Sydney, N.S., firm supplies glass to huge Kuwait university complex
A huge shipment of glass from Sydney, N.S., is making its way across the Atlantic Ocean, bound for Kuwait.
The windows, manufactured by Advanced Glazings Ltd., are going to be installed in a single 3,700 square-metre skylight in an atrium about the size of the Empire State Building, if laid on its side, said Michelle Milburn, the company's co-founder and chief operating officer.
The huge atrium will connect two buildings at the College of Business, one of the faculties at Sabah Al-Salem University City, being constructed southwest of Kuwait City.
Located in one of the hottest urban climates of the world, the massive university, when finished in 2019, will feature a male campus to the north and a female campus to the south. It will have a total capacity of up to 40,000 students.
The faculties will include arts, humanities, sciences, engineering and medical specialities.
Advanced Glazings manufactured windows that maximize natural daylight while insulating the building from the region's punishing desert heat.
"We manufacture translucent glazing unit, basically windows that you can't see through," Milburn told CBC's Mainstreet in Cape Breton. "What they do is allow natural light to penetrate through this base, brightening up the space while providing insulation at the same time."
They can be found in a number of buildings, such as Sydney Academy, in Cape Breton Regional Municipality, she said.
In Kuwait, where temperatures can reach 46 C, the insulating factor of the glass is crucial, she said.
"It controls the amount of heat coming into the building, providing insulation, while also directing the sunlight and bathing the space with natural daylight."
The Middle East "is the perfect environment and climate for our product," she said.
The custom-manufactured windows were shipped from Halifax in 20 containers.
"We had multiple shapes and sizes to contend with," she said. "It's a month sail time, from the time we ship the product to when it arrives in the Kuwait port, so we had to match our schedules with their build schedule."
The company, which began in 1997, employs 26 people and operates out of plant on Kings Road. It has customers throughout North America and Europe as well.
It is important to have an international presence, Milburn said.
Although based in Sydney, the firm's chief executive officer Jim Sattterwhite works out of Boston and does a lot of international travel for the company. It also employs sales representatives throughout Europe and the Middle East.
The Kuwait project was a five-year commitment, Milburn said. Advanced Glazings became involved in 2012 during the building's design and the company began shipping glass last year.
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