Last Thursday, the 21st of February, 20 students were welcomed by Peter Verheij and Frank Vanhove of FOAMGLAS® (Pittsburg Corning Nederland BV) at their production centre in Tessenderlo, Belgium. The student association BouT arranged this excursion to offer its members a detailed insight in the FOAMGLAS® insulation product line, as well as the entire production and recycling process.
Program:
- Seminar on the trends, developments, properties, applications and positioning of FOAMGLAS® insulation
- Guided tour of the production process
- Demonstration of placement and positioning
- Visit to the trainings centre and showroom
- Lunch
After a short reception, students took part in a seminar on the general statistics and material qualities of FOAMGLAS®. During this seminar students learned of the amazing properties of the material and got their first introduction into the production process. During these seminars students got the chance to start an interesting discussion with mr. Verheij on the true qualities of the material and its application in modern architecture.
The seminar and discussion were followed by a tour of the production centre, in which the students were able to witness every step of the production first-hand. The scale of the factory and the continuously moving machinery proved truly astonishing. The intense heat of the oven to melt the glass granule, the molten glass flowing down at 1200 ⁰C, the large ovens, the rising material inside of the ovens and the swift processing and modification; all illustrated an interesting and essential part of complete production process.
After seeing how FOAMGLAS® was produced, the students could see its practical application in the demonstration centre. A demonstration was give of the material’s different application on vertical and horizontal surfaces. The different panels were placed swiftly and precisely to create a consistent thermal barrier. The extensive showroom showed the different architectural systems the material can be used in.
After an amazing lunch, provided by FOAMGLAS®, students received additional information on the company and material samples. This lunch-meeting was also a great opportunity for the new board of BouT to publically step forward. This well-arranged excursion, made possible by FOAMGLAS®, is just the start of things to come!