PITTSBURGH, Dec. 6, 2012 – The Piedmont Natural Gas Operations Center in Nashville, Tenn., earned LEED(R) Gold certification last year, due in part to a comprehensive energy-management system that incorporates SOLARBAN(R) z50 solar control, low-emissivity (low-e) glass by PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG).

When combined with clear glass in a standard 1-inch insulating glass unit (IGU), steel blue-gray-tinted Solarban z50 glass provides visible light transmittance (VLT) of 51 percent and a solar heat-gain coefficient (SHGC) of 0.31 that is as much as 23 percent better than competitive glasses with a similar aesthetic. Solarban z50 glass is part of an energy-management system at the center that includes an advanced LED (light-emitting diode) lighting system and exterior building shades controlled by the sun’s orientation.