14th April 2015
Do you think you come into contact with ceramic in your day-to-day life? We’ve put together a list of 8 ways ceramic is used in modern life, the obvious and the not so obvious.
Take a read and you might just be surprised!
THE OBVIOUS
1. Tiles
Our roofs, bathrooms and kitchens are covered in ceramic tiles. Ceramic can be glazed with different colours and printed with any design, so tiles can be tailored to different people’s tastes. They are tough and easy to wipe clean once glazed which is perfect for use in the kitchen or bathroom!
2. Cookware
Majority of crockery and pots are made from ceramic. From unglazed to glazed, mortar and pestles to the mug that holds your tea, ceramic is a staple material in the kitchen. Ceramic knives have also become common, they are one of the hardest knives you can buy yet are extremely lightweight!
3. Brick
Our homes are made from brick and are held together by cement, both of which are types of ceramic. Without ceramic, what would we use instead to create the four walls of our homes?
4. Toilets
Sanitary ware such as toilets, sinks and bath tubs are made from ceramic. Ceramic can be glazed and fired so that it becomes non-porous, perfect for sanitary ware which gets used every day and is, of course, in contact with lots of water!
THE NOT-SO OBVIOUS
5. Space
NASA’s Space Shuttle had thousands of heat-resistant tiles protecting its exterior from overheating due to friction generated by Earth’s atmosphere. Future reusable space planes are expected to use a new, slimline ceramic material that will enable it to be both more aerodynamic and withstand temperatures up to 2400°C. Composite ceramics are also used to create the nose cones of spacecraft!
6. Cars
Ceramic can help to decrease pollution and capture toxic materials. Today’s catalytic converters are made with ceramic and help convert harmful fumes into non-toxic gases, therefore having a huge benefit on the environment. Ceramic components can be found in almost every aspect of a vehicle and are a major contributor to advances in hybrid and eco-friendly vehicles.
7. Artificial Bones and Teeth
Toughened ceramic is used in hip replacements and is designed to be porous so that it can stimulate natural bone growth around the artificial joint. You will also find ceramic fillings for your teeth where the ceramic is chemically bonded to your tooth making it extremely strong.
8. Electronic Devices
Televisions contain ceramic insulators, computers have silicon chips and the electric motors in your vacuum cleaner or blender are also made using ceramic!
Who would have thought that we would come across so much ceramic in modern life! Some people say that ceramic is an outdated material and it is often described as ‘old fashioned’. In reality, ceramic is the key to many of our new technologies and is used day to day by us all.
With ceramic, we have the capability to do things that we may only have dreamed of once. So next time you’re wondering what material would be good for your product, why not think ceramic?
USING CERAMIC AS LUXURY PACKAGING IN THE SPIRITS AND DRINKS INDUSTRIES
4th May 2015
Have you ever thought about using ceramic for spirit and beer bottles? I would think a lot of people would answer with no.
BUT… ceramic is such an obvious choice to use as packaging in the drinks industry and many brands, such as Chivas and Diageo, have realised the potential of using ceramic for their products due to many amazing benefits.
Here are a few reasons why ceramic is such a great choice for luxury packaging for spirits or beer:
GLAZED
Ceramic can be glazed rendering it non porous, it has this in common with glass. Once fired, the whole of the decanter, inside and outside, is completely sealed so that no contamination will occur and the spirit is kept just as fresh as it would be in a similar glass bottle.
BOTTLE SHAPE
Ceramic moulds can be designed in nearly any shape or form, meaning bottle shape possibilities are endless. Here at Wade we have created a wide range of different decanter shapes for numerous spirits industries. Some examples include a hula girl, a monkey and a rugby ball. The options for creating pretty much any shape you like is a huge advantage in the packaging, or container, market.
BOTTLE SIZE
Do you want the option to have a decanter produced as big or as small as you like? With ceramic, we have the capability to create different moulds to produce different sized decanters. At Wade, we have produced decanters from as small as a 50ml Chivas bottle to a giant 40 litre Usquaebach whisky flagon.
