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IGMA: December 2013

The Insulating Glass Manufacturer’s Alliance is a dynamic organization
that is constantly reconfiguring its working groups to meet the present
demands of the industry.

The Insulating Glass Manufacturer’s Alliance is a dynamic organization that is constantly reconfiguring its working groups to meet the present demands of the industry. As such, the present look of the association may be unfamiliar to members who have not checked in lately. Here is a brief review.

The IGMA is run by an elected board of 13 directors, headed by a president who serves a two-year term. The presidency alternates between the U.S. and Canada to reflect the North American nature of the association. Association staff includes an executive director, technical consultant and certification program coordinator.

The board is supported by a Technical Policy Committee made up of the Chairpersons of the Emerging Technology & Innovation, Technical Services and Certification & Education Committees, the Technical Policy chairperson, the IGMA president, the chairperson for the ASTM E 06 and CGSB 12.8 standards committees, and its own chair appointed by the IGMA board. The Technical Policy Committee vets all technical documents produced by the committees before passing them along to the board for final approval and publication under the IGMA name.

The Technical Service Committee is presently supported by six task force working groups:

• Joint IGMA-GANA Capillary Tube Task Group
• Load Resistance of Two-Sided Supported Glass
• Edge Pressure and Component Migration
• Dimensional Tolerances for Multiple Airspace IGUs
• Development of ASTM Thermal Stress Standard for Insulating Glass Units
• Visual Quality Guidelines

The Certification and Education Committee includes seven groups:

• TM-4000, IG Quality Manufacturing Procedures
• Preventing IG Failures Online Education Centre
• TM 4000 02(09) Document Revision
• Glass/Spacer/Sealant Adhesion
• Dessicant/Dessicated Matrix Qualification
• Sealants Qualification
• Spacer and Integrated Spacer System Qualification

The Emerging Technology and Innovation Committee presently oversees 5 task groups:

• Vacuum Insulating Glazing
• Gas Permeability Research Project
• Gas-Filled IGU Field Correlation Study
• Advanced Fenestration Testing
• Life-cycle Assessment for Glass, IGUs, Windows

The work done in these groups is more interesting than it sounds, and has very important ramification for our industry and the standards and regulations we follow. Participants on these committees quickly become some of the most knowledgeable experts in the world in their topic area. We encourage all members to take a close work at the work of these task groups and consider contributing their time and expertise.

Margaret Webb is the executive director of the Insulating Glass Manufacturer’s Alliance.