Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
A rare opportunity to step inside the kiln of clay tile manufacturer BMI Redland’s Bedworth-based Rosemary Kiln has provided new insight into the production of its Rosemary roof tiles.
Produced from Etruria Marl clay collected in Staffordshire, the classic Rosemary Clay Tile range has been a feature of UK architecture since 1837.
The controlled shut down for maintenance at the site offered visibility of a production stage that is typically inaccessible, revealing the scale, precision and technical complexity involved in manufacturing traditional clay plain tiles at scale.
Damien Pooley, portfolio manager of pitched roofing at BMI UK & Ireland, said; “The opportunity to step inside the kiln while it’s offline is rare, and it provides a valuable perspective on the scale and control involved in producing each batch of Rosemary tiles,”
“What is often not seen is the engineering and process discipline behind that consistency. From raw material preparation through to firing, every stage is tightly managed to ensure quality and performance.”
The Rosemary Kiln is currently undergoing scheduled maintenance as part of BMI’s ongoing investment in maintaining production quality and operational performance. The kiln took 33,000 contact hours and £6.3 million to refurbish, improving the plant’s automation and product handling capabilities, reducing downtime and enhancing safety, as well adding new conveyor belts and a refurbished train of kiln carts.
