Birds colliding with glass on buildings are a global concern. Several hundred million birds are killed as a result of collisions with glass in buildings. Collisions occur both in longer term habitats and during migration by flying into glass windows, link bridges, and curtain walls that reflect the open sky and vegetation. As transparency in façades is still very much valued in connection with human wellbeing, reduced lighting requirements and as an aesthetic element, several technical developments have taken place to incorporate bird-deterrent elements into glazing solutions. In some cases, these bird-deterrent elements are interfering with solar or low-e glass coatings needed to ensure the performance of the glazing. In addition, some bird-deterrent solutions may affect design intent or user experience. In this contribution, PVB interlayers for highly effective and low-surface-coverage bird-friendly laminated safety glass will be described. In particular, it will be shown how these can be combined with conventional glass coatings without loss of performance for e.g. solar factor or U-value, while effectiveness as a bird deterrent solution is maintained.
Wim Stevels
Combining bird protection with functional glass coatings in laminated safety glass
Company: Eastman Chemical
About the speaker:
Wim Stevels is responsible for technical support for Saflex and Vanceva interlayers for architectural glazing applications in Europe. The role comprises indirect value chain connect, downstream product support and product approvals in the area. He has a particular interest in the use of interlayers for structural glass applications, and interlayer physical characterization methods and rheology. He is an active member of the CEN committees on Laminated Glass (TC129/WG3) and Design of Glass Structures (TC250/SC11).