For many, bricks are traditionally associated with building homes and exterior walls, but during the last five years the clay brick has been thrown into the interior spotlight to become a key feature within the home and work place.

Sedgley-based Baggeridge produces in excess of 300 million bricks each year and has witnessed a noticeable shift in trend towards its products.

Focal Point

The company has increasingly seen exposed brick work become a focal point within private homes and new apartments, pubs, restaurants, offices and even within schools.

Mark Morris, sales director for Baggeridge believes that the trend of exposing the brick work of a building looks set to continue. He said: “Exposed brick work has a somewhat rustic and natural feel that many people find appealing. Long gone are the days when brick was confined to the exteriors of buildings, today people are embracing it and bringing it indoors.

“Traditional pubs were among the first establishments to adopt exposed brick work and it was only when people began transforming barns into homes that this trend really began to take off in a stylish and aspirational way.“

For the brick industry this is of course good news, as a nation we are passionate to mix old styles with new and an increasing number of people are keen to add their own personal touches to their home. There is also the growth of new-build properties which allow people to add bespoke features to their property.

Out of the Cold

When it comes to commercial premises however, a mixed-use building in Sheffield decided to bring its bricks out of the cold last year to make them a real feature on the inside and out.

Constructed on a site of significant regeneration, this First Start building today houses a young children’s centre and nursery, offices, visitor centre, community cafe and training facilities.

Baggeridge’s Oxidium Red Multi Sovereign Stock bricks were used to develop a unique part of this building, which has a modern cube-like feature which runs from floor to ceiling and sees the brickwork integrate seamlessly from the outside of the building in.

Mark Morris said: “For this particular project, the exposed brick work was a key part of the building. Selected specifically for the cube, the end result saw our bricks bring a warm feeling to the interior.

“The ‘brick cube’ is in an extremely prominent position so that people can see it from the exterior, a project that was certainly a first for us on the design front.”

Fine Example

Another project that has welcomed exposed brick work into its premises is the prestigious Touchwood Centre in Solihull which opened in 2001 and boasts over 80 shops in three different arcades.

In total, more than 500,000 Classic Buff Multi facing bricks from Baggeridge were used across the entire 1.25 million sq. ft area, and a significant proportion of these were used as exposed brick work for nine different arches and brick panels along the malls.

Neil Gibbons, area sales manager for Baggeridge, was involved with this project from the outset and saw the building take shape at every stage. He said: “Touchwood is a fine example of how exposed brick work can work in a public arena. Bricks are perceived by many to be a cold material, but once they’re brought indoors they give places a certain ambience and feel that can’t be achieved using any other material.

“Exposed brick work within shopping centres is certainly becoming an attractive alternative over other materials and one which I’m sure will continue for years to come.”

Warm and Welcoming

Hospitals are traditionally associated with stark interiors, but Tiverton Hospital in Devon bucked this trend earlier in the year by incorporating Baggeridge’s Cream Gilt’s into its reception area.

Matching well with the brick work of the local vernacular, the Gilt’s have helped to remove the soullessness that normally comes with the territory of hospitals and instead transformed it into a warm and welcoming environment.

Mark Morris concludes: “These projects are certainly testament to the fact that brick work should no longer be restricted to exteriors. When deployed in the right location, brick can add character to homes, bring warmth to commercial buildings and provide an all important feature.”

21st February 2006