Garden room at a villa
Thermal-break frames and solar-control glass
Smart glass partitions
Put switchable glass into a partition and the screen stops being joinery and becomes a piece of electrical equipment standing in a room. Each pane is a laminate with a film and a connection buried in its edge, which means it arrives at a size fixed at order and can never be trimmed, drilled or notched to suit what the builder left. Low voltage has to reach every panel without showing, a driver has to live somewhere reachable, and the behaviour everybody actually asks about — what the room looks like when the power goes off — is a property of the technology rather than a setting. Those four facts decide whether it belongs in your room.
- fixed at order panel sizes
- hidden in the frame the wiring
- milky, not clear with the power off
What a live screen needs
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Never cut on site
Panels
The film ends at the ordered edge
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Into the glazing rebate
Cable
The connection must not be seen
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Reachable and ventilated
Driver
It is the part that gets replaced
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Opaque at rest
Power off
The room stays private, not bare
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Swapped, not repaired
A failed pane
The frame has to let it out
Visit our window design showroom
See profiles, glass units and hardware in person and meet the engineers who draw your project. Come with the plans or photos of the openings.
The Pinnacle Building · Sheikh Zayed Road
- Address
- The Pinnacle Building, Sheikh Zayed Road, Office 607, Dubai
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 9:00 – 18:00
Profile Options
Consult with a specialist
Profile finish and coating options
Powder coating in any shade of the RAL palette; the colour is confirmed against a physical sample at the survey.
Anodising builds an oxide layer on the profile itself, so the colour belongs to the metal rather than to a film on top of it and cannot peel.
Wood-grain and stone-effect finishes are transferred onto the powder coating. The profile keeps the strength of aluminium and never needs repainting.
Available colours (200+ RAL shades)
- White
- Anthracite
- Brown
- Black
- Grey-anthracite
- Grey
Anodised finishes
- Natural silver
- Champagne
- Light bronze
- Medium bronze
- Dark bronze
- Black anodised
Wood-grain and special effects
- Golden oak
- Walnut
- Dark oak
- Concrete
- Basalt
- Wenge
Specifying a switchable screen
- The room's privacy pattern established first Occasional, or wanted all day
- Sizes frozen from a survey of the built room Not from the architect's drawing
- Low-voltage route drawn to every panel Down from the head or up from the floor
- Driver given an accessible home Behind a panel somebody can open
- Switching agreed with your integrator A wall plate, a scene, or the building system
- Frame built so a pane can come out Beads and trims that unscrew
Profile Systems
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Schuco
Learn more about SchucoSchüco aluminium systems carry large panes on slim frames — for villas, apartments and offices where the view matters.
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GUTMANN
Learn more about GUTMANNGUTMANN systems are offered by Gutmann Middle East LLC, based in Dubai Investments Park: hinged windows and doors, sliding and lift-and-slide doors, curtain walls and glass railings
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Deceuninck
Learn more about DeceuninckDeceuninck uPVC profiles are designed in Belgium for superior insulation, weather resistance and a sleek finish. A popular choice for energy-efficient homes across Europe
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Cortizo
Learn more about CortizoCortizo aluminium systems combine precise Spanish engineering with high thermal and acoustic performance. A reliable choice for windows, doors and facades that need to perform in demanding climates
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Montana 120
Learn more about Montana 120Montana 120 is a thermal-break sliding series from Gulfex (Gulf Extrusion LLC), with the profile extruded here in Dubai. A straightforward choice for sliding windows and balcony doors of ordinary size
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TB-600
Learn more about TB-600TB-600 is the thermal-break hinged window and door series of Gulfex (Gulf Extrusion LLC). The profile is extruded in Dubai, and the same maker covers sliding, folding and curtain-wall systems
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ALUK
Learn more about ALUKALUK is an Italian aluminium systems brand known for slim, minimalist frames that maximise glass area without compromising strength. Perfect for architectural projects that call for a light, contemporary look
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Vetromax
Learn more about VetromaxVetromax combines advanced glazing technology with aluminium framing for maximum light, strength and energy efficiency. A modern solution for panoramic windows and glass facades
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REHAU
Learn more about REHAUREHAU uPVC systems are engineered in Germany for outstanding thermal insulation, soundproofing and long-term durability. A proven choice for energy-efficient windows and doors worldwide
Popular ready-made solutions
- Villa glazing
- Classic windows
- French windows
- Tilt-and-turn windows
- Top-hung windows
- Patio door
- Classic door
- Panoramic sliding doors
- Panoramic folding accordion doors
Two-storey villa glazing
Sliding doors to the terrace, windows above
Panoramic villa glazing
Slim frames, glass from floor to ceiling
The honest downside
Where switchable glass disappoints
Even switched to clear, the glass is not quite as clear as an ordinary pane. A slight haze shows, especially when you look at it at an angle or against a bright window, so a screen chosen for a crisp view may feel slightly veiled.
In its private state it scatters light rather than blocking it. Shapes and movement close to the glass can still read as shadows when there is strong light behind, and the room is never fully dark. It is also equipment that ages: drivers are replaced over time, and a failed pane means a new pane made to the original size.
If a room needs privacy all day, or just a band at eye level, ordinary glass with a frosted band or a blind does it more simply. Switchable glass earns its place where privacy is occasional and there is nowhere to hang anything.
Consider instead
Glass partitions
Frequently asked questions
Milky. The film scatters light until it is energised, so the resting state is the private one and a consulting room does not suddenly become a shop window because a breaker tripped. The same fact has a cost attached: clear is the powered state, so a screen you want transparent through the working day is drawing current through the working day. That is why we start by asking whether privacy is the exception or the rule in that room — the technology suits the first and argues with the second.
No, and it is worth being clear about that before ordering. Switching the pane changes what can be seen through it and nothing else; conversation still travels over the head detail, under the base and through the door exactly as it did before. If the room has to be confidential as well as unseen, that is a partition problem — the perimeter closed properly and a door set with real seals — and the switchable glass then sits inside a screen that was already built to do the job.
They cannot be touched. Cutting, drilling or even notching a corner destroys the laminate and the connection inside it, so the panel that arrives is the panel that goes in. Everything the builder left out of square has to be absorbed by the frame instead, which is why we measure the room as it stands rather than working from the drawing, and why the sizes are frozen before the order rather than after the first fix.
In rooms whose privacy is occasional and whose glass has nowhere to hang a blind: a consulting room in an open clinic, a boardroom in a glazed box, a shower or an ensuite in a villa where a curtain would be permanently wet. Where a frosted band or a simple blind would do the same job, they will do it more cheaply and never need a driver. And on an internal screen it is not shading — there is no sun on it to control, whatever the brochure implies.
Related pages
Nearby pages and the rest of the catalogue.
- All-glass corners
- Aluminium railings
- Balcony glazing
- Balcony glazing upgrade
- Cassette facades
- Conservatories
- Curtain wall
- Floor-to-ceiling glazing
- Frameless balcony glazing
- Frameless glazing
- Garden rooms
- Glass balustrades
Sections
Company
We are always happy to welcome you at our showroom
Main Office
Dubai — Showroom
The Pinnacle Building, Sheikh Zayed Road, Office 607
Mon–Fri: 9:00 – 18:00
Showroom
Samples to see in person
Profiles, glass units and hardware to see and touch before you choose.
Dubai — Showroom
The Pinnacle Building, Sheikh Zayed Road, Office 607
Get directions 