Bricks play an important role in the construction industry for finishing work. A brick is a small rectangular block typically made of fired or sun-dried clay used in buildings. 

Architects in Chennai consider the following amount of  constituents as good bricks, 

Silica 50%

Lime 5-10%

Alumina 20-30%

Iron oxide 5-7%

Magnesia 1%

Manufacturing Process Of Bricks

The preparation of clay starts with the mining and removal of loose soil. The top layer of the soil, about 30 cm deep, contains a lot of impurities like organic matter, so it should be taken out and thrown away. Then the earth is dug out about 50 to 150 cm in height. It is exposed to the atmosphere for softening. The time duration of this process may be of few weeks to a season. Then the clay is mixed with suitable ingredients.

Moulding of clay is commonly done with the hand, called hand moulding. A wooden rectangular mould made in the shape of a brick is normally used for this purpose. The other process of moulding is called machine moulding. It comes out through the opening under pressure. These bricks are cut by steel wires and are called wire-cut bricks. Few architecture firms in Chennai use both moulding types of bricks for constructing a residential and commercial building.

Drying bricks is a very important operation in the brick manufacturing process. The properly moulded bricks are dried, and they are taken for the next operation of burning. The bricks are laid longitudinally in stacks of width equal to two bricks, and the stacks consist of ten or eight tiers. The bricks are placed one over the other in alternative layers. These bricks are placed on the edges and are allowed to dry until the bricks become hard to reduce moisture content.

The burning of bricks is the final manufacturing process of bricks. The bricks are burned at high temperatures to gain strength, durability, density and red colour appearance. All the moisture from the brick is removed at 1100 degrees because the fusing of sand and lime takes place at this temperature and chemical bonding takes between these materials. Once the temperature is cooled, hard and dense bricks are found. 

The quality of the building always lies in the strength and durability of the building materials. The building contractors in Chennai use the best quality bricks to construct various buildings.