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Fireclay Tile unveils its first artistic brick collection

SAN JOSE, CA -- Featuring rich organic textures, local recycled materials and American craftsmanship, Fireclay's Glazed Thin Brick will complement any interior or exterior environment. Utilizing up to 100% local recycled content and finished with a selection of nine fresh new VOC-free natural glazes, Fireclay's Glazed Thin Brick gives endless optionsfor any commercial and select residential designs. And 1% of all Glazed Thin Brick sales will be donated to charity.2

Fireclay now offers its Glazed Thin Brick Collection, featuring rich organic textures, local recycled materials and American craftsmanship.

"Glazed Thin Brick has been such a fun product for us to design," said Paul Burns, Fireclay's Founder and Chief Ceramicist. "Fireclay has always been known for making beautiful glaze colors, and using the thin brick as our base opens us up to much larger projects at much lower price points. The ninewe developed are unique from any glaze we've ever seen, and they fit in perfectly with the design requirements of today's architects and designers."

Fireclay is sourcing its thin brick from a local supplier, McNear Brick and Block, located only 65 miles away. McNear is the oldest California brick maker and one of only three still in existence in California. Even more exciting is that McNear is the only brick maker in the U.S. that incorporates recycled materials, consisting of reclaimed landfill-bound recycled clay and shale from local excavation sites, into its brick, reports Fireclay.

Fireclay uses only lead-free, all natural raw glazes that are manufactured from oxides and raw earth materials. 100% of all glaze over-spray is collected and recycled, and any waste that is produced is inert and non-hazardous. "Though some competitors make claims of using reclaimed brick or recycled glazes, we learned during our 18-month product development process that most of those claims are quite misleading," said Eric Edelson, Fireclay's Vice President. "Glazed Thin Brick also has the advantage of being made in America, thus qualifying for 'Made in USA' required projects. It is also substantially lighter than traditional glazed brick, reducing the energy and transportation costs by as much as 80%."

Glazed Thin Brickcan be specified in almost any interior and exterior wall cladding or floor environments where either thin brick or tile is traditionally used, according to Fireclay. It installs like a traditional brick, and cast methods or McNear's BrickFast system can also be employed. Glazed Thin Brick has the added advantage of being suitable for wet areas, especially those needing sanitary surfaces such as commercial kitchens, bathrooms, pools and spas. A near-zero absorption can also be produced for jobs with more strict cold climate exterior performance requirements. Glazed Thin Brick has already been used very successfully in numerous commercial settings.

Fireclay's Glazed Thin Brick will help commercial or residential projects qualify for numerous LEED Credits, according to the manufacturer. These include credits for recycled content (30-95% of the finished product contains pre-consumer recycled materials), regional materials (manufactured in Northern California), low-emitting materials (all natural, lead-free and VOC-free glazes), and other possible design credits.

Fireclay has announced that 1% of all Glazed Thin Brick sales are being pledged to charity. Charities will be selected on a quarterly basis and publicized on the Fireclay Tile Web site. The first recipient is CORA, a Bay-area women's shelter. This continues Fireclay's community efforts, including its 5% pledge of all Boneyard, Fireclay's overstock showroom, sales to local San Jose, CA charities.