5 Things Window Film Can Do For Your Building Full-time Job

5 Things Window Film Can Do For Your Building

Large banks of windows are a popular building amenity, but the extra daylight can seem like a double-edged sword on sunny days.

Plentiful daylight is generally healthy for occupants and can contribute to productivity, but can also result in distracting glare and an influx of heat that’s expensive to manage.

Retrofitting your existing windows with window film can help you achieve your energy, aesthetic and productivity goals at a fraction of the cost of a window replacement, according to Darrell Smith, executive director of the International Window Film Association.

Investigate these five ways window film could benefit your building.

1) Less Glare and Lower Bills

Some window films can block different parts of the solar spectrum to minimize glare, heat and dangerous UV rays, Smith explains.

Sunlight contains three parts:

• Ultraviolet radiation – the part that contributes to skin cancer and fades interiors. This section makes up about 3 percent of the sunlight spectrum, according to Smith.
  

• Visible light – literally, the part that you see. This section is about 44 percent of the total and is responsible for causing glare.
  

• Near infrared light – which is invisible but contributes to heat gain. This makes up the other 53 percent of the spectrum.

Understanding the difference between these qualities is key to selecting the right window film if solar control is a priority, Smith explains.

“Products today will block 65 percent of the heat and allow 65 percent visibility,” Smith says. “Think of the windshield of a car. They’re equipped with factory-tinted glass that looks almost clear, and by law that can’t be darker than 70 percent visibility. This window film is almost that light but would block 65 percent of the heat coming through because it has high infrared reflectance.”

Large banks of windows are a popular building amenity, but the extra daylight can seem like a double-edged sword on sunny days.

Plentiful daylight is generally healthy for occupants and can contribute to productivity, but can also result in distracting glare and an influx of heat that’s expensive to manage.

Retrofitting your existing windows with window film can help you achieve your energy, aesthetic and productivity goals at a fraction of the cost of a window replacement, according to Darrell Smith, executive director of the International Window Film Association.

Investigate these five ways window film could benefit your building.

1) Less Glare and Lower Bills

Some window films can block different parts of the solar spectrum to minimize glare, heat and dangerous UV rays, Smith explains.

Sunlight contains three parts:

• Ultraviolet radiation – the part that contributes to skin cancer and fades interiors. This section makes up about 3 percent of the sunlight spectrum, according to Smith.
  

• Visible light – literally, the part that you see. This section is about 44 percent of the total and is responsible for causing glare.
  

• Near infrared light – which is invisible but contributes to heat gain. This makes up the other 53 percent of the spectrum.

Understanding the difference between these qualities is key to selecting the right window film if solar control is a priority, Smith explains.

“Products today will block 65 percent of the heat and allow 65 percent visibility,” Smith says. “Think of the windshield of a car. They’re equipped with factory-tinted glass that looks almost clear, and by law that can’t be darker than 70 percent visibility. This window film is almost that light but would block 65 percent of the heat coming through because it has high infrared reflectance.”

Films with high insulating values keep heat in your building in the winter and seal in air conditioning in the summer so that you’re not paying to condition the whole neighborhood. Some can also reflect infrared light back into the room to help heat it, giving you additional winter savings.

“Standard window film products still make up the majority of window films sold,” says Smith. “There’s a lot of single-pane or clear dual-pane glass that was installed 20 to 40 years ago that needs better energy control or an aesthetic upgrade. Just by tinting that window, you can save as much as 30 percent in the summer months.”

2) Customized Reflection and Transmission

Dual reflective films have made a big splash in the last five years thanks to the flexibility they offer building occupants, Smith explains.

“On the outside of the building, you may want a reflective bronze look, but people on the inside of the building looking out may not want to see a bronze color,” Smith says. “The interior may be blues or grays. Manufacturers can change the reflectance and transmission values so that you see different colors depending on which side of the glass you’re on.”

3) Aesthetic Benefits and Branding

Window film with decorative patterns is growing in both variety and popularity, Smith says.

“You can now get window films that look like frosted or stained glass or that has a bamboo-style pattern. Some patterns are actually screen-printed into the film itself to accent a window. Those same films can be specified with or without energy control or in a thick version that holds glass together whenever the glass breaks.”

In my country, the pace of architectural film started relatively late, and the intensity of development is not very strong, but with the continuous improvement of the economy, this trend is constantly approaching. In fact, architectural film has become a common product in the construction industry abroad, and its application has become universal. However, due to economic constraints, my country’s acceptance of it was relatively late. It was not introduced until the late 1980s to the early 1990s. At the beginning, its development speed was relatively slow, until the energy began to light up. At that time, people began to have a new understanding of architectural membranes, and it was at this time that it began to be applied to buildings, coupled with its unique characteristics such as: individual performance can be adapted to the different needs of different people , Which can better reflect the needs of people.