The Federal Highway Safety Act of 1968 required all vehicles sold in the U.S. be equipped with shatter resistant or laminated safety glass windshields. Researchers immediately recognized the economic and environmental benefits of creating a method to repair shatter resistant windshields. Repair would give consumers a cost-saving alternative to windshield replacement while contributing to the nation's environmental priority of reducing the burden on America's overflowing landfills. The research of the early 1970s led to the birth of the U.S. windshield repair industry. For nearly 40 years, that industry has provided consumers with an economical, effective and safe alternative to windshield replacement. Today, over 4 million damaged windshields are repaired annually. Private and public fleets along with most automotive casualty insurance companies were among the earliest advocates of windshield repair and they remain loyal customers today.