BOTTLE DESIGN
Ceramic can be sprayed with a huge variety of coloured glazes. A piece can either be one single colour or can be hand painted with many different colours, designs and patterns. One huge benefit with ceramic is the ability to apply lithographic print. Almost any artwork can be turned into litho print and carefully applied, by skilled hands, to the ceramic bottles. There are some amazing capabilities and some examples of exceptional design that we have been able to implement on pieces of ceramic and on ceramic decanters.
BESPOKE AND PERSONAL
Using all of the above, ceramic gives us the opportunity to design, create and produce exceptional pieces that can promote and showcase your brand. Quality ceramic bottles can be personalised to help promote a product. One area we have found to be extremely popular is producing limited edition versions of a product in a distinct, ceramic decanter. Having a material that defies the norm can really help you to stand out from the crowd. Ceramic can deliver that feel of quality which is important to so many, especially with collectable, limited edition items.
So, next time you need packaging for your spirit or drink product, think ceramic!
WHY BEING ‘MADE IN BRITAIN’ IS SO IMPORTANT
25th May 2015
The people of Britain are increasingly favouring products which are marked as ‘Made in the UK’ or ‘Made in Britain’. At Wade, we are proud to produce our products right here in Britain, in our factory in Stoke-on-Trent. We think this is such an important thing and provides huge benefits to the UK.
More products being produced in Britain of course means manufacturing is on the rise! There was a huge drop in manufacturing due to the purchase of products overseas but this has recently changed. It is such a positive thing for the UK and its residents for the following reasons:
MORE JOBS
More manufacturing in the UK means more jobs are available for UK residents. Instead of cutting jobs due to outsourcing our produce, we are now investing in our own country which results in a better standard of living for those working and residing in Britain.
INCREASED SKILL SET
Having more people working and manufacturing in the UK allows its residents to produce a wider range of skills and abilities. We are allowing those from the UK to expand their knowledge and work on a trade by training them effectively and investing our time to develop their skill set. The alternative is to simply import goods and produce from overseas which may leave these people jobless which is not good for our economy or society.
QUALITY PRODUCT
When products are made in the UK, it is much easier for us to be able to check their quality. It is easier to make amends to the manufacturing process or the materials used since it is being produced inland. Changes can be made to ensure the quality of the product is up to the highest standards.
FAIR WORKING STANDARDS
In the UK we have laws and legislations in place to ensure workers are treated fairly and are paid a certain amount of money for the work that they are doing. This cannot be guaranteed overseas but it is such an important thing. By manufacturing products in the UK, we can ensure they have been produced in fair working conditions and without the mistreatment of workers.
NO NEED FOR HIGH COSTS
If we manufacture in the UK rather than importing overseas, we save a huge amount of money on transportation. Less people are involved in the process of getting the product from A to B which can also help to decrease costs.
AN ADDED GREEN BONUS
For British people purchasing the products which have been ‘Made in Britain’, produce is travelling much smaller distances which also helps to reduce our carbon footprint!
CERAMIC: HOW IT’S MADE (INFOGRAPHIC)
10th June 2015
Here’s our infographic helping you to understand how some of our products are made!
Why not take a look at our Video Tour to see Bench Casting in action (skip to 00:42)!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZk-KBiScaM
WADE WORKS WITH PADDINGTON BEAR
17th June 2015
To promote the release of the Paddington Bear movie at the end of November, London hosted The Paddington Trail. More than 50 Paddington Bear statues were dotted around London close to museums, parks, shops and key landmarks. Each bear was lovingly created by an artist, designer or celebrity.
We were approached at the end of 2014 with a fantastic opportunity to work alongside Selfridges and Studio Canal for the new Paddington Bear movie. We were asked if we could create miniature ceramic figures to replicate some of the celebrities Trail Bear designs.
The Miniature Trail Bears, which we produced here in our factory in Stoke-on-Trent, were sold in Selfridges in London and a portion of the proceeds were donated to the NSPCC!
In total we produced around 2000 figures which were sold in their own suitcase-shaped box with a certificate of authenticity.
