PRL Glass: Rethinking Integrated Glazing for Modern Architecture

Picture this: you're designing a coastal government building that needs to withstand hurricane-force winds, meet ballistic security requirements, and comply with fire safety codes—all while maintaining the light-filled, transparent aesthetic your client wants. You work with numerous different product suppliers, wait months for custom fabrication, and cross your fingers that everything integrates properly on site. There has to be a better way.

PRL Glass Systems offers that better way. As one of North America's few fully integrated glass and aluminum manufacturers, they produce ballistic, hurricane-impact, and fire-rated glazing systems entirely in-house—from raw materials to finished installation. Instead of coordinating multiple vendors and compromising on their designs, architects get custom protective glazing and aluminium framing that truly corresponds with the project vision, delivered in a fraction of the time.

PRL's vertical integration solves the protective glazing challenges that have long frustrated architects through speed, customization, and high-quality fabrication. Let’s explore:

Speed Without Compromise

While most suppliers quote 8-12 weeks for custom protective glazing, PRL's 250,000-square-foot integrated facility delivers dramatically faster:

• Fire-rated Keralite® glass-ceramic: next-day service on standard sizes from North America's largest inventory
• Custom ballistic laminated glass: 1-2 week turnaround versus industry-standard 8-12 weeks
• Hurricane-impact systems: rapid delivery with complete testing and certification

This speed doesn't sacrifice quality—it's the result of PRL Glass’ commitment to controlling every production step under one roof, eliminating the delays and coordination failures that plague traditional supply chains.

Customization Enables Better Design

Today’s design trends require expansive protection without visual interruption. PRL manufactures laminated glass up to 60" x 96"—among the largest available anywhere. Since the same facility handles tempering, lamination, and frame extrusion, custom becomes standard. This capability enables more beautiful, functional design across myriad project applications:

• Floor-to-ceiling impact-resistant storefront systems for coastal retail
• All-glass entrance systems for maintain transparency while providing the highest standards of protection
• Fewer mullions and frame interruptions in high-security facilities
• High-performance curtainwall solutions that seamlessly integrate materials
• Top of-the-the line smaller scale solutions from showers to balcony railings to accordion doors with custom etching and frosting options
  
  

Multi-Hazard Protection, Single Source Manufacturing

Modern buildings often face multiple simultaneous threats—a reality that traditional protective glazing struggles to address. PRL's integrated approach enables systems that meet ballistic (UL 752 Levels 1-8), hurricane impact (ASTM E1886/E1996), and fire resistance (20-180 minute ratings) requirements without performance trade-offs. 

As a one-stop manufacturer, PRL takes accountability with complete system warranties that eliminate the complications that often occur when glass, frames, and hardware come from different suppliers. When something needs adjustment or replacement, there's one phone call to make.

The result: real solutions for complex specifications and better design outcomes.

Why These Products Matter

Acelab features PRL Glass Systems in Material Hub because architects deserve better than the protective glazing status quo. The industry has long forced designers to choose between security and aesthetics, between protection and transparency, between what buildings need and what they could be.

PRL is a manufacturer that proves those choices don’t need to be made any longer. When you search for protective glazing solutions, the Material Hub connects you directly with manufacturers like them who've solved the integration challenges, eliminated the wait times, and delivered the custom capabilities that make ambitious designs possible. 

For more information about PRL Glass Systems protective glazing technologies and complete architectural glass and aluminum systems, contact your PRL Glass rep.