Don’t call me terracotta

Don’t call me terracotta

Clay has been a staple building material for millennia – the oldest bricks date to 7500 BC in Turkey and the oldest examples of glazed brickwork (or tiles) date to the 13th century BC at Chogha Zanbil in modern day Iran. In Aliva's Q&A, UK sales director Justin Price shares his passion for clay, and tells their customers why it’s time to fall in love with it again.

Q: Clay – it’s just red bricks and tiles, isn’t it?
JP: When you say ‘clay’ and principally, ‘terracotta’, people think of bricks, pots or tiles. But there’s so much more to this wonderfully versatile material. Clay can be formed into many different shapes and sizes, glazed in any colour you want and finished with a variety of textures.

Q: But aren’t terracotta facades all buff or orange?
JP: During the boom years of the 90s and early 00s, clay facades had a renaissance. The technology and cost-effectiveness were not the same then – many buildings were finished with orange or buff clay rainscreen cladding. There are many buildings of this style in our city centres – and clay’s reputation is tarnished by the cheap and quick way in which they were often built.

Q: Clay, terracotta, rainscreen – are these all the same thing?
JP: There are many different names for this kind of tile. We chose to call ours Grescovering; in Italian this is actually stoneware, but we prefer not to generalise it as terracotta or clay, as this gives the impression of a red tile. Grecovering can still can be referred to as extruded clay, tile or terracotta rainscreen cladding too.

Q: What are the benefits to a structure of being clad in tiles?
JP: First, there is the structural benefit – rainscreen cladding can be as little as 20mm thick, which makes it the perfect material when working to weight or dimension constraints. We are currently creating large format tiles that look like concrete for a new residential development – the weight of concrete walls would have been too much for the building, so this is a safe, cost effective option.

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Aliva UK

Aliva UK

Aliva UK’s award-winning architectural solutions are cladding some of the most prestigious new builds, retrofits and historic projects across the UK and internationally.

Proud to celebrate 23 years in business in 2023 and with an Italian...
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