Cekal clarifies the benefits of certified glass
On the occasion of the Building World Fair, the Cekal glazing certification body organized its biennial conference on the theme "Glass and urban planning: safety, quality of life and certified glazing". To address these themes, five experts were invited. The objective: to highlight the strengths and performance of tempered and laminated glazing, promote their use and promote Cekal branding.
A good glazing is not only synonymous with transparency, thermal and acoustic insulation or summer comfort. It is also a guarantee of a better quality of life. It is to recall the advantages of the glazing that he certifies that Cekal organized, on Batimat, his biennial conference. The chosen theme? "Glass and town planning: safety, quality of life and certified glazing".
During a round table, five experts took turns to bring their lighting and their cross testimonials on the topics of urban quality, regulation and certification. It was also to present exemplary achievements and to return to the use of Cekal certified glazings.
Glass, a guarantee of security
Sylvie Laroche, researcher at the Center for Research on Sound Space and Urban Environment (Cresson) reminded the importance of approaching the inhabited space "in terms of nuisance, function, comfort, landscape and atmosphere by combined logic of aesthetics, use and sensation ".
"The glass, through its play of transparency and light, its thermal performance, acoustic and safety naturally generates a feeling of comfort and well-being in inhabited spaces. The material also allows to fully enjoy the building, the space and the environment, "she said.
Marc Warnery, managing director and associate architect of Reichen and Robert & Associés, referred to urban redevelopment operations aimed at reintroducing urban "warmth, nature and humanity". Taking the example of the achievements of his agency, he said: "The coexistence of several functions within the same space, the search for spatial fluidity, the relation to the context, the logics of construction, the ethics of the architecture, are the recurring themes of their work which gives pride of place to the glass material ".
The notions of "light" and "transparency" then punctuated the speech of Fabienne Couvert, architect and director of architecture and urban planning (Arep group). "Light and glass material have always been a combination in the imagination of train stations. This is why the recent creations give pride of place to the material, capable of offering, through plays of light and transparency, a feeling of comfort, aesthetics and security conducive to the fluidity of the movements and to register in the environment and heritage ".
A changing material
Pierre Martin, national specialist "Light facades - Glassworks - Exterior joinery, APAVE" has brought his expertise in the regulations that defines the types of glazing used by type of work, its location and types of risks. He recalled that DTU 39 "Glazing and mirrors" is the main text to which "it should be referred". The text benefited in 2017 from a simplification and an adapted taking into account of the seismic risks. "The control of technical risks has, among other things, the objective of ensuring the safety of users by safety glazing, in the event of an earthquake, when using the structures, with regard to the risk of falling into the earth. empty, of falling dangerous elements, of injury in case of collisions or in case of fire, "he said.
The conference of course relied on the participation of a Cekal representative. Referring first to the security aspects, Jérôme Carrié, Secretary General of the certifying body, recalled that for the safety of people, "there are 2 classes 2B2 (clashes) and 1B1 (clashes and falls)". For the safety of goods, "we distinguish classes P1A to P5A (vandalism resistance), and classes P6B and P7B (burglar resistance). "
He also returned to the performance of glazing. Tempered glazing provides "increased resistance to mechanical and thermal stress and less risk of injury by fine fragmentation of the material into a multitude of small pieces, ensuring a lower risk of injury in case of breakage".
The laminated glass, consisting of two or more glasses assembled together with one or more spacers, can break, he said, but most of the time splinters remain glued to the interlayer, this which provides "protection of persons and property".
Concerning the Cekal marking, it concerns the quality of glazing: assembly, durability, performance. It is awarded on the basis of audits and tests for a period of 6 months.
"For tempered glazing, compliance criteria relate to the quality of thermal quenching: fragmentation and surface stresses. For laminated glazing, the conformity criteria relate to the state of the peripheral zone after accelerated aging ", finally reminded the certifying body.
