Brick Newsroom
	DATE TITLE 07/10 Brick Industry Association Announces Winners of the 2010 Brick in Architecture Awards Competition. "The quality and depth of submissions made judging intense and difficult. With winners coming from more than 20 states, the Brick In Architecture Awards Competition is truly national in scope," exclaimed J. Gregg Borchelt, President & CEO of BIA. "The winning projects prove that brick is versatile, adaptable, and beautiful in just about any architectural style." (Press Release) 07/10 "BIA Endorses New Hardscape North America Show." The Brick Industry Association is endorsing the new Hardscape North America show that is co-locating with the Green Industry Equipment & Expo for the first time. It will be held October 28-30, 2010 in Louisville, KY. With a total attendance of almost 18,000 landscape participants, the joining of these two shows made perfect sense as two-thirds of the attendees indicate that they offer hardscape services, or plan to, in the future. GIE+Expo is the largest landscape trade show in the U.S. 06/10 Indy.com. "Give your home a new look with thin brick." Thin brick offers nearly the same versatility as regular brick, but it's about a half-inch compared to modular brick, which measures 3 5/8 inches. It also doesn't require the structural support of a brick ledge. 06/10 Construction Specifier. "The Time Honored Beauty of Brick Sculpture." By, Eric Johnson, PE and Brad Spencer. A brick sculpture actually begins in the middle of the brick manufacturing process. Each unit is uniquely carved and relevant only in the context of the total design. 06/10 Business Review USA. "The Brick Industry Association." The US authority on Clay Brick Construction. 04/10 Kansas City Star. "Around the Block: Durability and versatility help bricks stack up against the competition." For thousands of years, brick basics have stayed the same: Shape. Heat. Butter. Build. 02/10 Dick Jennison Resigns as President and CEO of BIA BIA Chairman Mike Jenkins announced that Dick Jennison had tendered his resignation as President and CEO of the Association - a position he held since August, 2002. Dick has elected to leave BIA in order to pursue other professional challenges and opportunities. 02/10 Politico, "Farm lobby backs effort to halt EPA ruling." Like a lot of industry groups, the farm lobby says it would prefer that Congress tackle climate change rather than leave the job to Environmental Protection Agency bureaucrats. The article quotes a BIA executive's concern that EPA's air pollution permitting process "would take both time and money - something the industry doesn't have a lot of right now" in the aftermath of the housing downturn. 02/10 Ceramic Industry, "SPECIAL SECTION/BRICK & CLAY RECORD: Sustainability Certification" The BIA has co-developed an empirical policy that enables manufacturers to certify brick as an environmentally preferable product. 01/10 Landscape Online.com, "Fly Ash "Brick" Draws BIA's Ire" The Brick Industry Association says fly ash is not brick, and that "claiming that fly ash is brick is actually pirating the brand equity of authentic, clay brick." 01/10 Masonry Magazine, "Brick as a Green Material, Setting an Example" The Brick Industry Leads the way with third-party certification in green building design and sustainability. 12/09 "Seismic Performance of Modern Masonry", in The Construction Specifier, examines the results of a comprehensive series of tests, funded by the National Science Foundation and others, on wall systems constructed of brick veneer with wood frame and concrete masonry backing. Because of the positive test results, proposed changes have been suggested to building codes that could reduce the cost of veneer construction in high seismic areas. 11/09 The Real Story about Brick and Sustainability Separating Fact from Fiction in the Wake of Misleading Claims Made By Fly Ash Product Proponent (Press Release)     10/09 Brick NY Awards Ceremony Honors Industry Leaders Close to 300 individuals, including architects, developers, union tradesmen, contractors, manufacturers, and other members of the New York design and construction community, came together on October 1, 2009, to celebrate the inaugural Brick NY. (Press Release) 09/09 Masonry Construction Magazine, "Follow the Green Brick Road" BIA Leading by example. 