Michelmersh Brick Holdings PLC Group owns seven market-leading premium brands, Blockleys, Carlton, Charnwood, Floren.be, Freshfield Lane, Michelmersh and Hathern Terra Cotta. These divisions operate within a fully integrated business, combining the production of premium, precision-made bricks, pavers, special shaped bricks and bespoke Terra Cotta products.
Michelmersh remains at the forefront of industry innovation being the first UK clay product manufacturer to offer intuitive Building Information Modelling files, hosted on its dedicated platform bimbricks.com. Michelmersh also conducted the World’s first 100% Hydrogen fired clay brick trials in a feasibility study named HyBrick, to complement its innovative decarbonisation strategy.
The Group’s products can be used in a wide variety of contexts; excelling with sensitive conservation requirements and complementing contemporary designs to form inspiring architecture. With substantial experience in both traditional and modern prestigious schemes, the team offers a research and development service that is yet to be rivalled. We evolve the design alongside your conceptual ideas and onto the bespoke forms and blends that you desire.
Britain’s historic trust in clay brick buildings has meant that there are thousands of retrofit opportunities within the UK. Studies indicate that 87% of today’s buildings will still be in use in 2050, meaning retrofitting properties is vital to reaching our net zero carbon targets. Adapting previous buildings with recent innovations is cost-effective, and sustainable and when partnered with sustainable products such as clay brick, properties can enjoy incredible longevity. Homes that adapt their previous materials allow themselves to fit perfectly within their environment and are ideal for protected areas while enjoying essential benefits such as increased thermal capabilities and improved functionality.
In Rugby, 57 aerial masts and a radio station are the genesis for the beginning of a new town, centred around the recently finished Houlton School. Houlton School by Van Heyningen & Haward (VHH) is the successful retrofit of a collection of historic, grade 2 listed radio station buildings. Its cost-effective evolution into a thriving, sustainable secondary school comes through the careful integration of the previous buildings and by choosing to use products that fitted soundly within the pre-existing vernacular.
Adapting the original framework to today’s standards was a job that took years to come to fruition, careful application of steel frame and the restoration of the original brickwork has meant that the two main listed structures, Transmission Hall and Power Hall will become a place of learning for generations of students. Clay Bricks provided by Michelmersh were vital to the restoration of the project, where they were used to ensure the structures could be repaired and retained rather than rebuilt from the ground up. Throughout the project, various elements of the building’s industrial past have been retained, with arched windows and high ceilings to ensure that the history of this nearly century-old building is revered, but not overpowering compared to its newly instated modern sensibilities.
Jimmy Choo, New Bond Street has used Hathern Terra Cotta’s incredible artistry to reinstate its original terracotta façade. During a previous re-fit, the original ceramic pilasters, and arch, which were badly damaged and in need of replacement, had merely been covered over. Only a few arch soffit units were able to be rescued, leaving nearly 100 individual sections which required complex handmade fabrication. The recent refit has ensured the storefront will be viable and capable of drawing people in for decades.
To offer immaculate and intricate detailed units, Hathern Terra Cotta’s sculptors had to execute each replica casting using the only photo available of the original façade. This project entailed the replacement of the shop front, both pilasters and most of the Arch units. Quadriga Ltd, the Installation Contractor, carried out the site survey and provided shop drawings which enabled Hathern’s designers to produce decorative arch models. These models were then approved allowing sculptors to commence with the ceramic reproductions. In total, Hathern Terra Cotta provided 32 different types of units including pilaster plinths and quoins, fluted column blocks and the main arch units. Highly skilled sculptors proceeded to make a model of the decorative arch voussoirs based on a ‘Jester’ theme, which required two different designs for the Jester block. This unique refit has enabled the storefront to blend perfectly in with its neighbours, the clay products decorating the building tell a valuable story of attention to detail and honouring the area.
Alma-nac’s “House-within-a-house” is a fantastic example of a two-storey building retrofitted to adapt to new challenges. In a testament to the benefits of rebuilding, this is the third regeneration of the property. The initial street suffered bomb damage during World War 2, and it was eventually rebuilt into nondescript properties in the 1950s. These mid-century precursors were adapted into the current project, which gave the property a bespoke, modern facelift that compliments the surrounding buildings’ traditional London brick. 12,670 Michelmersh Floren Polaris bricks were used in the project to provide an economical and thermally efficient shell to the original building, which is nestled inside the outer structure. Elements of the project that may have ended up in a landfill were reused where possible and the combination of reused concrete and the brick skin means an increase in thermal efficiency that could save 4 tonnes of Carbon a year. This incredible dedication to reusing materials has meant a restrictive budget could be used to its fullest extent. House-within-a-House won the “Individual Housing Development” in the 2021 Brick Awards, judges praised its complementary nature to the area without “trying to mimic the naturally aged material”.
Renowned for quality clay products, Michelmersh offers clients a bespoke service, including handmade blending and high standards of quality assurance. Each item is carefully tailored to exact specifications for the perfect finish and lasting durability. The Group’s products combine traditional strength and high achievement of modern standards to ensure that we are building for the future. We are proud of how we are shaping and leading the brick industry.
As the Group strives to reduce its carbon emissions and environmental impact, it seeks to create biodiversity net gain, improve employee wellbeing, and embrace technology innovation across the business, creating value for all its stakeholders.
There are a wide variety of potential projects that Michelmersh propose to embrace, highlighted on the road map below to achieve net zero. These will include a wider roll-out of more energy generation and resource-efficient production methods, alternative new technologies or fuel switching, such as but not limited to hydrogen or biomass or more electrification through renewables, with the addition of carbon capture, use & storage. From the first approach of reduction to pursuing alternatives, we will only look to offset any emissions at the end of this analysis, focusing diligently on transforming the trajectory of our ‘in control’ emissions first and foremost. Michelmersh is dedicated to ‘Shaping Genuine Sustainability‘.
For outstanding reliability, unparalleled workmanship and high performance that meets any requirement, you have come to the right team. The Group’s timelessly authentic, warm, earthy, natural bricks give character to any build. We ensure that your development will command the character and charm that it deserves when using our products. Our clay units are specified up and down the country, issued for both public and private sectors and across a multitude of profiles, from schools and hospitals to theatres and offices. This is why it is our responsibility to offer a wide cross-section of colours and rich textures to meet all your needs, fulfilling the most stringent of planning requirements. We combine unbeatable quality in volume productions that professionals can rely on, with support and logistics that beat the competition.