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CLEAR CUT
Welcome to IGE's Blog: CLEAR CUT, where we clearly define the challenges facing today's glass fabrication process and cut through the noise to effectively address profitability and the ever important topic of safety in the workplace.
With almost five decades in the industry, we've witnessed the evolution from hand fabrication to full automation. CLEAR CUT is our opportunity to share this knowledge with the industry and together, find new ways to improve modern day glass fabrication.
Eight Names for the Problem. One Question for the Answer.
Before you Replace Your Furnace, Look at the Quench Iridescence. Anisotropy. Strain pattern. Quench pattern. Quench marks. Wind spots. Wind marks. Rainbowing. The glass industry uses all of these terms when people talk about visible patterns in tempered glass. The terms are not technically identical, but they often lead to the same customer conversation: “Why can I see that in the glass?” That creates a difficult commercial problem. A lite can meet the required specification
Michael Spellman
5 days ago3 min read
🎶 Elvis has left the building… and GlassBuild 2026 has left Las Vegas!
But what a way to launch an incredible week! On Tuesday evening, IGE celebrated our 16th Annual Manufacturers Appreciation Dinner with the people who make what we do possible—our incredible manufacturing partners and the IGE team. While we've been around a lot longer than 16 years, we began this pre-show party 16 years ago, and it has become one of our favorite GlassBuild traditions. It’s our opportunity to step away from the show floor, enjoy each other’s company, and celebr
Michael Spellman
Oct 11 min read
GLASSBUILD 2026 | LAS VEGAS WHERE INNOVATION MEETS FABRICATION EXPERTISE AT IGE
We’re back from #GlassBuild 2026 — and getting caught up after an incredible few days in Las Vegas! A huge THANK YOU to everyone who stopped by the IGE Glass Technologies booth, spent time with our team, met with our manufacturing partners, and talked with us about what’s happening in your factories and where you want to go next. We came home genuinely excited about the conversations we had, the new opportunities ahead, and the tremendous interest in the technologies and solu
Sara Spellman
Oct 12 min read
GlassBuild 2026: Come See What's Possible at IGE's Booth #2573
GlassBuild America 2026 is almost here—and we’re bringing together some of the most exciting technologies in glass fabrication, all in one place. Visit IGE Booth #2573 and experience the IGE Glass Fabrication Ecosystem™: innovative equipment, advanced technology and complete fabrication solutions—all backed by the expertise, service, tooling and parts support that IGE customers have relied on for decades. From cutting and fabrication to digital printing, tempering, water trea
Sara Spellman
Sep 211 min read
The Next Era of Glass Fabricating Will Be Built on Applied R&D
After nearly 50 years in the glass industry, I am more excited about manufacturing today than I have been in a long time. Why? Because I believe we are entering an era where the biggest improvements will not necessarily come from buying one more machine. They will come from making the entire factory work smarter. At IGE, we increasingly look at manufacturing through three connected areas: Process. Software. Hardware. If one of those three is weak, the factory will never reach
Michael Spellman
Sep 113 min read
IGE's Carolyn Spellman Serves on Judging Panel for the 2026 National Glass Association (NGA)'s Annual Glass Magazine Awards
CONGRATULATIONS to Kuraray and all the parties involved in the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) Glasshouse Theater's big win for the 2026 National Glass Association (NGA)'s Glass Magazine Project of the Year and Best Feat of Engineering Awards! 🏆 We also offer big congrats to all the other award winners in their categories. 🏆 IGE's very own Carolyn Spellman was honored to be part of the judging panel, and she really enjoyed reviewing all of the submissions. In refle
Sara Spellman
Sep 111 min read
GlassBuild America: Back at It, Doing What We Do Best
For decades, IGE has done more than sell glass fabrication equipment. We’ve helped bring some of the world’s most innovative equipment manufacturers to the North American market. We’ve introduced new names, new technologies and new ideas—and in many cases, helped build those brands into recognized names throughout the industry. Times change. Technologies change. And the needs of glass fabricators change. That means every so often, you have to take a fresh look at what you’re
Carolyn Spellman
Sep 42 min read
Peace of Mind Is Part of the Package
Better machines are only part of the equation. When you invest in glass fabrication equipment, you’re not simply buying a machine. You’re making an investment in your factory, your people, your productivity—and ultimately, your profitability. And what happens after the machine is installed matters. For nearly 50 years, IGE has traveled the world searching for advanced glass fabrication technologies and bringing those solutions to North American fabricators. But we’ve always b
Sara Spellman
Sep 31 min read
Our Greatest Asset is Our People - How IGE's Service Department Keeps our Customers Up and Running
IGE's Service Department of factory trained technicians for all types of glass fabrication equipment including Forvet
Michael Spellman
Sep 31 min read
Heat is Easy. Uniform Heat is Engineering. And this is where Sail Glass Tempering Furnaces Excels
The Heating Section Is the Heart of Every Great Tempering Furnace. Anyone can build a furnace that gets hot. Building one that heats glass uniformly, consistently, and repeatably is a completely different engineering challenge. That’s where great tempering furnaces distinguish themselves, and this is one of the many reasons why IGE has chosen to partner with SAIL GLASS for the long-term. When glass enters the furnace, every degree of temperature matters. Every heating zone ma
Michael Spellman
Sep 22 min read
Could a furnace engineered to consistently temper borosilicate naturally produce higher-quality soda-lime glass as well?
