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Pedricktown, N.J. — June 17, 2016 — J.E. Berkowitz, LP (JEB), has announced that the RENOVATE by Berkowitz (Renovate) façade retrofit system was used to update PPG’s Monroeville Business and Technology Center near Pittsburgh. The 10,150-square-foot building currently serves as the business headquarters for PPG’s specialty coatings and materials business unit.
Joe Krezan, building manager, PPG, said the facility opened in 1960 and featured single-pane windows, which were common in commercial buildings at the time but notoriously inefficient.
“We previously used window film to improve window performance with mixed results,” Krezan said. “It was difficult to maintain indoor temperatures, and the building suffered from cold and hot spots. After evaluating various options, a decision was made to install the Renovate system. It’s a permanent solution that adds an insulating glass unit with two lites of low-e glass to existing windows to improve their energy and thermal efficiency.”
As configured for the Monroeville Business and Technology Center, the Renovate Platinum Plus II system features SOLARBAN solar control low-e glass and SUNGATE 400 passive low-e glass by PPG.
“The crew installed five to six units per day and it took about two weeks to finish all 66 windows," Krezan said. "The project was completed during winter, but there was minimal disturbance to daily activities and the building remained enclosed because the Renovate system is installed on the inside. It provides a clean look, too. Without knowing, you couldn’t tell that an IGU (insulated glass unit) was added to an original window.
“The Renovate system has performed well and improved year-round indoor comfort. Through last summer and this past winter, there has been a significant reduction in tenant complaints and the building is noticeably easier to keep cool in summer months.”
Before completing the window retrofit project, PPG conducted a two-week, internal study to calculate the improvements the Renovate system could provide. The study observed the energy lost through two adjacent windows in an unoccupied office at the facility. One window was retrofitted with the Renovate system, while the other was left untouched with existing window film. The study showed that the Renovate system improved the window’s energy efficiency by 42 percent over the original window, and the retrofitted window’s glass surface temperature was considerably more consistent with the ambient room temperature.
For more information about the Renovate system, visit www.RbBwindow.com.
Renovate by Berkowitz, LLC, was established in 2010 by the owners of J.E. Berkowitz, LP, a leading architectural glass fabricator. JEB manufactures the RENOVATE by Berkowitz window/curtainwall retrofit system at its 253,000-square-foot facility in Pedricktown, N.J.
