Meet Bill Davis
Technical Services and Product Manager, Vitro Architectural Glass
Bill Davis is something of a glass fortune teller – he can see the future of glass, because he’s been an expert in the field for much of its recent past as a leading building product.
Throughout his twenty-five years in the glass and glazing industry, Bill has held several roles related to glass production, from sealants and structural glazing to insulating glass technology. In fact, he started his career with PPG in the 1990s and has worked in glass research and development for the first decade.Since rejoining Vitro and taking on the role of Technical Services and Product Manager, Bill primarily works with Vitro’s technical service team and assists in marketing Vitro’s latest innovative product launches. Within Vitro, Bill acts as an internal and external expert on several products, including the Intercept® Insulating Glass Spacer system and VacuMax™ Vacuum Insulating Glass (VIG).
“Our team provides technical services for Intercept® licensees and VCN members by providing performance calculations for product configurations and offering onsite audits,” Bill says.
One of Bill’s biggest roles in supporting VCN members is investigating any questions Vitro receives about thermal performance calculations, as well as questions relating to glazing or installing newer products like VacuMax™ VIG in windows.
“We’re seeing an increase in interest in high-performance products and their thermal insulation capabilities,” says Bill. “This is really being driven by changes in code standards for commercial products.”
Experts like Bill believe that more stringent building energy codes will soon create a de facto minimum requirement of triple-glazed glass or even vacuum insulating glass to meet performance standards in multiple major cities. We’re already seeing changes like this in places like Massachusetts, which implemented its Stretch Code in 2023.
As these codes advance, the focus has begun to shift from not only heat rejection but to thermal performance as well. Vitro’s newest product launches like VacuMax™ VIG and Sungate ThermL™ glass, both supported by Bill, offer ways to maximize performance.
“What we really want our VCN audience to know is that they can always reach out to Vitro’s technical services team to get Vitro product application advice and the performance calculations they need,” says Bill. “Statistics for some of our upcoming product launches like Sungate ThermL™ glass are not yet available in Vitro’s Construct tool, though they will be soon.”
When he’s not predicting the future of glass, Bill enjoys traveling with his wife Cheri. The two recently returned from a trip to Italy, but their favorite trip they’ve ever taken together was to Switzerland. At home, Bill enjoys hiking with his dog and working on hands-on building projects in his home workshop.
To get in touch with Bill, email him at wdavis@vitro.com.