I’ve spent nearly 50 years in the glass industry. (Yes…I finally did the math, and I’m still trying to convince myself it’s wrong.) One thing those years have taught me is that innovation doesn’t always begin with answers. More often, it begins with a simple question. During my recent trip through China, I had the opportunity to visit several manufacturers producing borosilicate tempering furnaces. What caught my attention was that many of these same furnaces were also proces
Michael Spellman
Sep 22 min read
When You Improve How Glass Moves, You Improve Everything
Your Single Source Provider for Glass Fabrication Equipment, Spare Parts, Service, Supplies, Rebuilds, & Retrofits Over the past four decades, I’ve had the opportunity to walk through glass fabrication facilities all over the world - different countries; different cultures; different levels of automation. But one thing is always the same: How glass moves through the factory determines how well that factory performs. All of these factory walks have taught us a lot, and all of
Michael Spellman
Apr 92 min read
On Friday, The Idea Sounded Impossible...On Saturday, We Were Living It
Last Friday, we were with a customer discussing the idea of a ghost shift in glass fabrication — an entire shift running with no direct labor — technology that is increasingly possible through smart automation and partners like systron . The reaction was immediate: “I could never be comfortable with that.” Fair enough. A lot of breakthrough technology sounds impossible right up until the moment you experience it. Then Saturday happened. We woke up in San Francisco surrounded
Michael Spellman
Mar 242 min read
Water...The Most Overlooked Ingredient in Glass Fabrication
fully automatic closed loop water filtration system for glass processing
Michael Spellman
Mar 172 min read
Big Projects Are Only Part of the Story: The IGE Ecosystem
For decades, IGE Glass Technologies has been known for delivering some of the most advanced glass fabrication projects in North America. Entire tempering plants. Integrated automation systems. Factory modernization programs. Those projects matter...But they are only part of the story. What many fabricators do not realize is that IGE operates as an ecosystem of solutions — from simple upgrades to full factory transformations. Our goal is always the same: Make glass fabrication
Michael Spellman
Mar 162 min read
systron Delivers 97% Uptime and Real Return on Investment
In every corner of glass fabrication, the rules never change. You are judged on accuracy, quality, and throughput; your bottlenecks determine your margins; your edge work determines your remake rate. And the smallest details, from holes to notches to coating protection, decide whether customers stay loyal or start shopping around. This is where systron has earned its standing. systron's machines do not get attention because they are loud or flashy - they get attention because
Michael Spellman
Jan 132 min read
2025 Year End Review
PDF FLIPBOOK VERSION AVAILABLE HERE https://www.flipbook.igesolutions.com/2025-year-end-review
Michael Spellman
Jan 61 min read
From Defining Glass Automation to Understanding Its Return: IGE’s Perspective on the Evolution from GPAD to GFAB
WHERE THE CONVERSATION STARTED Before glass automation became a marketing term, it was a practical necessity. In the early days of modern glass fabrication, plants were defined by manual handling, disconnected processes, and risk that was simply accepted as part of the job. Performance depended heavily on people rather than systems. Safety was often reactive. Capital decisions were driven by immediate needs rather than long-term flow. That reality helped give rise to Glass Pr
Michael Spellman
Dec 23, 20254 min read
Stop Lifting Glass. Start Driving Profit.
The ATIS Manipulator Pays for Itself in Months. Turns 3 Operators into 1 Driver. Every glass shop has that one lift station everyone avoids. Three people to move one sheet. Two aching backs and one torn shoulder later, and your “manual” process has just cost more than the manipulator that would’ve prevented it. Every day you lift by hand, you’re paying an invisible labor tax — time, fatigue, and lost production. The Shift: From Lifting to Driving Meet the IGE + ATIS Pneumatic
Michael Spellman
Nov 13, 20252 min read
The Third Revolution — The Story of a Dream That Wouldn't Die
The wait is over. The third revolution in glass has begun — and this time, it’s being written in North America. For nearly two decades, this dream seemed impossible. Flights that blurred into years. Meetings that ended in maybes. Engineers who refused to give up. Partners who believed when the world didn’t. There were moments of breakthrough, moments of heartbreak, and moments that tested everything we had. But we kept going — because we believed that one day, the revolution
Michael Spellman
Nov 5, 20252 min read
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