MASONRY ON THE GO

(March 28, 2008) . . . The work of masons is sometimes taken for granted, but it is difficult to imagine a home, or building, or landscaping that doesn’t showcase the skill of the mason. Even in fairytales, the brick house was the one that had the qualities to stand up to the harshest of situations. But have you ever wondered what makes the brick so strong, and how is it made?

On March 7, Indiana County Technology Center instructor, John Koenigsberg and assistant instructor, Denny Chutorich, took their masonry students to visit Glen Gery Brick Plant in Beaver County. Here the students saw first-hand how the materials that they use every day are made.

Originally, brick was formed by placing moist clay in a mold by hand. As the brick manufacturing process modernized, the majority of production was changed from a molded process to an extrusion process. Extrusion more easily accommodates the inclusion of holes in a brick unit, which in turn can make the manufacture and use of brick more cost-effective and material-efficient.

Essentially, bricks are produced by mixing ground clay with water, forming the clay into the desired shape, and drying and firing. The manufacturing process has six general phases: 1) mining and storage of raw materials, 2) preparing raw materials, 3) forming the brick, 4) drying, 5) firing and cooling and 6) storing finished products. These processes provide the most important properties of brick: durability, color, texture, strength and fire-resistance. Here are a few facts about bricks:

• Brick is made of clay or shale formed, dried and fired into a durable ceramic product.
• There are three ways to form the shape and size of a brick: extruded (stiff mud), molded (soft mud) and dry-pressed. The majority of bricks are made by the extrusion method.
• Brick achieves its color through the minerals in the fired clay or through coatings that are applied before or after the firing process. This provides a durable color that never fades or diminishes.
• The method used to form a brick determines its texture.
• Bricks shrink during the manufacturing process.
  

At the brick manufacturing plant ICTC masonry students saw the raw materials pushed through a batcher to be mixed and then pushed through an extrusion mold to shape and then cut the material into the more commonly seen brick shape. The bricks are transported to a fire kiln to evaporate all the water and to harden. Next, the bricks are cooled and transported to a packing machine where workers stack them for eventual shipping.

Bricks come in a wide variety of colors, along with the best-known red. The colors come not only from the raw materials, but also the environment inside the kiln and even dye! Just a little dye and they are able to make colors from tan to deep red bricks. When creating colors this way, it is necessary to keep running the brick through the batcher until the material turns the proper shade of color. All of the multi-colored brick that are made are broken down and used again to make other bricks. The Glen Gery Brick Plantation has very little waste because what they don’t use is recycled to make other bricks.
Many ICTC masonry students stated how much they enjoyed the tour since the manufacture of brick is so interesting! However, they had a rare opportunity since the plant is not open to the public.

For more information on the ICTC, click here.

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