Safety glass panel OPTILAM™

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Product overview
Pilkington Optilam™ is a range of laminated glass engineered to provide impact resistance and enhanced security. It is manufactured by bonding two or more glass panes with one or more polyvinyl butyral (PVB) interlayers. By varying the number and thickness of glass plies and the PVB interlayers, the product can be specified for safety, security, acoustic control, solar control, UV screening, bullet or blast resistance, privacy or decorative applications. PVB interlayers are typically processed under heat and pressure in factory conditions.

Applications and variants
Pilkington Optilam™ is suitable for building entrances, internal and external doors, partitions and barriers, overhead glazing, swimming-pool and bathing-area glazing, shopfronts and low-level safety-critical windows. Variants include Pilkington Optilam™ I Colour (tinted PVB) and Optilam™ I Translucent White for privacy and decoration. Optilam™ can be integrated into Insulating Glass Units (IGUs) and combined with Pilkington Optifloat™ Tint, Pilkington Eclipse Advantage™, Pilkington Suncool™ or low-emissivity coatings (Pilkington Optitherm™, Pilkington K Glass™) to add solar, thermal or decorative performance.

How it works
The PVB interlayers retain glass fragments on breakage, dissipating impact energy and maintaining overall integrity to act as a barrier. Performance is determined by the configuration and thickness of glass and interlayers, allowing tailored solutions for different protection levels.

Pilkington Optilam™ safety glass benefits

• Reduces risk of injury from accidental human impact by holding broken glass in place.
• Remains integral when broken, maintaining a protective layer.
• Pilkington Optilam™ 6.4 mm is widely used for accidental impact protection and provides EN 12600 Class 2(B)2 performance.
• Can be combined with a toughened outer pane in an IGU for improved overhead glazing protection.
• Available with tinted glass or tinted PVB and with solar-control or low-e coatings for combined safety and energy or solar performance.

Pilkington Optilam™ security glass benefits

• Laminate resists penetration: although glass may break, the interlayer retains integrity and slows or prevents intrusion.
• Provides protection against break-ins and vandalism and withstands repeated blows from hand-held heavy objects.
• Often remains integral after attack, limiting penetration, reducing the need for boarding and maintaining protection until replacement.

Bullet resistant glass benefits

• Designed to meet EN 1063 or applicable national specifications; protects against threats from handguns, shotguns and high-velocity rifles depending on configuration.
• Available in thicknesses from 11.5 mm to 39 mm to address different threat levels.

Protection against ultraviolet radiation
Pilkington Optilam™ absorbs UVB and UVA radiation, providing very low UV transmittance that helps protect materials from fading under prolonged exposure.

Technical specifications

• Interlayer: Polyvinyl butyral (PVB), processed with heat and pressure.
• Typical safety thickness: 6.4 mm (EN 12600 Class 2(B)2).
• Security standard thickness range (typical): 6.8 mm to 19.5 mm (product dependent).
• Bullet-resistant thickness range: 11.5 mm to 39 mm.
• Standards: EN 356 (burglary resistance), options conforming to EN 1063 (bullet resistance), EN 12600 (pendulum impact classification).
• Can be manufactured as part of IGUs combined with Pilkington products (Optifloat™ Tint, Eclipse Advantage™, Suncool™, Optitherm™, K Glass™, toughened glass) to provide combined thermal, solar-control and decorative properties.
• Provides significant UV screening to reduce material fading.