Architectural glass percent of the world's flat glass is produced by the float glass process invented in the 1950s by Sir Alastair Pilkington of Pilkington Glass, in which molten glass is poured onto one end of a molten tin bath. The glass floats on the tin, and levels out as it spreads along the bath, giving a smooth face to both sides. The glass cools and slowly solidifies as it travels over the molten tin and leaves the tin bath in a continuous ribbon. The glass is then annealed by cooling in an oven called a lehr. The finished product has near-perfect
Planing (shaping) are more easily sharpened and fabricated. Internal shapes can be made by using a special extension tool. Although the most common material to be planed or shaped is wood, there are planers and shaping machines capable of processing anything from metal pieces to plastic objects. [1] Todd, Robert H and Allen, Dell K. (1994) "Manufacturing Processes Reference Guide". New York, NY: Industrial Press Inc. pg. 124-125. Planing (shaping) Planing is a manufacturing process of material removal in which the workpiece reciprocates against a stationary cutting tool producing a plane or sculpted surface. Planing is analogous to shaping. The main difference