At Alusid, we proudly make use of unwanted manufacturing materials that others discard. Taking these materials, we put them through an ingenious, environmentally low-impact process to give them a new lease of life.
The result is a special new material that combines recycled glass and porcelain, to create beautiful solid surfaces and tiles that are bespoke in character and respectful of the planet.
Launched in 2015, Alusid is the result of a research project at the University of Central Lancashire. Setting out to explore ways in which waste and low-value materials destined for landfill could be repurposed into beautiful, versatile surface materials, Professor David Binns and Dr Alasdair Bremner developed Silicastone – an innovative and aesthetically versatile architectural surface material made from glass, ceramics and mineral waste.
Now, from our facility in Preston, Lancashire, we create tiles, solid surfaces, table tops, wallcoverings, and interior and exterior surfaces in a variety of colours, shapes and textures – all developed with minimal environmental impact and with 98% recycled materials.
Since launch, Alusid has won numerous design and industry awards and created products for architects and designers across the UK and beyond. We have participated in a number of high-profile design exhibitions including Ready Made Go at Ace Hotel in London and at designjunction during London Design Festival in 2018.
Today, we continue to research and develop new sustainable materials and methods of making. This design and testing process is ongoing and offers almost limitless possibilities in terms of finish.
Alusid was born out of an academic research project led by Professor David Binns and Dr Alasdair Bremner, originally funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).
The uniqueness of Alusid’s surfaces is no accident, as the origins of the idea are rooted in creative art practice. As such, all our products retain a hand-crafted quality, celebrating the beautiful imperfections found in natural stone, or in the bespoke glaze finishes our ceramic glass material can create.
All our staff are either trained craftsmen and women, or trained in-house to understand and appreciate the inherent beauty of our sustainable products.
We know there are many products out there that claim to be sustainable and understand the subsequent minefield for specifiers and architects alike. We are working towards accreditation of our products but, in the meantime, you can discover more about our sustainable claims.
Most of our products are made from 100% recycled materials and approximately 60% of those materials currently end up in landfill. For some of our coloured ranges we need to add materials that are not recycled, but our products never contain less than 98% recycled materials.
We don’t use resin or concrete to bind materials together. Instead, we use heat, but importantly we heat our products at a considerably lower temperature compared to conventional ceramics.
We reuse all of our production waste. When we are polishing or cutting our products, all of the waste is either reporposed into products sold in our Alusid Home shop or is reintroduced into the manufacturing process. This saves on resources, but it also means we aren’t putting anything into the ground. What's more, at the end of our products' life, they can be recycled back into our process.
