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Glass Connections, the premier event of the Canadian Glass Association (CGA), is coming to Toronto in May 2011.

Glass Connections, the premier event of the Canadian Glass Association (CGA), is coming to Toronto in May 2011. Although this will be the first event to take place in Ontario, Glass Connections already has an excellent track record. The content of the first event, which took place in Vancouver in September 2010, was so informative that, in the words of one attendee, “It challenged many seasoned glass professionals in attendance to question what they thought they knew about architectural glass.”

Just as the Vancouver event did, the Toronto Glass Connections will feature a tabletop trade show. Shown here are Ed Lemire, Mike Taylor and Chris Combs of Cascade Aqua Tech, one of the exhibiting companies at the Vancouver event.

The goal was to make Glass Connections a cost-effective and highly focused one-day conference that combines several elements traditionally found on longer programs, and to present a valuable educational forum designed to maximize your investment in time.
As Zana Gordon, executive director of the CGA, notes, Glass Connections is more than just an industry event.

“Glass Connections . . . represents a promise that we made at the beginning of the year to reach out to glass professionals across the country, solidify our status as a national association for glaziers, and provide tangible resources to help the industry,” said Gordon.

Glass Connections 2011 will take place May 3 at the Delta Chelsea Hotel in Toronto, Ont. Advance registration is required. Registration forms can be downloaded at www.canadianglass-association.com

In this special preview of Glass Connections 2011, we’ll be digging deeper into what attendees can expect from the presentations and other education opportunities.
 
Presenters and topics

• Raise Your Window Performance to Meet Tomorrow’s New Levels. Presented by: Christopher Barry, Director Technical Services, Pilkington NA
• Minimum performance levels in building codes; ER, NFRC, ASHRAE and LEED rating levels; and consumer performance preferences are all being raised to new levels.  

This presentation will demonstrate how adding a low-emissivity coat, or coatings, always helps window thermal performance, making it more energy efficient. 

Also covered will be how centre of glass thermal performance can now be so much better than the edge that attention must be paid to edge-of-glass spacers and window frame thermal properties to achieve desired improvements to the complete window.

Solar control requires evaluation to see if free, passive solar heat gain should be admitted or rejected. As the thermal and solar control properties of a window are improved, it becomes more important to check that the resulting thermal stresses are properly evaluated, using currently available tools, and that appropriate measures are taken to prevent glass breakage.

Harvesting Sunlight – Using Photovoltaics and Advanced Thermal Glazing Units to Meet New Federal, Provincial and Municipal GREEN Sustainable Design Initiatives. Presented by: John Carpenter, president, Clearstream International Products and Schott Okalux Architectural Glass

This presentation qualifies for AIA credits.

Topics include:

• BIPV Glass Units – Building integrated photovoltaics and taking advantage of provincial net metering opportunities
• Advanced thermal glazing units – Cooling, heating and illumination controls for occupant comfort and reduced energy loads
• Sophisticated light directed glazing units – Glass units built according to the building’s latitude and longitude co-ordinates
• Forward-thinking digitized glazing – Precise image transfer over large glass surfaces, without silkscreening
• New developments – Switchable glass: Opaque to clear/clear to opaque for privacy controls, invisible ultraviolet pattern glass to reduce or eliminate bird collisions.

Silicone sealants in construction.
Presented by: Scott Waechter, Dow Corning

This course qualifies for AIA credits. Learn about the differences in sealant technologies available in the market and why the trend over the past decade is toward the use of more use of silicone sealants. Waechter will also speak about proper building joint design details as well as the proper procedures for installing building joint sealants.

Additional topics to be covered include sealants and LEEDs, sealant staining, sealant compatibility, low dirt pick-up sealants.
 
Glacier discovery walk.
Presented by: Brock Shroeder, Read Jones Christoffersen

This presentation will inform attendees on the design and detailing of an exterior structural glass floor and balustrade for a tourist attraction in a northern climate.

Canada’s two defining influences over the next decade – Commodities and construction.

Presented by: Alex Carrick, Chief Economist, Reed Construction Data

Commodities play a huge role in the construction industry. First, as the base material for all building products, they determine costs. Second, the demand for and price of commodities drive resource project investment plans. This is where emerging economies come in. It’s hard to believe, but total Canadian employment in construction is gradually catching up with employment in manufacturing. This has implications for Ontario’s industrial structure.

It also helps to explains why growth prospects in Western Canada and portions of  Eastern Canada are considered better than for central Canada.

For more information on Glass Connections 2011, please visit www.canadianglassassociation.com