French glass and construction material manufacturer Saint-Gobain has announced an $80 million investment in SAGE Electrochromics to make energy saving glass.  The partnership will focus on making electronically tintable ‘dynamic glass’ affordable for the mass market.

Electrochromic glass can turn from clear to tinted at the flick of a switch to control the amount of light and heat entering a building through the windows. It can significantly reduce the need for air conditioning and heating, while maintaining the use of daylight.

Under the terms of the deal, Saint-Gobain will share its electrochromic glass technology and the two companies will combine their manufacturing and R&D efforts.

SAGE will manufacture the dynamic glass for both companies at its site in Faribault, Minnesota, where it is building a new $135 million electrochromic glass manufacturing facility.

The facility will enable the production of larger sheets of dynamic glass at high volumes, making it suitable and affordable for most buildings.

Earlier this year, the US Department of Energy granted SAGE a $72 million loan to start work on the new manufacturing facility.

“This partnership marks the beginning of a new revolution in the glass industry,” says Jean-Pierre Floris, senior vice-president of innovative materials at Saint-Gobain.

“Until now, electrochromic glass has largely been an emerging product, not widely deployed due to cost and manufacturing logistics. This alliance will trigger economies of scale, making possible a new era of high-performance windows that are both eco-friendly and economically compelling,” adds SAGE founder and CEO John Van Dine.

Van Dine claims that the companies will be able to produce new higher performance and quality electrochromic glass at half the cost of existing products.

energyefficiencynews.com