Ceramic tile as we know it today has been around for several millennia. As technology progressed the manufacturing process was modernized, but the basic process remains the same. Ceramic tile is simply man-made stone so it should be no surprise that the production process mimics nature’s manufacture of stone.

Biomimicry
Ceramics are composed mainly of three simple, natural ingredients.
Clay. The plastic or moldable base-material of a ceramic that allows it to be shaped.
Sand. The stabilizer that contains shrinkage when the ceramic is baked or fired.
Feldspar. A common mineral with low viscosity when in liquid state fuses the body into one homogeneous piece as it cools.

Once the recipe has been selected, the first stage of production mimics the natural process of erosion by grinding all the material into regular, fine aggregates. Everything is loaded into a cement mixer-like machine called a ball-sling. This drum is filled with water and high-content feldspar balls that grind and pummel the mixture into even-sized particulates similar to the action erosion provides in nature.

Another machine, called the atomizer, was added to the process circa 1970 to better guarantee the consistency of modern tile. An atomizer uses a vortex of heated air and friction inside a silo to dry the slurry and chafe the particulates into little uniform spheres ready for pressing.

In nature rain carries layer after layer of eroded rock into river valleys where after a few million years the weight of each layer compresses the underlying minerals into solid rock. This pressure is replicated in ceramic production at the presses. The main pressing techniques are dry-press and extrusion. Ceramic presses or extruders apply between 10,000 psi and 70,000 psi to mimic eons of pressure in the earth’s crust.

Extrusion
Also known as the wet process, the clay contains between 16% to 18% moisture and is extremely plastic and moldable. The ceramic material is forced under immense pressure through a steel die, the “press” or extruder, to create a long ribbon that is cut into tiles or trims. Extruded manufacturing is easily recognized by linear grooves or protrusions on the back and all trim pieces like chair-rails or stairtreads are produced by this method.

Dust-press
As the dry method, this process uses atomized clay with 4% to 6% moisture content. A high-pressure hydraulic press is filled with the nearly dry ceramic material. The fixed die at the top comes down with immense pressure to compress material into the desired tile size and shape. This is the most common production method due to the speed and precision afforded.

Digital glazing
The first inkjet or digital glazing machines debuted a decade ago in Valencia, Spain, at Cevisama 2000. Patents have since run out on the technology, lowering prices and involving new minds in the evolutionary process. Consequently, this year digital glazing was almost universally adopted throughout the tile industry due to the lowered cost of improved machinery.

Inkjet glazing operates in essentially the same way as your office printer. In a touchless glaze delivery system called drop on demand, (DOD) screens no longer touch the surface of the unfired bisque. Digital image files also provide stone and wood looks unparalleled in today's design standards.