Glass works in Dubai, measured after the tiles go on
Frameless shower enclosures, office partitions, balustrades, splashbacks and structural glass — tempered or laminated, templated on site once the substrate is finished, and installed by people who have done it for forty years.
What glass works covers and what it costs
Glass works in Dubai covers frameless shower enclosures, glass office partitions, balustrades and handrails, splashbacks, shelving, mirrors and structural glass doors. Everything is tempered to at least 8 mm, or laminated where a fall risk exists. Expect AED 220 to 420 per square metre for a frameless shower screen, AED 380 to 750 per square metre for a glass office partition, and AED 900 to 2,200 per linear metre for a glass balustrade. Abdulla Carpentry EST templates on site after the tiling is complete, not from drawings.
Glass is the least forgiving material on a fit-out. Timber can be scribed, gypsum can be filled, stone can be ground. Glass arrives at exactly one size, and if the opening is three millimetres out of square the panel does not go in. It goes back to the factory, and you wait another ten days.
That is why we template. Once the tiles, the screed and the plaster are finished — not before — we take physical measurements of the actual opening, including the out-of-plumb and the out-of-square, and the panel is cut to that. It adds a few days to the programme and removes the most common cause of glass delays in Dubai.
Everything load-bearing or at height is tempered. Anything a person could fall through is laminated as well, so the panel holds together if it breaks. That is not a preference, it is what the code requires, and it is worth knowing which contractors quote for it and which quietly do not.
Site templatedAfter tiling, not before
Where glass earns its place
Glass does two jobs in an interior: it divides space without blocking light, and it makes small rooms read as larger. These are the applications that come up most in Dubai.
Frameless shower enclosures. Ten or twelve millimetre tempered panels on minimal hardware, with a hinged or sliding door. The visual difference against a framed enclosure is dramatic, and in a compact Dubai bathroom it is often the single change that transforms the room.
Office and meeting room partitions. Single or double glazed systems in slim aluminium, or fully frameless with polished edges. Double glazed with an acoustic interlayer where a boardroom needs privacy; single glazed with applied manifestation where it does not.
Balustrades and handrails. Structural laminated glass on a base channel or on standoff fittings, with or without a capping rail. Staircases, mezzanines, terraces and void edges. Always laminated, always to the required barrier loading.
Splashbacks and wall glass. Back-painted toughened glass behind a hob or a vanity. One continuous surface, no grout lines, wipes clean, colour matched to anything. A practical answer in a kitchen and a cheap way to add depth in a bathroom.
Mirrors and mirrored panels. Bathroom mirrors with polished or bevelled edges, backlit mirrors with integrated LED, gym mirror walls, and antique or bronze mirror used as a decorative panel finish. Covered further on the mirror works page.
Doors and structural glass. Frameless glass doors on patch fittings or floor springs, sliding glass systems, and glass fins where a large opening has to stay visually open.
Thickness, tempering and the details worth arguing about
Thickness is decided by span and by what the glass is doing. Six millimetres for a splashback or a fixed mirror panel. Eight to ten for a shower screen. Ten to twelve for a frameless shower door or a partition with no head track. Twelve to seventeen laminated for a balustrade. Anyone quoting a 6 mm frameless shower door is quoting a panel that will flex every time you close it.
Tempered glass is heat treated so it is four to five times stronger and, when it does fail, breaks into blunt granules rather than shards. Laminated glass has a plastic interlayer bonding two panes, so a broken panel stays in its frame. A balustrade needs both properties, which is why it is laminated tempered rather than one or the other.
Edges and holes are the detail people forget. Every cut, hole and notch has to be made before tempering — you cannot drill tempered glass, it shatters. So the hardware has to be chosen and the hole positions fixed before the panel goes into the furnace. Changing a hinge type after the order is a new panel, not an adjustment.
10–12 mmFrameless shower standard
How a glass job actually runs
Design and hardware selection
We agree the layout, the glass type and thickness, and — critically — the hardware, because the hinges and fittings determine where the holes are drilled before tempering. Finishes are chosen here too: chrome, brushed nickel, matt black or brass.
Substrate check
We check the opening is ready: tiles complete, walls plumb enough, and any timber or steel the glass fixes into actually present. If a wall is 15 mm out of plumb over two metres, we tell you now rather than on installation day.
Site templating
Physical measurement of the finished opening, including diagonals, plumb and any bow in the wall. For complex shapes we make a physical template. These dimensions go to the factory, not the architect drawings.
