What Architects Love About Today's SageGlass Offerings
Over the past few years, the landscape of dynamic glass has changed significantly. We heard what the design community liked about our product: automatically tinting and clearing for optimal daylighting; energy savings; and eliminating the need for unsightly blinds and shades. But we also heard about the things that made architects hesitant to recommend the technology: how blue the glass appeared from the inside when tinted, and how dark it could look from the outside. Architects also noted that they’d like to see more large-project examples.
We’re happy to say that recent developments, both in technology and in the market, have helped us address these concerns.
Here's what's new:
1. Less blue, more daylight
We addressed the blue issue by developing SageGlass Harmony®, the only electrochromic glass product that can tint on a gradient, in addition to the whole pane at once. This allows us to tint just a portion of the glass to control glare, while maximizing daylight and preserving color rendition in the space. In fact, we’ve found that gradient tinting alone can control glare about 60% to 70% of the time. It's no coincidence that all of our largest projects in the past three years have included SageGlass Harmony.
2. Enhanced exterior aesthetics
When untinted, SageGlass resembles other low-e glass. When it's tinted to control light and heat, it takes on a somewhat grey, reflective look. We know that isn't suited for every application, so we now offer SageGlass with a popular Saint-Gobain coating: ST Bright Silver. SageGlass Bright Silver offers a more vibrant and reflective coating, which has been popular for many of our largest projects to date.
3. Deployment at scale
Dynamic glass isn’t just a niche technology for boutique projects. We’re now seeing much larger projects—like a new Google campus (200,000 square feet of electrochromic glass); the IQHQ Research and Development District (150,000 square feet); and the Millennium smart office building (50,000 square feet). All of these high-profile projects selected SageGlass Harmony with Bright Silver.
SageGlass is penetrating the market at a much larger scale than a few years ago. Then, many of our clients were early adopters of smart glass. Now, we're working with fast followers: clients who can see the rapidly approaching future of building design and want to join in. The COVID-19 pandemic also led to a new focus on wellness in buildings, as well as touchless and automated technology. At the same time, businesses and institutions around the world are trying to reduce energy consumption and eliminate unnecessary materials (like blinds, shades, louvers, and more) in order to decarbonize as much as possible.
Between the macrotrends that are reshaping the built environment, and market specifics due to technology advancements, dynamic glass is quickly becoming a must-have. With façades representing a 50-year decision for designers and owners, the question is no longer, “Why choose dynamic glass?” It’s, “Why not?”
For more information, please contact us.