Structural Masonry - Massachusetts

More than just a pretty face, masonry offers structural advantages too!

Masonry is beautiful. Its warmth, variety and hand-crafted appeal have never gone out of style. Since ancient times, it has been the prevalent way to build lasting structures. Today’s designers, who often choose it for its decorative value, can also benefit from its many structural advantages.

Integrity

Engineered and reinforced masonry can be used effectively for bearing walls and shear walls. Depending on the building’s configuration and function, structural masonry can be used alone or integrated with a steel or reinforced concrete frame. Often, building features already planned for masonry, such as brick faced exterior walls or concrete masonry service cores, can easily be adapted to serve additional structural purposes. Masonry provides not only the structure, but attractive finishes inside and out.

Stone Walls

Stone walls are usually made of local materials varying from granite and Sandstone. However, the quality of building stone varies greatly, both in its endurance to Weathering, resistance to water penetration and in its ability to be worked into regular shapes before construction. Worked stone is usually known Ashlar and is often used for corners in stone buildings. Granite is very resistant to weathering.

Brick Veneer

Beauty, warmth, and charm for your business or home. Thin brick veneer is an attractive, maintenance-free cladding material that is suitable for a wide variety of applications, both residential and commercial. Brick thickness is usually 1/2" to 2" and is moisture resistant. One of the advantages of thin brick veneer over traditional, full-size brick cladding is that it requires less in terms of structural reinforcement. Load bearing foundations are not required, making thin brick the perfect choice for a variety of applications. Thin brick veneer's beauty and colorfastness ensure many years of enjoyment for the homeowner and ensure a cost-effective cladding for commercial projects.

Poured Concrete

Poured concrete wall foundations are arguably stronger than cinder blocks. Poured walls have a better lateral strength, which means they are able to resist more pressure from the water and the soil from the outside. A poured wall doesn't have joints like a block wall, so it is easier to waterproof.

Footings & Lally Columns

Concrete footings are the unsung heroes in a quality-built home. For most home construction the concrete footing forms the base of your home. Concrete footings are installed below the frost line to prevent the home from heaving and settling during winter months. Foundation walls and Lally support columns rest on the concrete footings. Framing construction is then built upon the foundation walls and Lally columns.