Glass products can make learning spaces safer, warmer and quieter. Find out how to choose the best.
In the education sector, much is made of how learning environments affect learning outcomes. Whether we're talking about a classroom, a lab, a lecture theatre or a library, students of all ages and levels benefit from warm, comfortable, well-ventilated, aesthetically pleasing environments.
So, how do you achieve this? Well, there are plenty of ways to go about it. But here at ToughGlaze, our speciality is glass – and we know how good-quality glass can have a positive impact on a learning environment.
Toughened glass and
fire-rated glass are two products which are commonly used in the education sector. As well as keeping staff and students safe, they also help keep the warm in and the noise out, increasing focus in the process.
They're good for your institution's budget, too. At a time when sustainability is a priority and energy bills are running high, thermally efficient glass is a must.
Unconvinced? Let's take a closer look at how the best in glass can help produce the best in class.
Keeping the warm in and the noise out
In the education sector, focus is all-important. Without it, students are unlikely to absorb knowledge, deepen skills and perform well.
It's not impossible to concentrate in a draught. But it is, let's face it, far from ideal. This is one of the key benefits of toughened glass in an educational setting. It reduces draughts and gives you greater thermal control over the room.
Toughened glass is also great for soundproofing. It can help you block out sounds from neighbouring corridors, classrooms, labs and play areas. This helps students concentrate (and stops teachers from losing their voices!) It also helps classrooms meet the government's
guidelines on acoustics in schools.
Two types of efficiency
The educational sector is like any other. It can find itself stuck between a rock and a hard place: on the one hand, the need to effectively heat the school to ensure comfort for students and staff, and the realities of high energy bills on the other.
Safety glass products like toughened glass and fire-rated glass help solve both problems in one fell swoop. They're built for thermal efficiency, meaning you're far less likely to reach for the thermostat. This has the advantage of reducing your carbon emissions as well as your utility bills.
Security
Schools, universities and other learning environments aren't just places of learning. They're also places of safety for students.
This means using a type of safety glass like toughened glass is the bare minimum. Often, educational institutions use
fire-rated glass. In many cases, these are stipulated by building regulations.
Fire-rated glass is built to stop the spread of fire and flames. It stays structurally intact for longer than other types of glass, giving people more time to evacuate and the emergency services more time to arrive.
Safety glass isn't just about protecting people and places from fire. It's also to stop break-ins. Products like
bandit-resistant glass can be vital for educational institutions to protect people, physical assets and even student data.
Moveable glass partitions
In many cases, learning environments such as labs, drama studios, seminar rooms and classrooms need to be flexible. Across the course of a week, they could well accommodate different numbers of students and different pieces of equipment.
Moveable glass partitions help you achieve this flexibility. They create a modular learning environment that can be arranged and rearranged with ease.
This means you get to enjoy the spaciousness of an open-plan learning environment
and the flexibility of partitioned learning zones.
What is toughened glass?
Toughened glass (also known as tempered glass) is a kind of safety glass. It has two key advantages over standard annealed glass. First, it's much harder to break, and secondly, it breaks more safely.
This is all thanks to the manufacturing process. Toughened glass is heated in a furnace at temperatures of 650 degrees Celsius or more. Once out of the oven, it's rapidly cooled or "quenched".
This excites the molecules in such a way that it breaks into lots of tiny harmless pieces rather than nasty jagged shards.
Toughened glass is a vital material in all manner of sectors. But it's easy to see why it's such a popular choice in the educational sector when student safety is a top priority.
What is fire-rated glass?
Fire-rated glass is a glass product designed to slow down the spread of fire. It can withstand temperatures of more than 870°C (1,598°F). To put that into perspective, standard glass usually breaks at 120°C (248°F) – and even toughened glass breaks at around 260°C (500°F).
Fire-rated glass contains an interlayer that's intumescent. This means it swells and turns opaque when it reaches a certain temperature. In the event of a fire, the interlayer is activated and a barrier is created against the smoke and flames.
Smart glass for the educational sector
A relatively recent addition to the glass market, smart glass or
switchable glass has an incredible property: you can change it from transparent to opaque at the touch of a button.
This means you can have partitions in offices, classrooms, labs and other educational environments providing privacy on demand.
It also means a glass partition can become a whiteboard or projection screen in seconds. Simply switch on the glass and it can now be used for presentations, internal communications and more.
Smart glass can add sophistication and flexibility to any learning environment. Why not join the ranks of homeowners and business owners who have jumped on the bandwagon?
Conclusion
The educational sector is all about focus, safety and learning. Good-quality toughened and fire-rated glass can help you achieve these goals. We hope this article has helped you figure out your specific glazing requirements.
Are you looking for high-quality glass for an educational setting? As a trusted UK
glass supplier, we can help.
Get in touch with ToughGlaze today for a quick, competitive quote.
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