Masonry Magazine September 2010 Page. 24
MORTARS, MIXTURES AND STAINING
Photos courtesy of ITW TACC
Masonry Adhesive for Specialty Masonry Applications
Mortar can be used for all masonry construction, but is all masonry construction best suited for the use of mortar?
In 2004 ITW TACC did a market study of the masonry construction industry and realized an opportunity existed to develop a new product to make some masonry construction applications quicker, easier and more profitable for contractors, and improve product performance.
"As a result of our market study, we identified some areas where the industry needed a product that was easier to use than mortar, would increase worker productivity to lower labor costs, provide a quicker cure time, increase strength of the masonry assembly and reduced water penetration thru the assembly," says Tim Walsh, product manager for ITW TACC. "We felt an adhesive product could be used to improve the performance in some specific segments of the business, like hardscape, residential housing including foundations, and some specialty applications where the use of mortar presented some challenges. One of the critical areas we felt we needed to address was acceptance by the building inspectors, architects, builders, developers and contractors for the use of an adhesive instead of mortar."
By Alex Cheolas