PPG Glass featured on RBC Centre, largest LEED-certified building in Canada

PITTSBURGH, USA: PPG Industries announced that SOLARBAN 70XL glass is part of an advanced, energy-efficient curtain wall system that recently helped RBC Centre in Toronto become the largest building in Canada to earn LEED(R) certification for new construction.

The 43-story tower, which earned LEED certification at the Gold level, features more than 420,000 square feet of custom curtain wall fabricated from Solarban 70XL glass on the upper floors and laminated security glass on the lower floors. Floor-to-ceiling windows maximize daylighting, while the building’s north-south orientation and a sophisticated system of sensor-controlled sun shades and automated blinds limit heat gain and promote energy performance.

Introduced in 2005 at the GreenBuild International Conference and Expo, Solarban 70XL glass is engineered with a proprietary triple-silver coating that delivers an optimum balance of transparency and solar control. With visible light transmittance (VLT) of 64 percent and a solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) of 0.27, Solarban 70XL glass has a light-to-solar gain ratio (LSG) of 2.37 that remains unmatched by competing products even six years after its introduction.

The RBC Centre, designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, incorporates a comprehensive array of environmentally advanced systems to reduce energy use and promote water conservation. As a result, the building is projected to realize savings of 40 percent on energy costs and 47 percent on indoor water compared to similar structures of its size and type.