The panels of an Apple store glass roof are a 9-layer cake of delicious 21st century glass technology, 15 feet long by 8 feet wide and gently curved.
The new Houston store, opening in Highland Village this Friday, features two types of panel and a slightly different approach to glass ceilings than the topper on the NYC Upper West Side store that inspired it.
The 28 center panels feature four layers of “Low-Iron Fully Toughened” glass, an air cavity, a couple of “SGP Interlayers” and two layers of 100% opaque white frit. The Fritting process involves screen printing ceramic frit paint onto the glass and fusing it onto the surface during the heat strengthening process. The result is a tough decorative glass. The opaque frit layers are white on top and light grey on the underside.
The 26 perimeter panels have a 50% opaque grit filter layer. This combination of opaque and semi-opaque panels, along with the clear glass front and back walls, should let in plenty of light without making customers feel like ants under a magnifying glass during the hot Texas summers.
More about the Highland Village Apple Store.
Apple drawings by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson
