Glassbuild 2024: Continental Wows Trade Fair Crowd with a Wide Range of Applications

From September 30 to October 2, 2024, the international glass, window, and door industry came together in Dallas, Texas, for the Glassbuild trade fair. Continental made its mark, showcasing a broad selection of its product range, with a special focus on its surface films, Conti® woodec and Conti® mattex.

This year’s Glassbuild put a spotlight on trend colors, wood designs, and other exciting innovations in the glass, window, and door industries. With over 9,400 attendees, it was the most successful fair in the last 16 years. Spanning 200,000 square meters, 535 exhibitors from around the world showcased their latest products – including Continental. The tech giant used the event to connect with current customers and spark interest from new ones with its cutting-edge and versatile offerings. Partnering with Austrian company FUX, visitors got to see a live demonstration of how Conti® films are applied to profiles during the lamination process.

Continental-Messestand auf der Glassbuild

Live Lamination Process Demonstrations at the Booth

“Lamination is now a go-to surface finishing technology,” says Marco Patermann, who oversees the Exterior Films division in North and Latin America for Continental. He explains that while it wasn’t taken seriously a decade ago, interest in lamination has soared thanks to its superior performance, tactile feel, and visual appeal. “Foiled surfaces for exteriors will only grow in popularity,” Patermann adds, noting that it's not just a hit in the window industry but also with aluminum partitions, canopies, and sidings—all of which were on display at the booth. In Canada, where lamination took off before it did in the U.S., it’s already the top method, and it will be a major topic at Windoor, Canada’s version of Glassbuild, happening November 13-14, 2024, where Continental will also be exhibiting.

Spotlight on Conti® woodec and Conti® mattex

At the Continental booth, the spotlight was on Conti® woodec and Conti® mattex. The woodec designs stand out for their unique matte finish and depth, making window profiles, doors, gates, and facades look remarkably high-end and authentic. The star of the show was Conti® woodec Tropea Oak Cognac, which was developed specifically for the American market. Meanwhile, Conti® mattex offers an ultra-matte finish that’s finely textured but durable, perfectly mimicking the look and feel of powder-coated aluminum. Continental also introduced its cool colors PLUS technology, which minimizes heat buildup in exterior laminates, setting a new industry standard. Live demos of these innovations were a hit with visitors. “We had a strong turnout each day of the fair, and we’re very pleased with how it all went,” says Joshua Snyder, Head of Construction Americas at Continental.