Structural Use of Glass

Over the last few decades glass facades and glass roofs have become increasingly transparent, thanks to continual advancements in glass technology. The striving for lightness and de-materialisation of buildings has led to an increase in the load-bearing capacities of the building material glass. The first buildings constructed entirely of glass were completed in the 1990´s; with even glass columns being experimented with. There are fundamental principles of glass construction to be considered, whether for post-and-rail facades or load-bearing structural systems. These concepts are discussed in this article.