Glass LLC, glass pioneers in the Middle East and wholly owned by Dubai Investments (DI) PJSC, the largest investment company listed on the Dubai Financial Market, hosted international experts, investors and manufacturers from the glass industry at the Glass and Glazing Federation (GGF) MENA Spring Technical Forum 2013.
The day-long meeting was held at the Park Hall Auditorium in DI House at the Dubai Investments Park.
Titled 'Building with Glass - Problems, Solutions and Prevention of Glass Failure', the opening session of the spring forum highlighted the top concerns that affect stakeholders in the sector and focused on the need to reinforce construction glass products for ensuring their longevity.
Ziad Yazbeck, Senior Vice-President, Sales and Marketing, Glass LLC, said, "We believe in the need for constant review of industry practices to ensure the highest efficiency in the region's manufacturing and design processes. The Glass and Glazing Federation offers access to international industry specialists and enables knowledge-sharing amongst peers."
"Glass LLC is committed to delivering the best standards across its subsidiaries and varied product lines. Our continued support towards the GGF and its forums also highlights our dedication to the sector's advancement in the region," he added.
Examining the theme of the conference, Richard Gulliver, Principle at RNG Consultancy, and Technical Chair at GGF MENA, identified the benefits of heat-strengthened glass in glass-based construction.
Andreas Kasper, Head of the Department of Chemistry at the Herzogenath Research and Development Centre, Saint Gobain Glass, shed light on a host of reasons that affect glass facades, which lead to breakage and depreciation of modern glass buildings, while Stuart Wakeham, Sales Director at Tremco Illbruck, underlined the importance of utilizing glazing sealants that have corresponding compatible gaskets, tapes, spacers and blocks to ensure resilience of the structure.
Other speakers at the conference included Florian Doebbel, Corporate Market Field Engineer - Façade and Insulating Glass, Sika Services, Switzerland, who shared his insight on high strength structural sealants that offer new freedom in design, as well as Pascoal Dsilva, Quality Manager at Gulf Glass Industries, and Marketing Chair at GGF MENA, who shared his insights on 'Curved Glass Processing'.
The forum was concluded with a question and answer session moderated by Andy Dean, General Manager at Al Futtaim Exova LLC, and Health and Safety Chair at GGF MENA, during which the panel of speakers for the day tackled queries on Building Glass - Problems and Solutions.
Recognised by governments and organisations internationally, GGF plays a crucial role in setting new standards such as the building regulations, construction product regulations, European Committee for Standardization (CEN) standards, and associated rules that govern the construction of buildings. The federation is also the voice of the industry and helps influence policies.
Glass LLC is one of the founding members of GGF's MENA chapter and periodically facilitates thought-leadership forums for knowledge-sharing and assessment of industry practices in the region. Through its subsidiaries - Emirates Glass, Lumiglass, Saudi American Glass and Emirates Float Glass - Glass LLC provides premium quality glass solutions to the construction, automotive, security and defence industries across domestic and international markets.
