Press Releases

Oldcastle Glass® Launches New Laminating Line At Manufacturing Facility in Wausau, Wisconsin

Santa Monica, CA – July 12, 2004 – Capitalizing on increasing demand for impact -resistant laminated glass from Wisconsin’s many wood window manufacturers, Oldcastle Glass® has added a laminating line to its glass plant in Wausau. The new plant will be able to regionally supply laminated glass, which is used to manufacture impact- resistant windows. The 20,000 sq. ft expansion began operations in May. With 13 laminating lines in 12 locations throughout the country, Oldcastle Glass® is the country’s most geographically diversified architectural glass laminator.

“Oldcastle Glass® specializes in hurricane resistant glazing and wanted to respond to the rapidly growing market for impact-resistant windows along the entire Gulf and Atlantic coasts from Brownsville, Texas to Long Island, New York,” says John Bush, director of laminated products for Oldcastle Glass®. “We saw there was an acute shortage of high quality, impact resistant glass. By expanding our existing plant in Wausau, we are now able to better serve this burgeoning market.”

The company is producing its signature hurricane product, StormGlass™ at its Wausau plant, along with other types of laminated glass. With its advanced interlayer technology, which is the thinnest of its kind available in the hurricane impact glazing market, StormGlass™ features very high elastic modulus together with improved adhesion to glass. These components make StormGlass™ one of the best performing and reliable products affording the highest levels of protection without compromising the optical quality of the glass.

Due to high demand, most major window manufacturers now offer impact-resistant lines made with laminated glass. Laminated glass is a multi-functional glazing material that can be used in a variety of residential and commercial applications. It is manufactured by permanently bonding two panes of glass with one or more plastic interlayers made of tough, polyvinyl butyral (PVB) sheeting in an air autoclave under heat and pressure to create a single, solid construction.

The laminated glass market requires a high level of service. Explains Bush, “Window manufacturers want the glass, and they want it quickly. It’s all about providing exceptional service and quality. Oldcastle Glass®‘ strategic locations throughout North America allows us to be where our customers are, and equally important, where our customers’ projects are.”

Oldcastle Glass® was built on a successful program of more than 20 strategic acquisitions and capital investments, making it the largest independent provider of architectural glass products and services for the residential and non-residential building markets. In 2000, Oldcastle Glass® purchased the plant in Wausau as part of its Hoffer’s Glass acquisition.

Architects can locate Oldcastle Glass® laminating facilities and other information at

www.oldcastleglass.com

About Oldcastle Glass®

Oldcastle Glass® has a strong reputation for its quality service as well as many innovative glass products featured in some of the most high profile architectural installations in North America. Among them are the Getty Center, the LAX Gateway, the Mary Baker Eddy Library in Boston, the Hawaii Convention Center and the Cauldron created for the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City. Oldcastle Glass® is a U.S. subsidiary of CRH plc, a leading international building materials and products company based in Dublin, Ireland.

For additional information please contact:
Susan Trimble: Director of Corporate Communications