6000+
Glass services
delivered in the last 5 years
£10m+
Funding
secured for project work
1000+
Clients
we've worked with in the last 5 years
68
Countries
we have worked in

Expertise & Leadership

Dr Nick Kirk

Dr Nick Kirk

Technical Director
Nick is a glass expert with decades of experience in all aspects of sustainability, glass production, and product design across the global glass supply chain. Read More

Areas of expertise:

Glass production Sustainability and recycling Product design
Gareth Jones

Gareth Jones

Operations & Commercial Director
Gareth is our Operations & Commercial Director and works with a range of organisations across the global glass industry. He supports them in working towards their business targets, and ensures that our services meet the industry’s current and future requirements. Read More

Areas of expertise:

Strategy development and implementation Marketing Business development

Services

Glass failure analysis

Glass failure analysis

Glass failure (or fracture) analysis is a powerful tool combining glass fractography and microscopy to diagnose and determine the root cause of a breakage or product failure. We also complete preventative quality assessments to potentially stop issues occurring in the future. We provide analysis for products spanning all sectors, including food and drink packaging, domestic glass, furniture, scientific glassware and pharmaceutical packaging.

Products this service is relevant to:

Glass production, processing, and packing line audits

Glass production, processing, and packing line audits

Our glass production and processing experts provide manufacturers, suppliers, brand owners and customers with line and process audits to optimise glass production, processing, and food and drink operations. We work with companies involved in all stages of glass supply, from raw materials through to the end product. In emergencies, we can undertake site visits at short notice to identify issues quickly, allowing production to resume and minimising financial losses.

Glass defects and contamination analysis

Our technical experts analyse glass composition and causes of defects to quickly resolve your production issues. We undertake composition analysis of inclusions, stone, cord, knot, bubbles and blisters, and we examine surface contamination, delamination, misting and blooms. We also assess forming defects and quality concerns in finished products.

Areas we work in:

Glass defects and contamination analysis

Glass composition analysis

We provide ISO/IEC 17025-accredited composition analysis, enabling glass manufacturers to confirm that glass has been made as intended, and potentially determine the cause of a problem. Our methods are created specifically for glass, so they’re accurate and reproducible.
Glass composition analysis

Bespoke glass development and manufacture

Our experts provide a series of small-scale melting trials to confirm the suitability of new raw materials in glass production. We use comparative melting trials to establish differences between compositions or refining systems. The normal trial we offer is based on melting four glasses. The melts are all made to produce 250g of glass. We study the melting and refining of each formulation for 30, 60, 90 and 120 minutes, at a temperature comparable with the customer’s melting temperature.
Bespoke glass development and manufacture

Laser process development

We can help you develop laser processing techniques tailored specifically to glass materials. We have specialist expertise in areas including laser welding technologies, laser cutting, additive manufacture (3D printing) and targeted property modification. Working together, we can develop new products for sectors such as micro-machining, biomedical technologies and advanced optics. We support and collaborate with partners and customers spanning academia and industry.

Areas we work in:

Laser process development

Glass durability and elemental migration analysis

Our experts can verify that your glass complies with international and industry standards. Our durability analysis and testing ensures it’s fit for purpose, it provides the appropriate level of chemical resistance, and it meets all required standards. This is vital for chemically sensitive products such as parenteral pharmaceuticals. However, it is also important to ensure the safety of packaging, preparatory surfaces and vessels for foods and drinks.

Areas we work in:

Glass durability and elemental migration analysis

Finite element analysis (FEA) modelling

We use finite element analysis (FEA) modelling to provide insights into a vast range of processes and scenarios. We combine our software capability with expertise in glass materials and glass manufacture to model heat transfer and stress generating processes, ranging from furnaces to laser processing. This provides vital information that allows you to minimise costs and reduce the probability of failures.
Finite element analysis (FEA) modelling
Glass Technology Services expands with five new job vacancies
News Article

Glass Technology Services expands with five new job vacancies

University of Sheffield students' potential breakthrough solutions on glass melt stirrer design
News Article

University of Sheffield students' potential breakthrough solutions on glass melt stirrer design

Revolutionising optical and photonic glass production: University of Sheffield students' technical and commercial presentations on advanced glass melt stirrer design.

Dr Katrina Skerratt-Love
Why testing for elemental impurities in your drug products is vital – Q&A with senior technologist Abby Mills
News Article

Why testing for elemental impurities in your drug products is vital – Q&A with senior technologist Abby Mills

Toxic elements in drug products pose a massive health risk for consumers, resulting in catastrophic reputational damage for producers, as well as huge cost implications. So it’s no surprise that the levels are strictly regulated, and that extensive analysis is available.

Free webinar series: How to achieve your glass packaging sustainability goals
News Article

Free webinar series: How to achieve your glass packaging sustainability goals

Companies throughout the glass supply chain must find ways to operate more sustainably. In view of this, Glass Technology Services is hosting a free to attend webinar series to help manufacturers, brands and retailers achieve their packaging sustainability targets.

Glass Technology Services to attend Pharmapack 2022
News Article

Glass Technology Services to attend Pharmapack 2022

Glass Technology Services will be attending Pharmapack 2022 in Paris on the 18-19 May. This free-to-attend event brings together those who work across the sector to network and learn about the latest packaging trends and opportunities.

Recent projects

Project

EnviroAsh investigates the potential for using biomass and other wastes as raw materials across the foundation industries

This project has identified opportunities to convert waste materials and other by-products from across the foundation industries into new raw materials for glass, ceramic and cement products.
EnviroAsh glass sample
Project

AI6S project examines energy and waste reduction in the foundation industries

We will be taking part in the AI6S project which will develop a novel toolkit for process optimisation across the glass, cement, paper, ceramics, metals and bulk chemicals industries.
AI6S project examines energy and waste reduction in the foundation industries
Project

A market survey of applications and manufacturing processes of foam glass

BRE and Glass Technology Services investigated the use of waste material to generate a building product or high value lightweight aggregate for insulation purposes.
Project

Bottle rightweighting - beer, cider and spirits

Bottle rightweighting - a process of packaging design and production to optimise packaging weight, whilst taking into account the requirements of all stakeholders in the supply chain, including manufacturers, brand owners, fillers, retailers, consumers and the environment.
Bottle rightweighting - beer, cider and spirits

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