After spending time at Glasstec and speaking with glass manufacturers, technology providers, and industry leaders from across Europe, one thing became clear: the glass industry is entering a period of significant transformation.
While sustainability has dominated discussions for several years, the conversation has evolved. The focus is no longer simply on reducing emissions. Manufacturers are now looking at how they remain competitive in a market facing rising costs, increasing global competition, labour shortages, and growing customer expectations.
Here are my five biggest takeaways from this year's event.
Nothing came close to energy as the dominant topic of conversation.
Glass remains one of the most energy-intensive manufacturing industries in the world. Whether discussing container glass, flat glass, or specialist products, every executive I spoke with was focused on reducing energy consumption and improving furnace efficiency.
Energy has become a direct competitive differentiator.
Manufacturers operating in regions with lower energy costs have a significant advantage when it comes to production costs. European producers continue to face pressure to remain profitable while investing in sustainability initiatives and decarbonisation programmes.
This is reflected in the agenda of Glasstec itself, where decarbonisation and energy efficiency were highlighted as core themes for the industry's future. The event focused heavily on technologies designed to reduce energy usage, improve furnace performance, and lower CO₂ emissions.
Energy is no longer simply an operational issue.
At this year's Glasstec, the AI discussion was far more practical.
Manufacturers are now actively looking at how AI can deliver measurable business outcomes through production planning, predictive maintenance, quality control, and energy optimisation.
One of the strongest themes at the exhibition was the concept of the connected and automated glass factory, where data is captured in real time and used to support better operational decisions. AI is increasingly being viewed as a tool to reduce downtime, improve yield, optimise plant performance, and lower energy consumption.
What's particularly interesting is that AI is no longer being discussed in isolation.
The real value comes when AI is connected to production planning, scheduling, maintenance, inventory, and shop-floor operations.
Manufacturers are beginning to realise that better decisions require better data.
Those with disconnected systems and spreadsheet-based processes will struggle to achieve the benefits that AI promises.
The winners will be companies that have already laid the digital foundations to support intelligent decision making at scale.
This was perhaps the most commercially significant topic discussed at the event.
Many European manufacturers are facing intense competition from regions with lower labour costs and significantly lower energy prices.
As a result, there is growing pressure to reduce the cost of every bottle produced.
Price per bottle for container manufacturers has become one of the most important performance indicators in the industry.
Manufacturers are being forced to examine every aspect of their operations, including:
The challenge is that many organisations have already delivered the obvious savings.
Future gains will come from increasing operational visibility and making faster decisions based on accurate information.
In other words, competitiveness is becoming increasingly dependent on digital maturity.
Those that can respond faster to fluctuations in demand, optimise production capacity, and reduce waste will have a distinct cost advantage.
The industry's commitment to sustainability remains strong, but discussions have matured considerably.
Rather than simply focusing on compliance, manufacturers are increasingly viewing circularity as a way to improve both environmental and financial performance.
Glass is uniquely positioned as a packaging material because it can be recycled repeatedly without losing quality.
At Glasstec, circular economy initiatives featured heavily alongside decarbonisation and digital transformation as one of the industry's key strategic priorities.
The focus has shifted towards:
The companies that can successfully combine sustainability objectives with cost reduction will create a significant competitive advantage over the coming years.
If there was one theme that connected all of the others, it was decision-making.
Whether discussing energy, AI, cost reduction, sustainability, or global competition, success increasingly depends on how quickly manufacturers can respond to changing conditions.
Many organisations still rely on spreadsheets, disconnected systems, and manual planning processes.
This creates delays.
And delays create costs.
In an environment where margins are under pressure and customer expectations continue to rise, the ability to make faster and better decisions becomes crucial.
The manufacturers gaining ground are moving towards integrated platforms that provide a single source of truth across production, inventory, forecasting, scheduling, and supply chain operations.
Technology alone is not the answer.
Decision clarity is.
Leaving Glasstec, my biggest takeaway was that the glass industry is no longer talking about transformation as a future objective.
It is happening now.
Energy remains the biggest challenge. AI is rapidly becoming a competitive necessity. Global competition is forcing a relentless focus on cost per bottle. Circularity is becoming embedded in business strategy. And throughout it all, the organisations that can make faster, more informed decisions will be best positioned to thrive.
The future leaders of the glass industry will not necessarily be those with the newest furnaces or the largest production capacity.