4. Concrete tiles

Concrete tiles are made from a micro-concrete composed of sand, cement and water, to which fillers and pigments are often added for coloring in the mass.

They are manufactured continuously by rolling and extruding fresh micro-concrete onto metal molds (usually aluminum-silicon alloys).

The special composition (sand/cement + filler ratio of between 3 and 3.5) and manufacturing process result in a high-performance material (tensile-flexural strength of the order of 10 MPa) that is watertight and non-gelling, making it suitable for all types of tile (flat, interlocking, rim, ridge, etc.).

Production is generally carried out on high-speed automatic lines (90 to 140 tiles per minute), with the extruder at the heart of the process. The molds, shaped to match the underside of the tiles, are inserted end-to-end at one end...