Laminated Glass Prominent at 2009 North American International Auto Show

More low cost, high volume vehicles offering technology

DETROIT, January 27, 2009: Numerous vehicles that were on display at the 2009 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) tout laminated glass as standard or optional equipment in applications beyond the windshield, reports the Enhanced Protective Glass Automotive Association (EPGAA). Those window positions include driver and passenger side windows, rear windows and roof glass.

New adoptions of laminated glass demonstrate the value that automakers continue to place on the benefits of the product. Since the year 2000, when the technology began to appear on luxury vehicles at NAIAS, laminated glass has been adopted by many additional vehicles including those designed to exhibit quality, yet be affordable to a wide variety of consumers. Notably, over the past three consecutive years at NAIAS, the vehicle named North American Car of the Year has included laminated door glass as standard equipment.

"We are pleased to see so many new vehicles at the North American International Auto Show with laminated glass," said Pete Dishart, Director, New Product Development and Emerging Technologies for Pittsburgh Glass Works and EPGAA President. "Under the difficult economic conditions the industry now faces, vehicle content decisions are receiving intense scrutiny. It is gratifying to see that laminated glass provides a compelling value proposition to the automotive manufactures and their customers."

Laminated glass, automotive safety glass designed for greater comfort and security, is a high-impact resistant glass technology consisting of two or more panes of glass bonded together by a plastic interlayer or film that automakers and car buyers have trusted for use in windshields for more than 70 years. Laminated glass offers a variety of benefits, including acoustic improvement, weight savings of 12 percent over conventional tempered glass vehicle windows, enhanced security, and safety and solar protection. This application also meets all regulatory and industry standards for performance of glazing materials.