The Department of Education & Training in Victoria has improved the safety of children at school under the Victorian Schools Glass Rectification Programme by ensuring all the glass in the states schools are up to the standard for human impact; AS 1288 with reference to AS 2208.
1,600 schools in Victoria have either replaced glass with safety glazing or coated it with safety window film, where required. There was approximately 140,000 square metres of glass in the entire project and Bekaert Specialty Films supplied in excess of 50% of the window film required.
Bekaert supplied Armorgard which has been independently tested in USA and Australia by acknowledged testing organisations including the C.S.I.R.O. Specific to the Victorian project was that it surpassed the human impact standard but it has also been tested for optical and solar properties, its performance in bomb blasts and just as importantly, abrasion and longevity tests and fire related property tests.
Specific Armorgard window films passed the impact test requirements of AS/NZS 2208-1996, ASTM 1044-86 (resistance of plastic to scratch abrasion) and ASTM 1003-61 (haze and luminous transmittance of plastics). Additionally, Armorgard satisfied the level three blast requirements of the US Government’s General Services Administration (GSA) which is also relevant for Australia.
Additional Armorgard benefits include its ability to reject 99% of UV light emitted by the sun so that it protects people, and also protects curtains, furniture, carpets and other valuable objects from fading. Solar versions of Armorgard stop up to 80% of the sun’s solar energy to keep interiors cooler, thus saving energy costs.
“We are delighted to be involved in such an important project,” Paul Mealing, National Accounts Manager for Bekaert in Australia says. “There is nothing more important that keeping children safe at schools where they spend a great deal of their time and are generally very active. I commend the Department for being proactive.”
