The London Brick Company
Encyclopedia
The London Brick Company is a leading British
manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc
.
, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough. In 1889, Hill bought the small T.W.Hardy & Sons brickyard at Fletton
near Peterborough and it was this business that was incorporated as the London Brick Company in 1900. The generic name “Fletton” is given to bricks made from lower Oxford Clay giving them a low fuel cost due to the carbonaceous content of the clay.
Hill ran into financial difficulties and in 1912 a receiver was appointed to run London Brick. Hill died in 1915 but after the receiver was discharged in 1919, Hill's son continued to run the Company.
The capital-intensive fletton brick industry suffered from substantial variations in demand and after the First War amalgamations were proposed. In 1923, London Brick merged with Malcolm Stewart
's B.J. Forder, along with London Brick, one of the four main groupings in the fletton industry. The new Company, for a while called L.B.C. & Forders,went on to acquire other brick firms in the late 1920s, giving it a dominant position in the fletton industry. By 1931 the Company was producing 1,000m bricks a year in 1935 output exceeded 1,500m bricks or 60 per cent of the fletton industry output, and the peak pre-war output reached 1,750 bricks.
Reflecting the post-war housing boom, fletton brick sales increased, reaching a peak in 1967. Brick sales declined subsequently and the Company diversified. London Brick Land Fill was formed and began the tipping of household and industrial refuse into the old clay pits in the Marston Vale
area: London Brick Landfill was merged into Shanks Group
in 1988. Between 1968 and 1971 The London Brick Company also bought its three remaining fletton competitors (including the Marston Valley Brick Company) to give it a total monopoly of the fletton market. Its brick sales in 1973 totalled 2,883m or 43 per cent of the total brick market.
The company was acquired by Hanson plc
in 1984. In Feb 2008, Hanson closed brickmaking operations at Stewartby in Marston Vale owing to problems meeting UK sulphur emission regulations, even though it met the EU regulations. Production of the London Brick is now concentrated at Peterborough, while the Marston Vale site is being redeveloped for housing and the new Hanson HQ building is also relocated there.
families came to Peterborough in the 1950s to work in the Marston Vale
brickworks.
are built from London brick.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
manufactuer of bricks. It is owned by Hanson plc
Hanson plc
Hanson plc is a British based international building materials company, headquartered in Maidenhead. Traded on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index for many years, the company was acquired by a division of German rival Heidelberg Cement in August 2007.-History:Hanson...
.
History
The London Brick Company owes its origins to John Cathles HillJohn Cathles Hill
John Cathles Hill was an architect and property developer who was born in Hawkshill, part of Dundee. When he was three years old his family moved to the village Auchterhouse in Angus County...
, a developer-architect who built houses in both London and Peterborough. In 1889, Hill bought the small T.W.Hardy & Sons brickyard at Fletton
Fletton
Fletton is a residential area and electoral ward of the city of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire in the United Kingdom. For parliamentary purposes it falls within North West Cambridgeshire constituency...
near Peterborough and it was this business that was incorporated as the London Brick Company in 1900. The generic name “Fletton” is given to bricks made from lower Oxford Clay giving them a low fuel cost due to the carbonaceous content of the clay.
Hill ran into financial difficulties and in 1912 a receiver was appointed to run London Brick. Hill died in 1915 but after the receiver was discharged in 1919, Hill's son continued to run the Company.
The capital-intensive fletton brick industry suffered from substantial variations in demand and after the First War amalgamations were proposed. In 1923, London Brick merged with Malcolm Stewart
Malcolm Stewart
Sir Percy Malcolm Stewart, 1st Baronet was a British businessman. He incorporated The London Brick Company in the 1920s which was at the time reputed to be the largest brick making company in the United Kingdom....
's B.J. Forder, along with London Brick, one of the four main groupings in the fletton industry. The new Company, for a while called L.B.C. & Forders,went on to acquire other brick firms in the late 1920s, giving it a dominant position in the fletton industry. By 1931 the Company was producing 1,000m bricks a year in 1935 output exceeded 1,500m bricks or 60 per cent of the fletton industry output, and the peak pre-war output reached 1,750 bricks.
Reflecting the post-war housing boom, fletton brick sales increased, reaching a peak in 1967. Brick sales declined subsequently and the Company diversified. London Brick Land Fill was formed and began the tipping of household and industrial refuse into the old clay pits in the Marston Vale
Marston Vale
Marston Vale is an area of Bedfordshire. It lies to the south west of Bedford and Kempston, down towards the M1 motorway. Historically it was one of the main brickmaking districts in England, home of the London Brick Company, now a division of Hanson plc...
area: London Brick Landfill was merged into Shanks Group
Shanks Group
Shanks Group plc is a leading European waste management company operating in the UK, Belgium, Canada and the Netherlands. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...
in 1988. Between 1968 and 1971 The London Brick Company also bought its three remaining fletton competitors (including the Marston Valley Brick Company) to give it a total monopoly of the fletton market. Its brick sales in 1973 totalled 2,883m or 43 per cent of the total brick market.
The company was acquired by Hanson plc
Hanson plc
Hanson plc is a British based international building materials company, headquartered in Maidenhead. Traded on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index for many years, the company was acquired by a division of German rival Heidelberg Cement in August 2007.-History:Hanson...
in 1984. In Feb 2008, Hanson closed brickmaking operations at Stewartby in Marston Vale owing to problems meeting UK sulphur emission regulations, even though it met the EU regulations. Production of the London Brick is now concentrated at Peterborough, while the Marston Vale site is being redeveloped for housing and the new Hanson HQ building is also relocated there.
Italian influence
Many ItalianItalian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
families came to Peterborough in the 1950s to work in the Marston Vale
Marston Vale
Marston Vale is an area of Bedfordshire. It lies to the south west of Bedford and Kempston, down towards the M1 motorway. Historically it was one of the main brickmaking districts in England, home of the London Brick Company, now a division of Hanson plc...
brickworks.
Operations
The Company estimates that 5 million houses in BritainUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
are built from London brick.