Ceramics
Our unique ball clays, extra white or fluid kaolins, halloysites, chamottes, feldspars, quartz, talcs and wollastonites are solutions of choice for bodies, frits, glazes and engobes for sanitaryware, tableware and tiles.
High-performance solutions for the ceramics industry
From porcelain dinner plates to stylish bathroom shower trays or trendy countertops, the design and quality of ceramics influence many areas of our daily lives.
Mainly composed of natural minerals, the great popularity of ceramic products can be explained by their unique properties: design versatility, long service life, easy cleaning and optimal hygienic characteristics, high strength, wear resistance, chemical inertness, resistance to heat and sometimes also a specific porosity.
If you’re manufacturing ceramic tableware, sanitaryware or tiles, you need the highest standards when it comes to whiteness, mechanical strength and dimensional stability.
The origin of Imerys in ceramics can be found dating back to our humble beginnings in Europe beginning in 1782 with UK Kaolins and 1786 with Marcognac deposits in France. Since then Imerys has expanded worldwide to become the world’s leading supplier of high-performance mineral solutions and kiln furniture for the ceramics industry.
We mine and process minerals to offer an extensive portfolio of superior quality minerals such as unique ball clays, extra white kaolins and halloysites, chamottes, feldspars, quartz, talcs and wollastonites.
These make ideal raw materials for bodies, frits, glazes and engobes for ceramics applications like sanitaryware, tableware, tiles or large surfaces.
But we also offer an extended portfolio of mineral solutions for technical ceramics including kaolins and talcs, alumina, steatite and cordierite bodies.
In addition, we manufacture a large range of ready-made solutions for tableware and sanitaryware customers, including bodies (suitable for most common production processes) as well as glazes available in spray-dried granulates, slurry or powder form.
Adding value with high-quality solutions
Our bespoke offering to ceramics manufacturers includes high-quality products, formulation services from our dedicated ceramics laboratories, state-of-the-art technical support and on-site production support.
Imerys also offers a comprehensive set of high-performance cordierite, mullite and SiC (Silicon-Carbide) based kiln furniture solutions for the sanitaryware and tableware industries. Harnessing our wide portfolio of quality materials and state-of-the-art production technologies, our design office is able to tailor any of these solutions to our customers' specific requirements.
Our technical support teams are located globally and, based on their extensive experience, they cooperate with our customers in ceramic formulation to understand production issues, improve productivity, improve product quality or develop cost-effective solutions.
Download our technical data sheets and brochures for more information, or get in touch to tell us about your processes and discuss the mineral options that are right for you.
Imerys offers a broad range of high quality minerals to the ceramics industry that offer superior technical performance, consistent quality, and advancements in creating sustainable, long lasting end products for our customers.
Our minerals are sourced from our global network of mines and processed using state-of-the-art technology to ensure the highest standards of quality and performance.
We are committed to providing our customers with the best possible products for their specific needs.
Key benefits
Related services
Imerys Kaolins de Bretagne in southwest Brittany hosted an open day to commemorate its 120th anniversary, bringing together the general public, site employees and their families, customers, representatives of local associations, local elected officials and other important regional stakeholders. The day also marked another significant milestone for the company's future, since it coincides with the renewal in 2023 of the prefectural order authorizing Imerys to continue its mining activities at Kaolin de Bretagne for a further 28 years.
The sanitaryware manufacturing market is actively aiming to reduce its environmental impact, thereby extending product lifespans and reducing carbon emissions. Imerys’ range of sanitaryware solutions shows significant promise in limiting the industry’s environmental impact, and the four solutions discussed below are exemplary in this regard.
Versatile, strong, resistant, long-lasting, mostly natural, chemically inert, easy to clean with hygienic characteristics — it’s easy to see why ceramic products and their applications are so very popular. They are part and parcel of our daily lives, from the roofs above our heads to the tableware we dine from, from the sanitaryware to keep us clean and refreshed to the electrical appliances around us.
Imerys exhibited and presented at this week’s UNITECR, a key technical conference for the refractory industry. Experts from the Group discussed new products, sustainability and how to support young professionals in the industry.
