Concrete Masonry Checkoff 1-cent/block assessments kick off April 1

Sources: Concrete Masonry Products Board, Washington, D.C.; CP staff The U.S. Department of Commerce-authorized Concrete Masonry Checkoff Board (CMCB) has scheduled an April 1 start for mandatory 1-cent/unit assessments to fund national and regional research, education or promotion work advancing dry cast block or brick in residential or commercial building. The assessments affect about 200 U.S. concrete block or brick…

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Veneer stone nails top Builders’ Show award criteria

Sources: National Association of Home Builders, Washington, D.C.; Evolve Stone, Winchester, Va.; CP staff Evolve Stone Mortarless Series manufactured stone veneer, cast to enable installation with pneumatic nail guns, took Most Innovative Building Material and Best of Show honors in the National Association of Home Builders’ Best of IBS Awards program. Awards in eight categories are presented to International Builders’…

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Premier plant proves CertainTeed’s veneer stone market ambition

Sources: Saint-Gobain, Malvern, Pa.; CP staff Saint-Gobain building products subsidiary CertainTeed LLC has commenced operations at its newest North American production site: An inaugural STONEfaçade plant in Quakertown, Pa. Anchored with metal fasteners, the precast concrete veneer system consists of 8-in. panels in 10-, 12- or 14-in. widths, painted by hand and shipped complete with 3/8-in. thick rainscreen insulation and…

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Glen-Gery ushers Australia’s Brickworks into North America

Sources: Glen-Gery Corp., Wyomissing, Pa.; CP staff

A major player in U.S. brick production and distribution is set to change hands by year’s end as its parent company focuses on core United Kingdom markets. Ibstock plc of Leicestershire, England, has entered into an agreement to sell Glen-Gery Corp. to Brickworks Ltd. of New South Wales, Australia, for $110 million.

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Brick stacks up well against veneer stone, fiber cement in home exterior study

The Brick Industry Association has examined seven common home exterior products, finding that fired-clay brick costs about half as much as manufactured stone, and just a third more than fiber cement siding before considering lifetime maintenance costs. An updated BIA study, developed by RSMeans, compares the installed cost of total house construction for brick veneer over wood framing with the cost of adhered manufactured stone, stucco, wood shingle, plus vinyl, fiber cement or horizontal wood siding alternatives.

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Masonry, veneer stone, Martha Stewart meet in Builders’ Show concept home

Sources: KB Home, Los Angeles; Builder Magazine, Washington, D.C.; National Concrete Masonry Association, Herndon, Va.

Concrete block supports the energy-wise “KB Home GreenHouse: An Idea Home Created with Martha Stewart,” timed with the 2011 International Builders’ Show, January 12-15, in Orlando, Fla. The 2,700-sq.-ft., single-level home features weatherized and insulated concrete masonry walls, plus fiber-cement siding, precast veneer stone, solar panel-bearing roof tile, and pavers from James Hardie Building Products, StoneCraft Industries, MonierLifetile and Boral Bricks.

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