On the 4th of last month, an unfortunate accident occurred in Chicago, USA, where as many as 1,000 migratory birds collided with a glass building overnight and died en masse. According to data, in Korea, from 2019 to July of this year, more than 40,000 birds were found dead after crashing into windows. According to a survey conducted by the National Institute of Ecology from 2017 to 2018, about 8 million wild birds die every year from hitting transparent glass windows in Korea. The international community holds a campaign to protect migratory birds by designating Migratory Bird Day every October, and Korea appears to be actively participating in this. In June of last year, the ‘Wildlife Protection and Management Act’ was passed in the plenary session of the National Assembly, thereby reducing the damage caused by birds and other wild animals colliding with or falling into artificial structures of government agencies such as transparent windows and soundproof walls. In other words, a thick linear pattern must be added to the transparent window. Meanwhile, a domestic company has developed innovative bird collision prevention glass and is receiving a great attention. 

 

Seungwoo Technology introduces bird collision prevention glass

4cm x 8cm size for all birds living in Korea, colors that birds recognize easily

Bird strikes occur wherever there are glass walls and birds can fly such including bus stops. To prevent this, bureaucrats stick stickers on the glass but with no effect and it makes the glass dirty. But Seungwoo Technology’s bird collision prevention glass perfectly compensates for this problem. This product is made of a ceramic material with the same composition as glass and has a 4cm x 8cm pattern with a three-dimensional silk screen print. The color that birds recognize best is selected, painted, and then heated to approximately 700°C. The inorganic ceramic ink fired at high temperature melts and completely penetrates into the glass, so it has the effect of becoming integrated with the glass, and it does not erase or discolor. It is ‘In Glass’, where the same printed surface is visible symmetrically on both sides, and can be used permanently without discoloration or damage until the glass is broken after installation. It is a double-strength reinforced bonded safety transparent plate made by joining two sheets of glass with a special UV bonding resin.

 

Permanent lifespan

According to the American Ornithological Society, birds will not attempt to fly through a glass structure if it is less than 5 cm in height or less than 10 cm in width. This is called the 5×10 rule, and Korea also follows it. However, there are three species of birds smaller than this living in Korea, and Seungwoo Technology made it 4×8 for these birds. Bird prevention stickers, which are widely used around the world, have a fatal flaw in that they have a very short lifespan. Although the durability is expected to be approximately 7 to 10 years, experts predict that the actual durability will be much shorter than this due to recent abnormal climate phenomena. However, Seungwoo Technology’s ‘Wild Bird Collision Prevention Glass’ can be used permanently, so there is no need to worry about such problems, and economic losses due to sticker replacement can also be reduced.

 

Installed at bus stops in Incheon Metropolitan City and proven to be effective

Economic and low cost installation

The company’s products were installed at 200 bus stops in Songdo International City and Cheongna International City in Incheon, and not a single bird collision incident occurred, and none were lost or damaged. For this reason, this product is considered to be the most successful example of the type of bird collision prevention installed in Korea, and became the reason it was later installed at military bases in Pocheon and Gapyeong. Bumsuk Jeong from the company said “Our products, which are installed on roads and bus stops, are molded integrally with the adhesive layer inside the plate glass, so even when the temperature rises in the summer or drops in the winter, the bird recognition printed layer does not melt or deform at all. Therefore, the printed layer for bird recognition can always be maintained in a clear state, and the glass does not become dirty. Not only can it reliably prevent collisions with wild birds, but it is also an excellent product in terms of road aesthetics and economics.” Considering the cost of periodic replacement due to the nature of sticker-type products, this is also highly economical.

 

More effective when installed in soundproof on roads

‘Removable soundproof panel’ selected as an excellent invention by Korea Invention Promotion Agency

One of the places where bird collisions occur most frequently in Korea is the soundproof wall installed on the automobile road. Soundproof walls frequently need to be replaced because they are frequently damaged by small stones thrown from cars, but Seungwoo Technology’s transparent windows are structurally less prone to damage and are much easier to replace than other products. It is in the form of a detachable panel, and two support pillars are installed in the middle of the panel to distribute the entire load of the soundproof panel to the lower and horizontal directions. Therefore, it prevents panel distortion and damage in advance due to tremors in the structural section and vibration section. In addition, the panel and rubber packing are molded into male and female grooves to fasten the glass, and in case of breakage, only the damaged glass can be removed and easily replaced. In addition, since the rubber packing is fastened to the packing groove in advance, the rubber packing does not get caught at all, and it also prevents the aged packing from peeling or sagging. This naturally leads to an innovative reduction in maintenance costs, and through this, the product was certified as an excellent invention. Jeong said “The soundproof wall is made of 1m glass that goes up layer by layer. If you go up to level 20, the total load is about 6 tons. As the load on glass increases, its durability decreases and it is easily broken by even small impacts. Our products distribute the load of the lower panel throughout, resulting in increased durability. In addition, the aluminum panel mounted on the transparent soundproofing plate is a patented technology product designed for easy attachment and detachment, and can be easily attached and detached horizontally from the bottom of the soundproof wall with small equipment and a minimum number of people. Our detachable soundproofing panel, which dramatically reduces maintenance costs, was selected as an excellent invention by the Korea Invention Promotion Agency.” 

 

Received an explosive response from domestic and foreign officials at the ‘2023 Korea International Construction & Industrial Safety Expo’

There is an urgent need for fire accident prevention measures in soundproof tunnels. Is ‘wire mesh glass’, which also has a bird collision prevention function, an alternative?

Seungwoo Technology received an explosive response from domestic and foreign officials at the ‘2023 Korea International Construction & Industrial Safety Expo’ including local bureaucrats and officials of the Neom City of Saudi Arabia. The company has also recently succeeded in developing wire mesh glass, which is a product with improved durability. Wire mesh glass products were developed to prevent fire accidents. They contain wire mesh inside the glass, so they are much more durable than regular glass and can also be used to prevent bird collisions. Jeong said “Our wire mesh glass is resistant to strong winds blowing at 50 meters per second. This effect has been proven through test reports, and it is the most suitable product for Ulleungdo Airport and Gadeokdo New Airport, which are currently under construction.”

 

Creating a city where humanity and nature can coexist

Seungwoo Technology plans to focus on developing various products to help humanity coexist with nature and make the cityscape more beautiful. Jeong said “We are still in the beginning stages, so we plan to work harder to promote our products. We plan to actively enter the global market in the future. We hope that many people will recognize our good will and join us.”

신태섭 기자  tss79@naver.com