In this ecosystem, PV glass façades have emerged as one of the most powerful ways to achieve multiple certification points without bending the design intent.

Here’s how architects and façade consultants are using PV glass to score big on compliance-and how your next project can do the same:

The Certification Challenge

Every green rating system attempts to solve the same basic issues:

• high power consumption
• excessive grid dependency
• Inefficient building envelopes
• poor daylight management
• heat ingress
• lack of on-site renewable generation

PV glass hits several of these pain points in one stroke, making it probably the most versatile material for green certification strategies.

Where PV Glass Contributes Points

Let’s break it down rating-wise.

GRIHA

GRIHA awards:

on-site renewable energy

reduction of energy demand

Improved envelope performance

shading & daylight optimization

PV glass façades contribute to:

Criterion 19: Utilization of Renewable Energy

Criterion 10: Energy Optimization

Criterion 14: Daylighting

Criterion 18: Envelope Design

Well-designed facades can avoid the need for additional renewable installations very often.

IGBC

IGBC places emphasis on:

• Energy Efficiency
• green materials
• building performance
• PV glass helps achieve points in:
• Energy Efficiency under EPI
• On-site Renewable Energy
• Sustainable Building Materials
• Innovative Green Features

This greatly enhances the certification score for commercial projects without changing the form of the building.

LEED

LEED is heavy on:

• Renewable Energy Production
• Energy & Atmosphere
• Daylight & Views
• Thermal Comfort
• Innovation in Design

Value addition for PV glass occurs under:

• EA Credit: Renewable Energy
• EA Prerequisite: Minimum Energy Performance
• EQ Credit: Daylight

Innovative Performance Credits

For projects targeting LEED Gold & Platinum, PV glass often becomes a strategic necessity.

Design Strategies Architects Use

To maximize points of certification, architects do employ combinations such as:

East/West Orientation Optimization

Maximize daily solar exposure.

Hybrid Transparency Levels

Clearer glass on lower floors for daylight; higher efficiency glass where exposure is strongest.

Integrated Shading Design

It cuts heat gain, trims cooling loads, and quietly generates energy — a double win that every smart façade engineer loves.

Curtain Wall Integration: Where It Feels Effortless

With curtain wall systems, PV glass slips in without drama.
Installation stays seamless.
Performance stays predictable.
Aesthetics stay pure.

This isn’t a compromise or an afterthought.
This is good architecture meeting good engineering — the way it always should.

Where PV Glass Creates Maximum Impact

Across India’s climate zones, PV glass delivers its best results in projects where daylight hours and energy demand go hand in hand:

• High-rise corporate towers
• IT and tech parks
• Hospitality corridors
• Airport terminals
• Institutional campuses
• Premium residential towers

These building types share the same truth:
massive façade exposure + high daytime occupancy = enormous potential for on-site energy generation.

In such spaces, PV glass isn’t a fancy material.
It’s strategic.
It earns its keep from day one.

A Future Where Compliance and Creativity Don’t Fight

For years, architects were told that sustainability comes at the cost of creativity.
PV glass walks in and disproves that myth with a quiet smile.

It merges into modern forms, elevates a building’s technological identity, and lightens its operational load.
All while unlocking multiple pathways across GRIHA, IGBC, and LEED — without forcing the architect to redraw the building.

In a world racing toward net zero, PV glass is no longer about scoring certification points.
It’s about a building earning its dignity — ethically, aesthetically, and ecologically.

A façade that doesn’t just look good.
A façade that does good.

That’s the future — and it’s already here.