What the use of lasers has to offer the glass industry?

2026-02-12 09:06:42

Laser is widely used in the manufacturing, measurement, and other aspects of the glass industry. Different enterprises have achieved process upgrades and efficiency improvements through laser technology, and its technological applications and development continue to iterate with industry demand.

Machine manufacturer Hegla has 25 years of experience in laser applications. Its laminated glass shape cutting machine is equipped with laser diode heating bulbs, replacing traditional radiation heating elements, to achieve automatic interlayer separation, drilling and other operations of laminated glass, increasing equipment throughput by 20%; At the same time, laser ablation technology is used to remove the low emissivity layer with an ultra-thin line thickness of 50 microns, and fine patterns are made on the glass exterior wall coating of commercial buildings. This not only ensures the penetration of RF signals, but also hardly affects the glass insulation value, and the texture is difficult to detect.

Redline Templates applies laser template technology to construction sites, capturing precise data of glass installation space through laser, converting it into a 3D model, and generating DXF cutting files and PDF size verification files, replacing low precision and high cost physical templates. It is specifically designed for 2D and 3D measurement services of glass products such as shower doors and customized architectural glass, meeting the high-precision manufacturing needs of complex custom shaped glass.

Although GED Integrated Solutions does not directly use lasers, its equipment software can import various shape files to adapt to laser cutting. As a distributor of Sparklike in North America, it has launched a non-invasive laser measurement device based on tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS), which can penetrate low radiation coatings and accurately measure the gas concentration and Glass thickness of hollow glass units, achieving non-destructive testing.

The application of lasers in the glass industry has expanded from early branding and certification marks to barcode and bird friendly pattern production. The process has also been upgraded from laser etching to laser printing, which permanently fuses ceramics on the glass surface through ceramic strips, resulting in more permanent and high-resolution markings that are more suitable for the traceability needs of factory sorting. At the same time, the software and hardware supporting the laser continue to upgrade, and the equipment is developing towards compactness, high speed, and high precision. From two-dimensional measurement to three-dimensional scanning, data can also be seamlessly integrated into the glass production process, replacing manual transmission and reducing errors and time consumption. The popularization of low radiation coatings has also promoted the research and development of laser equipment such as Sparklike, and the progress of TDLAS technology will be further implemented with the demand for energy-saving buildings.

Industry insiders say that the application and capabilities of glass laser technology are still expanding, and related companies are also developing new functions and products. However, this technology also has the problems of high initial investment and the need for professional operation training. The accuracy of the equipment is also affected by environmental factors such as direct sunlight and vibration. However, the high precision and efficiency brought by laser technology have greatly improved the quality standards of the glass industry, reduced production errors, and provided guarantees for the implementation of complex glass projects. It is still an important innovative technology in the industry.