Austrian-based Lisec, is an internationally active company offering comprehensive solutions with regard to the production and refinement of flat glass. Its worldwide presence and 1,700 employees at more than 40 affiliated companies and agencies facilitate the quick implementation of projects, including the necessary supervision conducted by specialists on-site.

Entry-level laminating
The principle behind Lisec’s low-pressure autoclave is quite similar to that of a high-pressure autoclave, in that they both operate exactly in the same way.
However, Lisec’s new entry-level model offers significantly shorter cycle times and reduced energy consumption. Having a maximum working size of 2,200 x 3,600 millimetres, the low-pressure autoclave can process up to two tons of glass in less than three hours.
The autoclave is, has and provides:
• especially designed for smaller capacities;
• suitable for all types of PVB, EVA and ionomer interlayers;
• optimized consumption-performance ratio;
• extremely short cycle times; and
• easy glass handling.

How it works
A scissor lift loads the glass packages, which have been placed on special horizontal trays, into the low-pressure furnace. The glass packages are then heated within the pressurised chamber, temperature is kept at a constant level, and then reduced again. A special blower and forced air convection system ensure uniform temperatures for perfect conditions throughout the whole cycle. Thanks to the fast cooling system, ionomer inte...

Austrian-based Lisec, is an internationally active company offering comprehensive solutions with regard to the production and refinement of flat glass. Its worldwide presence and 1,700 employees at more than 40 affiliated companies and agencies facilitate the quick implementation of projects, including the necessary supervision conducted by specialists on-site.

Entry-level laminating
The principle behind Lisec’s low-pressure autoclave is quite similar to that of a high-pressure autoclave, in that they both operate exactly in the same way.
However, Lisec’s new entry-level model offers significantly shorter cycle times and reduced energy consumption. Having a maximum working size of 2,200 x 3,600 millimetres, the low-pressure autoclave can process up to two tons of glass in less than three hours.
The autoclave is, has and provides:
• especially designed for smaller capacities;
• suitable for all types of PVB, EVA and ionomer interlayers;
• optimized consumption-performance ratio;
• extremely short cycle times; and
• easy glass handling.

How it works
A scissor lift loads the glass packages, which have been placed on special horizontal trays, into the low-pressure furnace. The glass packages are then heated within the pressurised chamber, temperature is kept at a constant level, and then reduced again. A special blower and forced air convection system ensure uniform temperatures for perfect conditions throughout the whole cycle. Thanks to the fast cooling system, ionomer interlayers can be easily processed.
As the operating pressure is just 1 bar above air pressure, the autoclave housing is thinner than usual. Furthermore, lower heating and cooling capacity is required, which also reduces energy consumption significantly.
The laminated glass produced is of the same quality as laminated glass manufactured with high-pressure autoclaves. In common vacuum furnaces, problems related to the laminating effect may arise when interlayers other than special PVB types are used. Moreover, interlayers need to be stored at a low relative humidity to guarantee a continuous production flow.
With Lisec’s low-pressure autoclave, however, standard PVB types (either interleaved or refrigerated) can be processed without any problem. The laminated glass produced will meet architectural safety requirements irrespective of the interlayer type used.

Easy line integration
For its attractive price, the autoclave is primarily of interest for those customers who want to start producing laminated glass but do not want to produce high output (yet). Shortly after the product’s launch, a number of enquiries came in, and the first autoclaves have already been installed.
The low-pressure autoclave can easily be integrated in a basic production line for laminated glass of maximum dimensions of 2,200 x 3,600 millimetres. When combined with a pre-lamination system (with pre-press rollers and heating furnaces), cycle times can be reduced even further. In this way, 140 square metres of glass can be produced per shift.

Line process flow
After being loaded on the tilting table and transported into the washer, glass is positioned on the caster sphere table. By means of an operator assisted handling device, the glass is moved onto a tray placed on a supporting table and the pre-cut PVB foil is applied manually. The operator then brings the following glass for assembling and trims the excess foil. The tray is equipped with a silicone blanket that will wrap the glass panels in order to carry out the vacuum process in the low pressure autoclave. The blanket of the fully loaded tray is subsequently closed and the tray is pushed out of the climatic room to be placed on a scissor lift, which enables to lift and match the storage rack levels. Then the storage rack is moved in front of the low-pressure autoclave where the operator easily slides each tray into the corresponding slot.
This configuration enables to obtain an estimated daily output of ~ 95 square metres per eight-hour shift and needs an available area of approximately ~280 square metres – 28 x 10 metres. Total installed power is equal to 140 KW and cycle time takes from 2 to 3 hours according to the total glass volume loaded into the low pressure autoclave (max 2,000 kilos), which is pressurized at 1 bar above atmospheric pressure and is heated up to 150°C.

Full-range supplier
As a full-range supplier, Lisec offers machines for the entire programme of laminated glass. In general, depending on the desired output and level of automation, the manufacturer is also able to provide turnkey laminated glass plants with autoclaves or tunnel systems.