GLASS ENGINEERING
(14.66% OF GROUP TURNOVER)

The glass engineering division of BMT NV, which includes CNUD – EFCO in Brussels (Belgium) EFCO-CNUD in Weybridge (Great Britain) and F.I.C. in Penzance (Great Britain) has worked very closely with all the Major Glass producers worldwide for many years.

CNUD – EFCO has concentrated its activities on the many problems of thermal treatment of glass to become a world leader in the Float and hollow glass industries including pattern and automotive glass.
In the float glass industry CNUD-EFCO has acquired the know-how to anneal a wide range of glass thicknesses from 0.3mm to 25.0mm on a range of glass qualities which include clear, coloured, coated, PDP and TFT glass.
The annealing lehrs are designed to cover a wide range of glass production capacities from 50 MTD to 1000 MTD with ribbon widths varying from 0.7M up to 5M.

EFCO – CNUD has been very successful in the design and manufacture of the suspended electrically heated Float Bath roof system incorporated on Float Glass Production lines. Worldwide, EFCO-CNUD has supplied in excess of 230 Float roofs all designed specifically for each customer’s production requirements, ranging from 50 MTD to 1000 MTD with a thickness range of 0.3mm to 25.0mm covering the architectural, automotive and special glass float lines.

EFCO-CNUD also supplies glass and services to the Engineering industry including the automotive, aluminium, aerospace and heat treatment markets.

CNUD in Brussels and EFCO in Weybridge have now combined their expertise to serve the Float Glass Industry by offering a complete tin bath and annealing lehr package that is easily integrated onto a Float Glass Line.
With full utilisation of the BMT NV European and Romanian manufacturing facilities, and the ever increasing demand from glass producers for higher quality, longer campaigns at reduced costs, CNUD-EFCO are now actively using the advantage of manufacturing facilities in the Far East. With the experience gained by working in the Glass industry for over 40 years, the integrity of the materials and equipment manufacturing processes in the Far East will in no way compromise the design and quality of the complete Tin Bath and Lehr.

By combining forces, CNUD-EFCO can offer a larger package at a more competitive price whilst maintaining the Glass Industry’s highest standards.


F.I.C.    ELECTRICAL PRACTITIONERS – GLASS CONDITIONING AND MELTING

This is a brief introduction to F.I.C. (UK) Limited, a leading supplier in the provision of specialist electro-heat equipment to the primary glass manufacturers of the glass industry world-wide.

F.I.C. was founded in 1980 and was the first in the glass industry to be accredited to ISO 9001 for the design and manufacture of All-electric Glass Melting and Boosting Systems.

The company is based in Penzance, Cornwall, UK, from where we co-ordinate our business throughout the world, both direct and via our agencies in many countries.

Our expertise is in the design and manufacture of Electro-heat Systems for boosting and conditioning in a wide range of glass types and manufacturing processes, including flat and holloware soda-lime glasses and the full range of TV glasses, fibreglass and tableware, including borosilicate glasses.

In both Flat and Holloware Container glass manufacturing, the F.I.C. Electric Melting and Boost Systems offer the benefits of: increased pull rate, reduction in pollution emissions, improved glass quality, a longer furnace life, and many more.

We have successfully designed, manufactured, installed and commissioned 22 float line boosting systems around the world.

Some of these large float systems exceed 6000kVA installed capacity and are designed to increase the pull on flint glass, or to allow continuous melting of coloured glasses without reducing the pull. This is because F.I.C. Boost Systems solve the problem of high thermal gradient across the glass depth which on a conventional furnace, without boosting, significantly reduces the pull or affects glass quality. Typical examples are the melting of glasses to achieve 1.6% Fe203 (solar tint, optical, Sundyn, privacy, etc).

Some of our boosted systems for large container glass furnaces exceed 3000kVA. We have installed holloware boost systems world-wide.

Within the range of Electrode Holders manufactured by F.I.C. to achieve ‘on glass’ heating, is our unique High ‘Q’ Holder in which the cooling circuit is replaceable.

This can be achieved within a few minutes, without the need to turn off the water or the need to remove the electrode, the holder nose or the tube assembly. This significantly reduces the human risks associated with standard holder replacement.

Moreover, this work does not require “special skills” which are very costly and not always available when you desperately need them.

There are now over 3,500 High ‘Q’ Holders installed throughout the world providing exceptional electrode performance.

We also supply other holder types such as splash cooled, weld free and conventional types. Our Maxi ‘Q’ weld free holders are manufactured from a solid piece of stainless steel and incorporate conventional style waterways without any weld located in the refractory or glass. These holders are especially suitable for arduous conditions such as aggressive glasses or electric furnaces using top electrodes as they can eliminate the frequency of electrode breakage.

F.I.C. produces a special HVP (high vapour pressure) Forehearth design for volatile glasses.

We also offer the Isothermal Unit which provides very efficient forehearth sidewall heating, improving thermal homogeneity in coloured glasses or in flint glass when the NNPB process is applied.

F.I.C. also supplies a range of special instrumentation for all-electric and boosted furnaces. These include the Electrode Wear Detector, Electrode Breakage Detector, Ground Fault Monitor, Thermocouple Signal Filter (PYROFIL), Electrode Balance Computer and a Glass Level Controller with no moving parts.

We also provide on site services such as hot drilling and electrode advancement.

The engineering team within F.I.C. has vast experience in glass processing, with unique skills in the field of electric melting and conditioning. This ensures that excellent glass quality is achieved, resulting in a “flawless flat ribbon” and a “good gob for the job”.

In 1999 F.I.C. joined forces with EFCO, CNUD and OMCO, our ‘glass’ partners in the BMT Group of Companies. You are probably familiar with the above company names but to summarise their activities :

CNUD specialises in the thermal treatment of glass utilising their famous float line annealing lehrs and glass tempering systems.

EFCO has supplied more than 80% of the world’s tin bath roof heating systems and glass treatment furnaces.

OMCO is a long established leader in the supply of quality moulds for the glass industry.

Together, within the Glass Engineering Division of BMT, we can offer even greater expertise in the glass processing industry.

If you require any information on F.I.C. or our partners in BMT, please do not hesitate to contact us, or visit out website www.fic-uk.com. We will be happy to assist you to improve your performance in making glass in the next millennium.