PITTSBURGH, April 15, 2019 — Bird-friendly Starphire Ultra-Clear^® glass by Vitro Architectural Glass— specified for the renovated Tropical Rainforest exhibit at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh—was selected by readers of Building Design + Construction (BD+C) magazine as one of the 101 Top Products of 2018.

As part of a $1.2 million-dollar renovation to the nationally renowned exhibit, which hosts 70 exotic birds in a dense tropical landscape, bird-safety experts from the National Aviary worked with representatives from Vitro Glass. Together, they specified a new glass dome capable of sustaining wildlife and plant life throughout the year while protecting the safety of the animals inside.

More than 3,100 panes of Starphire Ultra-Clear^® glass, featuring AviProtek^® bird-friendly Velour acid-etched finish by Walker Glass, were used to fabricate the 19,600 square-foot dome, which was first constructed in 1952. The customized bird-friendly glass combination serves two purposes:

First, the acid-etching reduces the chance of bird-glass collisions by preventing birds of prey living outside the exhibit from seeing and attempting to reach potential prey inside it. Second, Starphire Ultra-Clear^® glass maximizes ultraviolet (UV) and natural light transmittance, enabling hundreds of tropical trees under the dome to gain nourishment from the sun.

With visible light transmittance (VLT) of 91 percent in a standard ¼-inch (6-millimeter) thickness, Starphire Ultra-Clear^® glass is the clearest, most transparent commercial float glass available today.

Other members of the glass renovation team included preservation consultant Montgomery Smith, glass fabricator Dlubak Specialty Glass and glass installer Greenhouse RSI (glass installer).

Starphire Ultra-Clear^® is a registered trademark owned by Vitro
Vitro Certified^™ is a trademark owned by Vitro

About Vitro Architectural Glass

Vitro Architectural Glass, part of Vitro, S.A.B. de C.V. (BMV: VITROA), is the largest glass producer in the Western Hemisphere, manufacturing a range of industry-leading, energy-efficient, high-performance products such as Solarban^®, Sungate^® and Starphire Ultra-Clear^® glasses. Committed to continually raising the industry standard for sustainability, Vitro was the first U.S. glass manufacturer to have its complete collection of architectural glass products earn Cradle to Cradle Certified^® status and the first North American manufacturer to publish third-party verified Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for flat glass and processed glass products. Additionally, as of April 2024, all Vitro architectural glass products meet the Top 20% Low Embodied Carbon (LEC) material Global Warming Potential (GWP) threshold the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) established pursuant to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and related guidance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Vitro operates seven glass production facilities across North America, four residential glass fabrication plants in Canada and one of the world’s largest glass research and development facilities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. For more information, please visit VitroGlazings.com.

Media Contact:
Robert J. Struble
Vitro Architectural Glass
412-820-8138
rstruble@vitro.com
www.vitroglazings.com