The Fenestration and Glazing Industry Alliance (FGIA) has approved funding for long-overdue updates of three Canadian glass standards to better meet the Canadian government’s environmental sustainability goals, facilitated by the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB).
CGSB is a federal government organization offering comprehensive standards development, and it is accredited by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC) as a Standards Development Organization. CGSB has selected three glass standards for which the SCC have committed funding to update, with the intent of undertaking a review of the environmental and climate resiliency components in the next editions. This is in support of the Canadian government’s efforts to prioritize environmental issues.
The three standards that will be updated by CGSB with funding approval from SCC are:
- CAN/CGSB-12.1-2022, Safety Glazing
- CAN/CGSB-12.8-2017 (R2022), Insulating Glass Units
- CAN/CGSB-12.20-M89, Structural Design of Glass for Buildings (withdrawn)
“This is wonderful news,” said Amy Roberts, FGIA director of Canadian and Technical Glass Operations. “Some of the Canadian glass standards are long overdue for revision. With changes to the National Building Codes as well as more stringent energy requirements, keeping the standards relevant is vitally important.”
FGIA and Fenestration Association of BC (FENBC) attempted to secure funding for revisions to these standards in 2019 and 2020, with no success, Roberts said. “To have the Standards to Support Resilience in Infrastructure Program, led by the Standards Council of Canada, offering funding for updating these valuable glass standards is a big step forward.”
The CAN/CGSB 12.20, Structural Design of Glass in Buildings, has remained on its current edition since 1989 and is currently in a “withdrawn” status. According to CGSB, the information contained in a withdrawn standard may no longer represent the most current, reliable, and/or available information on the identified subject(s). Additionally, the CAN/CGSB 12.8, Insulating Glass Units, is the standard used for IGMAC insulating glass certification. While the latter standard was reaffirmed in 2022, it has not been revised since 1997.
