRAFLAM
STRUCTURE to its range at its specialist
Coventry manufacturing site.
The addition comes as GLASSOLUTIONS
marks its fifth anniversary of fire resistant
glass manufacturing in the UK, and to this
day remains the country’s only producer
of both integrity (E) and insulation and
integrity (EI) glazing. It has manufactured
thousands of square metres of the acclaimed
CONTRAFLAM since 2010, with over
130,000m2 now installed in the UK alone.
Steve explains: “GLASSOLUTIONS’
Coventry plant employs a team of 15
specifically for CONTRAFLAM manufacture,
sales and centralised technical support. This
ensures that we are equipped to produce
and advise on the glass in a variety of
configurations from EI30 to EI120 to satisfy
different levels of fire-ratings. These options
ensure CONTRAFLAM is suitable for a wide
variety of applications, including all kinds of
glass partitions and fire doors.
“As a UK-based manufacturer, we provide
CONTRAFLAM customers and specifiers
with some important advantages versus
imported fire resistant glazing products. These
include providing customer site visits and the
ability to produce bespoke products, and most importantly - shorter lead times.

60 » JAN 2016 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M

“CONTRAFLAM is available in a range
of formats – single or double-glazed and
laminated and has quickly established itself
as the market-leading non-wired fire rated
safety glass product with its appeal to building
designers and owners who want safety without
compromising on aesthetics in their glass
specifications.
“The latest format will be manufactured
at GLASSOLUTIONS in Coventry using
two or more sheets of toughened glass to
enable the creation of fire-rated frameless glass
elements for internal applications. We are also
producing CONTRAFLAM STRUCTURE
LITE, an alternative solution which
offers 30-60 minutes integrity and partial
insulation fire-resistance (EW30-EW60), and
CONTRAFLAM STRUCTURE CORNER

which is a fire resistant corner solution, which
enables more transparency than ever before,
due to the lack of corner profiles, offering
30 minutes of integrity and insulation fireresistance (EI30).
“When exposed to fire the special
intumescent interlayers turn opaque and
expand to form a fully insulating heat shield.
This effectively reduces the transmission of
radiated and conducted heat for up to 120
minutes. The opaque insulating interlayer
blocks the view of the fire which minimises
panic and acts as a guide for emergency
services to indicate the presence of fire.
“All CONTRAFLAM is made to
the highest standards here in the UK,
which ensures we can provide the unique
combination of competitive lead times, easy
and quick access to technical support and a
simple supply chain,” Steve concludes.
CONTRAFLAM is available in tailored
options including solar control and decorative
or screen-printed glass in a system which is
designed to work with steel aluminium and
timber fire screens and doorsets.
It features in a wide range of major
installations across the UK including
the £85m extension to the Edinburgh
International Conference Centre, and in
25 and 33-storey residential tower blocks at
Pioneer Point near Olympic Park, London.
Visit www.glassolutions.co.uk/products/
contraflam