fluoropolymer powder coating in Gray
Mica and Sungate
and STARPHIRE
glasses laminated or
fabricated into dual
insulating glass units
(IGUs).
Combined with
Starphire glass in a
standard 1-inch IGU,
Sungate glass has visible light transmittance (VLT) of 80
percent, along with
a solar-heat-gain coefficient (SHGC) of
0.68 and a winter
nighttime U-value of
0.28. Sungate glass is
engineered to maximize the environmental performance of
buildings in northern
climates by harvesting solar heat in the winter to diminish furnace loads and by emitting high levels of daylight year-round to
reduce lighting costs.
PPG noted that Starphire glass is made with a proprietary
low-iron formulation that was introduced 25 years ago yet still
produces the industry’s clearest, most transparent float glass.
With their solvent-free, ultra-low-VOC (volatile organic
compound) formulations, Coraflon fluoropolymer powder
coatings promote sustainable design while providing hard, durable UV (ultraviolet)-resistant surfaces that retain color and
gloss for decades. Four PPG Paints products were used to finish indoor and outdoor surfaces, including SPEEDHIDE latex, Speedhide Zero zero-VOC* latex and PITT-GLAZE WB1
acrylic-epoxy interior paints, as well as PITT-TECH satin
industrial enamel direct-to-metal exterior paint. (*Colorants
added to this base paint may increase VOC level significantly
depending on color choice.)
The two-layer façade for The Tower at PNC Plaza is
equipped with a motorized outer layer and a manually operable
inner layer of louvers that draw fresh air across building floors,
where it warms, rises through two shafts in the building’s core
and exhausts through the roof. Narrow floor plates and highly
transparent Starphire and Sungate glasses enable light to penetrate 92 percent of work spaces throughout the building.
J.E. Berkowitz, Pedricktown, New Jersey, a member of
the PPG CFP CERTIFIED FABRICATOR PROGRAM group,
fabricated and delivered nearly 1 million total square feet of
glass for the project. The glazing contractor was Permasteelisa
North America Corp., Windsor, Connecticut. Coraflon powder coatings were applied by Sapa Extrusions America,
a member of the PPG CAP CERTIFIED APPLICATOR
PROGRAM (PPG/CAP) group. CW
