Opening Hours
Monday – Friday: 8h00 – 17h00
Call Us
+27 21 713 2001
Email Us
info@glassbenders.co.za
Opening Hours
Monday – Friday: 8h00 – 17hoo
Call Us
+27 21 713 2001
Email Us
info@glassbenders.co.za
Welcome to
Glass Benders
Glass Benders manufacture and supply quality curved and laminated glass to clients throughout Africa and abroad.
Our experience and commitment to product development allow us to custom make unique glass products for a wide range of applications including large curved-glass panels for architectural projects, architectural curved glass for residential or commercial buildings, shop fitting panels and deli-counter glass guards, curved glass furniture and curved panels for yachts, vintage vehicles and antique cabinets.
Glass Benders is based in Cape Town, South Africa
All manufacturing takes place at our Cape Town plant. From here, products are crated with care and shipped worldwide.
At our plant in Cape Town we:
Cut, polish, process, bend and laminate glass
In 2017, Glass Benders installed a laminating kiln and are now able to laminate their own glass in-house.
We bend any thickness
We can bend any thickness of glass up to and including 19mm glass and we can bend to any radius.
Straight line polishing machine
We have a straight line polishing machine for in-house cutting and polishing and we can outsource any irregular shape to be cut and polished on a CNC machine.
We have 4 specialized glass bending kilns
The largest of which can accommodate a 3000mm x 2500mm piece of glass. Our EVA Laminating machine can also accommodate panels up to 3000mm x 2500mm.
150 Stainless steel moulds
We have more than 150 stainless steel moulds and can make a mould for any curve, should we not have one to fit your required shape.
Sourced from Italy
Our EVA, sourced from Italy, has good UV and humidity resistance and high light transmittance, making it ideal for outside use, especially for swimming pool inserts.
OUR VISION
Through our experience and commitment to product development, we custom make unique, bespoke curved and laminated glass products for a wide range of applications.
Our Mission
To provide high-quality and time driven projects. Because all of the work is done in-house we have the ability to turn around urgent orders within a few days when necessary, we can cut, polish, bend, laminate and have it crated and ready to ship in 3 days.
Our Values
Integrity, professionalism and trustworthiness are some of our core values. Other values include loyalty, diversity, teamwork and accountability.
PROJECTS COMPLETED
YEARS IN THE GLASS BUSINESS
COUNTRIES SHIPPED TO
We supply products for a wide variety of
Architectural & Commercial Applications
We are able to meet most specifications for specialized requirements; such as high UV resistance, coloured laminates and applied colours or patterns.
Walk-over skylights and glass floors.
Shop fronts
Canopies
Multi-laminated glass for glass swimming pool windows and pool rims
Deli-counters and jewellery counters (rendering smash and grab impossible
Windscreen glass for vintage vehicles that are no longer able to source the appropriate glass from the manufacturers
Office partitions and work-stations
Revolving doors
Furniture
Convex glass mirrors
Glass canopies
Curved glass curtain walls
Yacht windscreens
Light-house glass
Shop fitting
Switchable glass
Get in touch with us
WHAT OUR CLIENTS HAVE TO SAY
Did you know?
How is curved glass made?
Glass is bent by applying heat in specialized glass bending kilns. As the heated glass sheet softens, it forms over the specific mould that is being used. Moulds are made from templates or created from CAD drawings. Annealed glass bends can be laminated to produce laminated safety glass bends.
What is the largest piece of curved glass that Glass Benders can manufacture?
The bed size of our largest kiln is 3m x 2.5m
What is the maximum radius for bending a piece of glass?
We can’t bend a piece of glass beyond a radius of 180° – we can make a semi-circle, but not a full circle or tube of glass.
Can you make an irregular curved piece of glass?
Yes! – As long as none of the curves go beyond 180°.
What is annealed glass?
Annealed glass is the basic flat glass product that is the first result of the float process. It is the common glass (used in window glazing) that tends to break into large, jagged shards. It is used in some end products and often in double-glazed windows. It is also the starting material used to produce more advanced products through further processing such as curving and laminating, toughening, coating, etc.
What is laminated glass?
Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that holds together when shattered. In the event of breaking, it is held in place by an interlayer, typically of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) or ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), between its two or more layers of glass.
What is toughened glass?
Toughened or tempered glass is a type of safety glass processed by controlled thermal or chemical treatments to increase its strength compared with normal glass. Tempering puts the outer surfaces into compression and the inner surfaces into tension.
What is extra white glass?
Extra white glass is a low-iron glass that does not have the slight green hue that ordinary clear glass has. It is also referred to as Diamant or Opti-white glass.
What types of coloured glass are available?
Glass can be coloured in a variety of ways:
- Introducing colour in the manufacturing of the glass (mostly used in the manufacture of specialised art/craft glass sheets),
- Using coloured laminate sheets between two pieces of glass. The use of coloured laminates provides a translucent effect and is useful where glass translucency is important.
- Applying specialized paint coatings. This is the most common way of colouring glass and is used extensively for splashbacks and cladding. There is a wide variety of standard colours available, or colour swatches can be matched. It is usually advisable to use extra white glass for this method of colouring glass.
- Performance glass often has a coating that gives it a colour – usually a metallic or mirror effect.
What types of mirror are available?
Mirror comes in silver, grey and bronze
What is high performance glass?
A high performance glass product has three principal performance criteria: insulating performance or U-factor, solar control or solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC), and visible light transmittance (Tv). High performance glass products allow structures to include large expanses of glass so that they can take advantage of daylighting opportunities while keeping energy costs at a minimum.
Can images or logos be applied to glass?
Yes. Glass can be enhanced in a variety of ways:
- Sandblasting
- Vinyl application
- Specialised paint treatment