09/09 Industry Associations Honor Architects, Buildings and Masons at Brick NY New York Brick Council, Associated Brick Mason Contractors of Greater New York, Inc. create awards/networking program. (Press Release) 07/09 Building Design and Construction, "70% of Qualified Trade Association Members Attain 'Green Brick Specialist' Designation in Comprehensive Training Program" .The Brick Industry Association (BIA), the national trade group representing distributors and manufacturers of clay brick and suppliers of related products and services, has announced that 70% of its eligible members have passed the industry's first-ever online training program, "Sustainability/Green Building Design and Brick." With this designation, almost 1,000 members' employees will be eligible to deliver the association's accredited presentation, "Brick Revisited: Just How Green Is It," to architects for Continuing Education Credit in accordance with the American Institute of Architects. 06/09 Reinvigorating a "Sense of Place" in Charlottesville Renovation of Downtown Pedestrian Mall Exemplifies Practices of New Urbanism. (Press Release) 06/09 BIA Announces Winners in 2009 Brick In Architecture Awards Projects highlight clay brick's performance benefits, aesthetic appeal, and ease-of-use. (Press Release) 06/09 Brick Industry Helping to Make Efflorescence a Thing of the Past New Testing Procedures Will Enable Architects and Designers to Minimize Its Occurrence. (Press Release) 04/09 Brick Industry Honors Excellence in Environmental Stewardship & Employee Health and Safety Programs Winners Include: Acme Brick, Glen-Gery Corporation, Whitacre Greer Co., General Shale Brick, Inc., and Hanson Brick (press release) 04/09 Builder Magazine,"Choose Sides: What is the Best Exterior Material to Use on Your Houses?" If you ask the brick industry, they'd tell you that brick is the best siding material. 03/09 University of Pittsburgh Research: Evaluation of Selected Sidewalk Pavement Surfaces - Executive Summary University of Pittsburgh research concludes that brick pavements should be considered accessible surfaces for wheelchair users. The amounts of vibration experienced and work required for wheelchairs to negotiate brick pavements are similar in comparison to poured concrete pavements. (Press Release) 02/09 Landscape Architect and Specifier News, "Paving Landscaping Awards" Provides in depth profiles of winning projects from the 2008 Brick In Architecture Awards in the Paving and Landscape Architecture category. 01/09 Masonry Magazine, "Pavers in Action" Features winners from the 2008 Brick In Architecture Awards in the Paving and Landscape Architecture category and demonstrates how clay pavers epitomize the principles of New Urbanism. 01/09 Tim Carter's Ask the Builder Column, "Picking the Perfect Patio Pavers" With a focus on durability and a comparison to concrete pavers, the article has already appeared in the Washington Post, the Staten Island Advance, and the Fort Myers News Press. 11/08 - 12/08 Masonry Design Magazine, "Awards Winning Hardscape Design" Winning projects from the 2008 Brick In Architecture Awards in the Paving and Landscape Architecture category are featured. It also discusses the performance attributes of clay pavers and various installation systems. 11/08 Texas Builder. "Low-Quality Mexican Brick Showing Up in North Texas: Brick Failures Spur Builders to Repair Homes; Hundreds at Risk" as appears in the November/December 2008 issue. 11/08 The Dallas Morning News. "Defects hit homes like a ton of bricks," by Jessica Meyers 10/08 Construction Specifier, "Clad in Green" Written by Chip Clark, AIA, PE, LEED AP, the article focuses on how brick fits in with green building design and sustainability from a commercial perspective. 06/08 Construction Specifier, "Designing Clay Brick Pavements" Examines the beauty, endurance, and performance of genuine clay pavers. Various winners of BIA's Brick In Architecture Awards program are also featured. 06/08 Building Design + Construction, "The Basics of Building with Brick" Discusses brick attributes, construction terminology, and fundamental considerations for selecting brick for commercial and multi-family applications. 05/08 Tim Carter's Ask the Builder Column, "An Enduring Look for an Enduring Patio" Installation and maintenance concerns are discussed, and the article has appeared in the Chicago Tribune, Newsday, Orlando Sentinel, Washington Post, and Baltimore Sun. 03/08 Remodeling News, "Sizing Up Siding" Attributes and benefits of brick are discussed and compared to other exterior cladding materials. 02/08 Masonry Magazine, "Pavers - Beauty that Endures" A look at the enduring value and timeless beauty of genuine clay pavers.