Glass, solar industries to converge at glasstec and solarpeq 2012

Photo by Messe Düsseldorf/Tillmann

Building on the success of 2010, glasstec: International Trade Fair for Glass Production-Processing-Products and solarpeq: International Trade Fair for Solar Production Equipment will once again co-locate, Oct. 23-26, at the Düsseldorf fairgrounds in Germany.

Organized by Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, glasstec will host 1,150 exhibitors featuring glass manufacturing, processing and finishing equipment; architectural glass; and process control technology, among other products and services. (Click here for a preview of the glasstec show floor.) The 100 solarpeq exhibitors will display silicon, ingot, wafer and cell production equipment for crystalline and thin-film photovoltaics; module production equipment; solar glass; and related products.

Messe Düsseldorf North America will organize a North American Pavilion at glasstec, co-sponsored by the National Glass Association. The pavilion provides a cost-effective way for small-to-medium-sized U.S. and Canadian companies to make a greater impact at a large trade show, and begin or increase overseas trade, according to show executives.

Beyond the trade show floors

glasstec 2012 will feature a number of special events and meetings, including the "glass technology live" show and technical symposium, Façades Centre, International Architectural Congress and Engineered Transparency Conference.

The glass technology live show, organized by Professor Stefan Behling and his team at the Institute of Building Construction at Stuttgart University, will occupy more than 26,900 square feet of space on the glasstec show floor. It will focus on building integrated photovoltaics under the heading “integrative glass functions" and will include a “facade and design” component, in which Professor Behling and his team will examine large, hot- and cold-bent glass lites. A “design and interior" segment will focus on trends in interior glass design.  

The four-day corresponding technical symposium will include more than 60 lectures and presentations from research institutes, associations, companies and architects. Like the glass technology live show, the symposium will focus on the future of the glass sector both in technical and aesthetic terms. Symposium topics for 2012 include energy efficiency in the glass melting process, energy and resource-efficient technologies in glass machinery construction, integrative building skins, and innovative manufacturing technologies for solar products and applications.

Focusing on energy efficient and functional building skins, the Façades Centre at glasstec 2012 will offer exhibitor presentations and façade mock-ups. It also will feature the new Centre of Expertise: Glass, Window, Façade. The goal of the new center is to provide institutes and associations the opportunity to share information, according to organizers. EuroWindow, the German Flat Glass Manufacturers’ Association and the Window Engineering Institute all will be represented.

The International Architectural Congress will take place Oct. 24, followed by the Engineered Transparency Conference, Oct. 25-26. Targeting architects, structural engineers, construction engineers and façade planners, the architectural congress will feature presentations from international architecture firms on “spectacular projects,” according to organizers. The Engineered Transparency Congress will focus on the latest developments in structural engineering with glass, the building physics behavior of façades and the use of solar systems in architecture.

Solar meets Glass

solarpeq will host Solar meets Glass, the Third Industry Summit for Markets, Costs and Technology, Oct. 22-23. Held at the Congress Center East at the fairgrounds in Düsseldorf, the conference will target producers of thin-film and crystalline photovoltaics, solar system integrators, and manufacturers of PV assembly systems. It also will be geared toward producers of automation technology, glass manufacturers, system suppliers for glass applications and glass mounting systems, as well as suppliers to the glass and solar sectors.

The first day of the conference will deal with manufacturing technology, efficiency, and the materials and costs associated with PV glass. The second day will cover BIPV trends, new markets and technologies, as well as the recycling of PV modules.

More information

Entrance passes for glasstec and solarpeq can be ordered online at www.glasstec-online.com. Only one entrance pass is necessary to visit both shows. This year, visitors can order eTickets online, print them at home, and convert them into badges at the turnstiles on site. Entrance passes can be used as free public transportation tickets on all buses, streetcars, underground trams, urban railways and German rail service within the Rhine-Ruhr regional network of Düsseldorf on all days of the trade shows.

In addition to the entrance passes, www.glasstec-online.com offers tools for visitors and exhibitors that include: exhibitor product information, conference schedules and special show updates, industry-specific news, and hotel and travel tips. Exhibitors can also use the glasstec 2012 portal to process their orders online. All these tools are available in German and English.

For further information on visiting or exhibiting at glasstec 2012 or solarpeq 2012, contact Messe Düsseldorf North America, 150 North Michigan Avenue, Suite 2920, Chicago, IL 60601; 312/781-5180; info@mdna.com.