The full sized Paddington Trail bears were also auctioned off to raise money for charity. It was a huge success with around £950,000 being donated to the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children), ChildLine and Action Medical Research!
We produced the designs shown below:
We’re extremely proud to have been involved with such a fantastic project and are honoured to have been able to help raise money for the NSPCC! Having our produce sold in Selfridges in London was a real privilege and we know these pieces will become valuable British treasures to people and their families for many years to come.
We’d love to know if you managed to get your paws on one of these Limited Edition figures, or maybe even the whole set? Let us know by sending us a picture on any of our social channels.
If you missed out on the chance of purchasing a ceramic Miniature Trail Bear then don’t worry! The classic Paddington is still available to buy from the Paddington Bear Shop located at Paddington Station in London.
CERAMIC MANUFACTURING: REDUCE, RE-USE, RECYCLE
6th July 2015
Wade Ceramics Limited takes its environmental responsibilities seriously. The industry is unavoidably a heavy energy user ceramics manufacturing process, therefore we strive to be as efficient as possible.
We utilise the waste heat from the exhaust stacks on the kilns to dry product, to heat the factory and to warm product for certain production areas. This means we don’t need extra space allocated to heating within the factory.
Wade recycles most of its water waste through an effluent treatment plant which removes only the sludge left by tanker from site. The reused water is then used to clean down machinery on a daily basis.
All excess clay is recycled either by Wade through our own system, or by returning it to our supplier to be recycled back to us in a usable state.
Any fired product, biscuit or glazed, which is broken or otherwise rejected is taken by a local tile manufacturer and ground down to dust. This is then mixed with virgin materials and used to manufacture tiles.
Our raw, manufacturing materials are supplied in reusable packaging that when empty is returned to the supplier for re-use. Our finished product is packaged in minimum unprinted, recycled card for protection or, more usually, bulk packed on pallets for ease of handling.
STEM EVENT: WADE GET NCHS – THE SCIENCE COLLEGE INTERESTED IN CERAMIC ENGINEERING
16th July 2015
On the 13th and 14th July, Wade helped out at a 2 day STEM event designed to get current year 10 students (15 years old) interested in industrial/manufacturing engineering.
DAY 1
Wade Engineers attended the first session at NCHS – The Science College, in Staffordshire, on Monday morning. The day started with an introduction and students were set the task of doing research relating to ceramics and mechanical engineering.
Once they had completed this activity they moved on to assembling some AODD pumps, the same as those we use in our factory. The students learned how to read technical drawings, the importance of housekeeping and also planned the best way to work as a team.
With the help of Wade’s apprentices, all the teams successfully re-built the pumps. We were surprised at how quickly the teams were working, so they were set another challenge: the first team to successfully strip down and rebuild the pump wins a prize! The students rose to this challenge and soon there was shouting, sweating, ‘borrowing’ tools from other teams and even standing on tables to work faster! It was great to see the students so enthusiastic, especially to the teachers who commented on how different some of the students were behaving compared to normal.
By the end of the day all the teams had completed the challenge, with the winning team being awarded sweets and fizzy pop (normally banned from school, so it was very well received!). After a good tidy up the day was over, ready for testing in the morning.
DAY 2
On Tuesday morning 22 students and 2 teachers came to our factory to see our process and also to test their completed pumps. The students thought our factory was amazing and really enjoyed seeing all the different parts of our process, from pressure casting to lithographing. After the tour, they tested the pumps on a purpose built test rig in the workshop. Two teams found that their pump worked first time, and worked very well, whilst two teams had to dismantle their pumps and fault find. Eventually all the teams had their pumps working, and a prize was awarded to the team with the best performing pump.
After lunch, we had a discussion about modern apprentices and careers in engineering. A large number of students expressed an interest in working for Wade Ceramics, with some asking if they could stay longer or come back!
It was a pleasure to have the students working with us for these 2 days and everybody enjoyed themselves and learned something new. Hopefully we will see some of them again in the future, whether on work experience or as a potential future employee!
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