The Glass Packaging Institute (GPI) has announced a new “A Circular Future for Glass” initiative

This is a 10-year plan to raise the U.S.’s glass recycling rate to 50 percent and boost the average use of recycled content in domestically made glass containers. GPI partnered with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to undertake the study, design study solution sets in different regions, and develop a set of options for achieving that goal.

“A Circular Future for Glass” has three important pillars:

A new competition offers design students and young designers under 30 a chance to design using the most innovative glass packaging decoration.

The O-I : EXPRESSIONS DESIGN AWARDS 2021 challenges young designers to create innovative and appealing glass packaging for a spirits brand. The brief for the pack contains a very real issue faced by spirits brand owners – how to convey both premium brand cues and enhanced sustainability.

Verallia has deployed over the last four years an ambitious plan to roll out Glass Service Expert System III (ES III), an advanced control system that enables to face industry 4.0 challenge with process chain digitalization in order to release productivity barriers.

Guardian Glass honoured the glaziers and fabricators of seven commercial projects at its annual Commercial Project Awards event on 15 April. More than 40 projects were nominated from work completed in 2020.

“Guardian Glass is privileged to recognise incredible glass designs in architecture from our glazier and fabricator partners,” said Rick Zoulek, Vice President, Guardian Glass, Americas. “These impressive facades showcase why glass is a preferred building material in commercial construction."

Gerresheimer is one of a total of 19 glass producers who have joined forces in a project with the aim of achieving climate-neutral glass production. In collaboration with the Ardagh Group, they want to drive forward the development, financing and operation of a hybrid electric melting furnace.

To this end, an industrial-scale furnace is being built in Obernkirchen, Germany, for the commercial production of glass containers from renewable electricity. The demonstration facility will be built in 2022, with initial results available in 2023. Both technical and market-specific criteria for melting glass to produce glass packaging on a large scale will be evaluated.

Electricity will play a major role in the ongoing energy transition needed to reduce CO2 emissions. Although electric melting of glass is an old technology, there is still a need for more research and specifically education, believes technology specialist CelSian.

The company is running an introductory ‘Electric Systems for Glass Melting’ training course aimed at those who are not familiar with, or would like to refresh their knowledge of electrical furnace boosting, all-electric melting and many aspects of the electrical systems in and outside the furnace.

Manufacturer of solar glass Borosil Renewables intends to double its capacity by building a new plant at its Bharuch facility in Gujarat.

Part of the Borosil Group, the Indian company is the sole domestic manufacturer of solar panel glass and currently has 450tpd capacity at its Bharuch plant, sufficient to power 2.5GW of solar power plants. With the brownfield expansion, capacity is set to jump to 900 tonnes per day or 5GW of installable capacity of solar power plants. The new plant, at an investment of Rs 500 crore, is scheduled to be up and running by July 2022.

This is the second doubling of Borosil Renewables’ capacity in the past five years, following a Rs 235 crore expansion in 2016.

Glass packaging manufacturer Vetropack Group’s Annual Report for 2020 shows results at a good level, despite disruption from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Vetropack Group sold 4.86 billion units of glass packaging in the 2020 fiscal year, which was 5.9% less than in the previous year (5.16 billion units).

As catering establishments were closed for months due to the coronavirus, demand for wine, beer and above all soft drinks, mineral water and fruit juices fell. However the lockdown also led to more demand for foodstuffs stored in glass jars.

The Group generated consolidated net sales of CHF 662.6 million, 7.3% lower than the previous year (CHF 714.9 million). This only amounted to a 3.5% reduction in local currencies.

Glass manufacturer and filler, Encirc, part of the Vidrala Group, has appointed Paul Williams as its new 360 Development Director, with Mark Holmes taking over Mr Williams’ previous role as Beverages General Manager. The pair will work together to bolster the company’s filling and supply chain offering following a period of growth and investment.

Mr Williams has worked at Encirc for six years and his new position will involve driving the company’s ‘360’ proposition for manufacturing, filling and shipping some of the world’s leading drinks brands directly to retailers, all from a single purpose-built location in Elton, Cheshire.