Masonry Magazine March 1962 Page. 15
Block Will Sparkle Like A Precious Stone
Late Frank Lloyd Wright once said, "The humble standard concrete block will sparkle like a precious stone if you treat if right. The concrete block is the most underestimated building material known."
Owen McKinney, president of the Colorado Concrete Masonry Assn. and McKinney Concrete Products Co., Pueblo, Colorado, agrees wholeheartedly with Mr. Wright. McKinney is conducting an intensive campaign throughout southern Colorado to sell insulated block construction, placing special emphasis on middle and up-price-range homes. He launched this promotion about three years ago, after water-repellent vermiculite fill insulation for masonry walls became available in Colorado.
"With masonry fill, we can sell a most exposed block wall as cheap as the lowest-cost frame, and yet give the homeowner the comfort of insulation," McKinney said. "We emphasize fuel savings, quiet, low maintenance, and insurance costs; also, the decorative possibilities offered by exposed block walls for interiors and exteriors."
In the past two years, McKinney Concrete Products Co. has built vermiculite-insulated concrete masonry homes as part of the Parade of Homes promotion for National Home Week. These houses are in the $20,000 to $30,000 price range. The 1961 home incorporates many decorative uses of lightweight block in combination with other materials. The main feature is a large, country-type kitchen that has exposed block walls and a fireplace on three sides. In front of the house is an attractive fence of screen block.
The Vernon J. Johnsons, who live in McKinney's 1960 Parade of Homes house, are enthusiastic about insulated block walls. They find the house more comfortable, summer and winter, than the frame house they had previously occupied, even though the latter was also insulated.
"These promotional homes create a lot of interest among consumers," McKinney commented. "People planning to build now are much more receptive to the idea of using block than they used to be. Since I came into this business six years ago, the use of block for home construction has increased tenfold."
"As for vermiculite fill, it's a nice, extra-profit item for us and we're a natural source of supply for the masons. When they order blocks and fill, we can load the bags of insulation on top the blocks and save them a delivery charge."
Operating since 1955, McKinney Concrete Products Co. has a number of "firsts" to its credit. The latest is the new concrete block joist shown at the 1961 NCMA convention in Detroit. McKinney is the first block manufacturer in Colorado to make the new joists.
Another new McKinney product is a white, decorative block. No white sand is available in southern Colorado, so McKinney experimented with various mixtures until he found one of washed sand, white pumice, and white cement. This produces a white block which he makes in four heights (from two inches to eight inches) so the builder or architect can work out ashlar patterns. McKinney also carries red, green, gold, and charcoal colored blocks. The plant is equipped with a complete assortment of molds for creating shadow block in new and unusual patterns.
In all, the company makes some 160 different items, including about 50 kinds of blocks. It was the first block company in Colorado to have Ramsey automatic batching control. There is also a new, late model V3R Besser Vibrapac machine with electronic control to produce a precision product. Blocks come out of the mold and are loaded on racks and placed in one of five kilns. Cured under steam pressure for eight hours, the blocks are held in the yard for 30 days to assure proper curing and reduce shrinkage.
The plant owns three regular trucks and a semi-trailer Diesel with a capacity of 46,000 lbs. that is used for long hauls. All trucks are equipped with automatic unloaders.
McKinney has won five safety awards from the NCMA for operating his plant during a 12-month period without one lost-time accident.