On Tuesday, we have visit the National Glass Centre.When came into the gate, I was attracted by its beautiful building and company culture. So I do some research for this company.
Introduction:
National Glass Centre was officially opened by HRH Prince Charles in October 1998. NGC won the first major Lottery award in the North East and it was the first Lottery-funded building to be constructed.
Background:
The National Glass Centre is located in Monkwearmouth, on the north banks of the River Wear, on the former site of J.L. Thompson and Sons shipyard. The centre is close to the site of St. Peter's Church, part of the original Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Priory built in 674. It was here that Benedict Biscop introduced glass making into Britain, by hiring French glaziers to make the windows for the priory. The glass-making industry exploded in the eighteenth century, driven by an abundance of cheap coal and high-quality imported sand. Sunderland glass became known throughout the country.In later years, the Pyrex brand of glassware was manufactured in Sunderland. In 2007, the last two remaining glass firms in Sunderland - Corning Glass Works and Arc International (who make Pyrex) - announced they would close.
Introduction:
National Glass Centre was officially opened by HRH Prince Charles in October 1998. NGC won the first major Lottery award in the North East and it was the first Lottery-funded building to be constructed.
The building sits on the site of the former J.L.Thompson ship yard, which is acknowledged and reflected in the architecture of the NGC building. The site is also a stone's throw away from the historic St. Peter's Church. Glass making in England was established here in 674AD when glaziers from France brought the skill to the monastic community of Wearmouth.
Background:
The National Glass Centre is located in Monkwearmouth, on the north banks of the River Wear, on the former site of J.L. Thompson and Sons shipyard. The centre is close to the site of St. Peter's Church, part of the original Monkwearmouth-Jarrow Priory built in 674. It was here that Benedict Biscop introduced glass making into Britain, by hiring French glaziers to make the windows for the priory. The glass-making industry exploded in the eighteenth century, driven by an abundance of cheap coal and high-quality imported sand. Sunderland glass became known throughout the country.In later years, the Pyrex brand of glassware was manufactured in Sunderland. In 2007, the last two remaining glass firms in Sunderland - Corning Glass Works and Arc International (who make Pyrex) - announced they would close.
Despite the decline in the industry, in 1998 the centre was opened for £17 million. It was funded by the Arts Council in conjunction with the University of Sunderland, Tyne and Wear Development Corporation, European Regional Development Fund and Sunderland City Council. The centre, located alongside the university's St. Peter's campus, continued the regeneration of the banks of the Wear.
How to produce glasses
Glass making is a fascinating and skillful process that combines the sciences of chemistry and physics with art and creativity. There are many different techniques involved in creating glass objects; glass blowing, glass moulding and slumplassing, sandcasting and lamp working to name a few.
We are lucky to see a common technique for producing glasses-----Blowing Glass.For mouth blowing, a hollow blowing-iron or piipe is dipped into a pot containing molten glass and the glass is gathered at the end of the pipe by rotaing it, similarly to gathering treacle on to a spoon.
Glassblowing involves three furnaces The first, which contains a crucible of molten glass, is simply referred to as "the furnace."The second is called the "glory hole", and is used to reheat a piece in between steps of working with it.The final furnace is called the "lehr" or "annealer", and is used to slowly cool the glass,over a period of a few hours to a few days , depending on the size of the pieces.The major tools involved are the blowpipe (or blow tube), the punty (or pontil), bench, marver , seers, blocks, jacks, paddles , tweezers , paper, and a variety of shears .
So let's see how to blowing glasses.
In this video,you can see all processes to product glasses
Production
To us, this visit is fantastic, we know more about the glass product, and we can learn the spirit of the company culture.As they said: "Every contribution large or small is important to us"
Reference:
Frank, S 1982. Glass and Archaeology. Academic Press: London
Retrieved 2 September 2010 From: http://www.nationalglasscentre.com/news-and-media.html
Vose, R.H. 1989. Glass. Collins Archaeology: London.
Member of team
Sam; Nancy; Yang; Calvin
