Industrial Brick Production VII – Edge Runner

Brick production was of great importance in the Lippe area in Germany. The Brick Factory Beerman in Sylbach was one of the many production sites in the area. Opened in 1909 the factory did not introduce machines for industrial brick production until 1922. However, after the factory had changed from coal to oil as energy source, oil prices went up within the oil crisis. The factory had to close in 1979.
By 2001 the former factory has been bought, restored and turned into a museum by the Landschaftsverband Westfalen Lippe. Today the historic machines of the brick factory Beermann are running once more. The industrial process of making bricks can be explored during special presentations at the museum. These presentations include all processes within industrial brick production – from clay mining and transport over rolling and pressing to drying of the blanks and firing. This recording was made during such a public presentation of industrial brick production.
The edge runner in the brick factory roles the clay to break large lumps and make it smooth for pressing. Each of the two large wheels that crush the clay has a weight of 6 tons. They squeeze the clay through a sieve. From there the clay is transported into the clay press. In this recording you can hear the massive rumbling of the edge runner and the crunching sound of the clay from close by.

Sound: Lukas Rabl (The University of Applied Sciences Dortmund)
Photo/Video: Kathinka Engels