{"id":2225,"date":"2018-08-13T09:05:59","date_gmt":"2018-08-13T14:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bringlass.com\/nwglassfab\/?p=2225"},"modified":"2022-12-16T11:30:04","modified_gmt":"2022-12-16T17:30:04","slug":"glass-fabrications-vs-glass-manufacturing-whats-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nwglassfab.com\/glass-fabrications-vs-glass-manufacturing-whats-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Glass Fabrications vs. Glass Manufacturing: What\u2019s the Difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"

You may hear the terms glass manufacturing and glass fabrication interchangeably. Although many people in the glass industry use both terms every day, there can be much confusion over what they actually mean and how they are applied into the products and services that are offered.<\/p>\n

Northwestern Glass Fab provides glass fabrication (not manufacturing) services. Below, we go into more detail about what fabrication is and how it differs from manufacturing.<\/p>\n

What is Glass Manufacturing?<\/h3>\n

Glass manufacturing has been around for thousands of years going all the way back to ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Although modern methods have changed the way companies produce glass, the concept is relatively unchanged.<\/p>\n

Manufactures heat sand that contains silica, soda ash, and lime to high temperatures and then allow them to cool down. During the cool-down period, designers can mold glass into virtually any form. They can blow the glass or pour it into molds. In our industry, manufacturers produce \u201cflat glass\u201d by heating the ingredients to a molten state and then \u201cfloating\u201d it on a hot bed of liquid tin. As the glass cools it is then switched to a conveyor with rollers and eventually cut into large sheets. This is known as \u201cfloat\u201d glass, and is used in many different architectural products.
\nManufacturers can add color or opacity to the glass while improving its quality and durability. While the process may seem relatively straightforward, shaping the glass requires absolute precision during the cooling process.<\/p>\n

Modern glass production techniques allow glass to be manufactured into clear, painted, tinted, inlaid with wire, patterned, frosted, made into low-iron glass, laminated, fire-rated, made with a mirror finish, insulated, and heat resistant.<\/p>\n

What is Glass Fabrication?<\/h3>\n

Once the manufacturer designs and creates the glass, it comes to our facility where we fabricate it to your specifications.<\/p>\n

The methods we use for fabricating glass are on an entirely different level than the methods the manufacturer uses to make the glass.<\/p>\n

There are numerous processes involved in fabricating glass. Some of the most common methods include:<\/p>\n