also have been installed in jets, helicopters, watercraft and appliances. In 2002, readers of Popular Science magazine voted SPD technology as their favorite technology out of the year's 100 leading innovations. Also in 2002, the Society of Automotive Engineers named SPD-Smart aircraft cabin windows as one of the year's top technologies. CONCLUSION Demand for switchable glazings is expected to be highest in the architectural and automotive application segments. Recent increases in glass usage in both of these areas point to concomitant needs to manage light, glare and heat. While aggregate category revenues are relatively small, several factors indicate that growth over the coming years in the focus of this study – architectural switchable glazings - will be significant. A number of driving forces are propelling this advancement. These forces include: 1.) the large scale introduction of smart glass, 2.) steadily rising demand for windows and doors, 3.) consumer interest quality-of-life enabling technologies, 4.) the positive impact of daylighting, and 5.) a movement toward increased energy efficiency. An exploratory study of US architects on the subject of switchable glazings revealed moderately strong levels of awareness of this category of products but limited knowledge. A variety of factors will influence the degree to which architects specify switchable glazings in future projects. Product attributes will certainly play a major role, with those of greatest importance including: 1.) the ability to control light without blocking one's view, 2.) product warranties, and 3.) protection against solar heat gain. Current usage of switchable glazings is modest and growing, and interest is strong. Assuming reasonable costs, the architects studied expect that 13.5% of all new exterior and interior windows, doors, and skylights will contain switchable glazings by 2009. Opportunities presently exist for switchable glazing products that can accommodate innovative architectural designs, offer significant functional benefits for projects that are difficult to shade or that require low maintenance, and that contribute significantly to the safety and security demands of the new millennium. Switchable glazings are in the introductory stage of their product life cycle. The benefits and value they bring to end-users are significant, and their future is extremely bright. In the near-term, the greatest opportunity to accelerate market demand for switchable glazings may exist in simply bringing their benefits to the attention of a larger and wider sphere of consumers and businesses. Thus, while the market's driving forces clearly are leading the way for switchable glazings, market development | initiatives by businesses associated with switchables can further propel their evolution as one the world's most pervasive technological advances. REFERENCES 1. R.J. Best, Market-Based Management, 3rd ed., Upper Saddle River, Prentice Hall, 2003. 2. W.M. Pride & O.C. Ferrell, Marketing Concepts and Strategies, 12th ed., Houghton Mifflin Company, New York, 2003. 3. G.M. Sottile, "Assessment of Attitudes and Expectations of Switchable Glass Among United States Window Manufacturers", 45th Annual Technical Conference Proceedings, Society of Vacuum Coaters, p. 163, 2002. 4. C.L. Grahl, "Flat, specialty glass reflect weak economy; container glass markets remain strong," Ceramic Industry, 152, 37, 2002. 5. United States Census Bureau, Current Industrial Reports, Flat Glass, 1997. 6. The Freedonia Group (Cleveland, OH), US Industry Study, "Advanced Flat Glass: Smart, Self-Cleaning, Security & Other Value-Added Products," 2002. 7. A.A. Thompson, Jr., & A.J. Strickland, Jr., Strategic Management: Concepts and Cases, 13th ed., New York, McGraw–Hill Irwin, 2003. 8. The Freedonia Group (Cleveland, OH), "News from The Freedonia Group: World Windows & Doors Demand to Reach US$147 Billion in 2007," Business Wire, January 8, 2004. 9. J. Swanson, Window & Door Magazine, "Overall Sales Levels Predicted to Remain Strong for 2004," 12 (1) 70, 2004. 10. J.N. Sheth, & B. Mittal, Customer Behavior: A Managerial Perspective, 2nd ed., Thompson South- Western,Mason,(2004). 11. United States Energy Information Administration, "Household with Selected Appliances and types of Main Heating Fuel, 1978-2001", http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/aer/txt/ptb0207.html, 2004. 12. R&D Magazine, "Booming PDA Market," 45 (4) 15, 2003. |
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