Ball Drop Test – by AGC FLAT GLASS

Dear Friends,
How are you this past few weeks, I hope that you’re in a good health and good mood…..
I would like to highlight another test by AGC Flat Glass which is very interesting in my opinion, this test would change your mind set.

This test was done by AGC Europe to highlight the safety application of glass usage for wall cladding, as you know that glass, especially Decomirror (Tinted mirror) and Lacobel (Painted Glass) are having an increasing trend for interior usage. With it, there is also an increasing concern if glass usage is really safe for interior usage, you know, our mind is already set that glass are fragile, easy to breakage and harm people when the incident happened.

In the last few editions, we have seen the safety glazing article & pendulum test by AGC, which proof that glass application in interior can be safe with its SAFE application (safety back film).
Now we’re going to see the Ball drop test which is meant to simulate the application of wall cladding and compare the material usage between glass and ceramic.





In the 1st scene, a 6mm Lacobel SAFE was installed as wall cladding, which is silicon glued, and a steel ball weighted 500 grams was prepared to be dropped from 4.5 m height. When the ball dropped, we could see that the ball drop right to the glass and bounced high, several times, and caused no breakage to the glass.

2nd scene, same glass was used (6mm Lacobel SAFE, silicon glued), with same 500 grams steel ball, but with higher drop, 6 m. and similar case happened, it caused no breakage.
3rd scene, same glass (6mm Lacobel SAFE, silicon glued), heavier steel ball, 1000 grams (1Kg) dropped from 2.5 m height, no breakage as well.

4th scene, its time to compare the material, this time a ceramic wall tile was installed with classic mortar (wall cladding application), and a stell ball weighted 1 Kg was dropped from 2.5 m height (same condition with test no. 3). We can see that after the ball was dropped, it is not bounced as high as when it was dropped to glass material, afterward when the camera is zooming in, we could see that impact caused the ceramic wall tile to be dented and break.

5th scene, the people in AGC apparently not satisfied with the result, they are now doing test on thinner glass, 4mm Lacobel SAFE, silicon glued was used, with 500 grams weighted steel ball, dropped from 1.1 m height. The result is similar to the previous test on glass, no breakage was seen.

So, contrary to popular belief, in wall cladding application, glass vs ceramic wall tile, was tested in similar method, and the result showed that glass application as wall cladding with the proper installation is as safe as ceramic wall tile if not better, since it could create brighter, spacious ambience in the room.
Hope this test would clear all your doubt on the glass application for interior usage and now, start designing those interior of yours with Asahimas’s Lacobel and Decomirror range.

Thanks for your attention, contact us for any inquiry.