Fabrication
Cutting, edge polishing, drilling and notching, then tempering. Typically seven to twelve days depending on thickness and whether the glass is laminated or back-painted. Nothing can be modified after this stage.
Installation and sealing
Hardware set, panels lifted in, levelled and adjusted, then silicone sealed where a wet seal is needed. We check door swing and closing action before we leave, and clean the glass properly.
Glass rates in Dubai
Supply and fix, including standard hardware in a chrome or brushed finish, measured and installed in Dubai. Specialist finishes, low-iron glass and imported hardware sit above these ranges.
| Item | Unit | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed shower screen, 10 mm tempered | per sq m | AED 220 – 340 |
| Frameless shower enclosure with hinged door | per sq m | AED 280 – 420 |
| Sliding shower system, 10 mm | per sq m | AED 380 – 620 |
| Office partition, single glazed slim frame | per sq m | AED 380 – 550 |
| Office partition, double glazed acoustic | per sq m | AED 650 – 1,100 |
| Frameless glass partition, 12 mm | per sq m | AED 520 – 750 |
| Glass balustrade, laminated, base channel | per linear m | AED 1,200 – 2,200 |
| Glass balustrade, standoff fittings | per linear m | AED 900 – 1,700 |
| Back-painted glass splashback | per sq m | AED 260 – 450 |
| Frameless glass door on floor spring | each | AED 2,600 – 5,500 |
| Low-iron extra-clear glass, uplift | per sq m | AED 90 – 180 |
| Applied frosted or printed manifestation | per sq m | AED 70 – 160 |
Glass is priced by finished square metre with a minimum panel charge. High-level installations, panels over 2.4 m and anything needing a lifting frame carry an access cost. We quote after templating, so the number does not move afterwards.
Glass in offices, shops and clinics
Office glass partitioning is the fastest way to reconfigure a floorplate in Dubai. A demountable system goes up in days, carries no structural load, can be relocated at the next lease change, and keeps daylight reaching the core. For landlords and tenants alike it is a reversible change, which matters when a fit-out has to be stripped at lease end.
Acoustic performance is where cheap systems disappoint. A single glazed partition gives you a visual barrier and very little else. Double glazing with a cavity and properly sealed head, base and junctions is what makes a meeting room usable. We specify to the rating you need rather than to the look of one.
Retail and clinical work brings its own requirements: manifestation so glass is visible at eye level, safety glass to every door and low-level panel, and in healthcare, glass that can be cleaned to a clinical standard without degrading the film.
Glass works: common questions
How much does a frameless shower enclosure cost in Dubai?
AED 280 to 420 per square metre for a hinged frameless enclosure in 10 mm tempered glass with standard hardware. A typical single shower works out around AED 1,600 to 3,200 installed, depending on configuration and hardware finish.
How long does glass take to make?
Seven to twelve days from templating for most tempered work, and up to fifteen for laminated, back-painted or low-iron glass. Nothing can be cut or drilled after tempering, so the order has to be right first time.
Why measure after tiling instead of from the drawings?
Because finished openings are never exactly what the drawing said. Tile thickness, plaster build-up and out-of-plumb walls all shift the dimension. Glass has no tolerance — templating the real opening is the only way to guarantee the panel fits.
Is tempered glass the same as laminated?
No. Tempered glass is heat strengthened and breaks into blunt granules. Laminated glass has an interlayer that holds the pane together when it breaks. A balustrade needs laminated tempered glass; a shower screen only needs tempered.
Can you match the hardware to my taps?
Yes. Chrome, brushed nickel, matt black, gunmetal, brushed gold and antique brass are all available. Choose the hardware before we order the glass, because the drilling is done pre-tempering.
Do glass partitions provide sound insulation?
Single glazed partitions give very little. Double glazed systems with an acoustic interlayer and properly sealed perimeters give a usable meeting room. If privacy matters, budget for the double glazed system rather than being disappointed by the single.
What happens if a panel breaks?
Tempered glass is replaced as a whole panel; it cannot be repaired. We keep the templating record for every job, so a replacement can be ordered against the original dimensions without re-measuring.
Do you do the silicone sealing as well?
Yes. Wet seals in showers use neutral-cure sanitary silicone in a colour matched to the grout, and we allow the correct cure time before the shower is used — usually 24 hours.
Get a price for your glass
Send dimensions and a photograph of the space and we will give you a working figure. Firm pricing follows the site template, and then the number does not change.
