JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — Two projects featuring General Shale products have been recognized by the Brick Industry Association (BIA) as winners in the 2017 Brick in Architecture awards competition.
General Shale received a Gold Award in the Municipal/Government category for the Beardsley Community Farm Education Center, a nonprofit urban farm located in Knoxville, Tennessee. Completed in 2016, the education center is a design/build project that involved more than 50 students from the University of Tennessee School of Architecture and Design, and provides a valuable tool for teaching sustainable farming practices to the surrounding community. More than 30,000 General Shale brick units were used to construct triple-width brick walls for the education center, providing superior energy efficiency and helping the project meet the requirements for LEED Gold certification.
The company also received a Gold Award in the Residential: Multi-Family category for The Jefferson condominium building, located in New York City’s East Village. Situated on the former site of the city’s first vaudeville theater, the 115,000-square-foot project was constructed in 2013 — 100 years after its namesake — and was awarded LEED Gold certification in 2016. Reminiscent of a theater’s proscenium stage, The Jefferson’s prominent center frames the building’s façade with dark brick piers — a charcoal brick blend provided by General Shale. This brick accent offers a compelling contrast to the façade’s predominantly light brick, which echoes the beauty of masonry used throughout the neighborhood.
The nation’s premier architectural award featuring clay brick, the Brick in Architecture Awards have been held annually since 1989. Judged by independent design professionals, the awards recognize outstanding designs that combine genuine clay brick with aesthetics and sustainability.
“General Shale is honored to be recognized by industry professionals for these two exceptional projects,” says Charles Smith, president and CEO of General Shale. “Both of these projects are excellent examples of innovative architecture featuring brick, with outstanding results. We are pleased to see our products continue to be featured in award-winning designs.”
Headquartered in Johnson City, Tennessee, General Shale is the North American subsidiary of Wienerberger AG and a leading manufacturer of brick, one of the world’s oldest green building materials.
ABOUT GENERAL SHALE
General Shale is one of North America’s largest brick, stone and concrete block manufacturers. Founded in 1928, the company offers an endless array of sizes, colors and textures in a wide variety of masonry materials to complete any residential, commercial or specialty architectural project. These materials include brick, thin masonry, stone, outdoor living products, concrete block and various building materials, which include Arriscraft® Stone and Pipelife Jet Stream products.
Throughout the U.S. and Canada, General Shale operates manufacturing facilities in nine states and provinces, in addition to a network of more than 40 retail showrooms and over 300 affiliated distributors across North America. The company grew even stronger in 1999 when it joined Wienerberger AG of Vienna, Austria, the world’s largest brick manufacturer. With a life cycle of more than 100 years, the sustainability of brick is General Shale’s commitment to responsible stewardship.
General Shale is headquartered in Johnson City, Tennessee. For more information, visit www.generalshale.com.
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