Roof Tiles - History

Concrete roof tiles were invented by Adolf Kroher in Bavaria in the middle of the 19th century. Manufacturing by hand spread through Germany during the next 50 years and commenced in England on a German press in about 1895.

Mass production was first developed in the United Kingdom; they became the main source of the technology current in the industry throughout the world. In the United Kingdom production by hand continued on a small scale until the 1920s, when demand started to increase. By the 1930s concrete roofing tiles were manufactured on continuous production lines; they took a steadily increasing share of the market from the traditional roofing materials such as natural slates and clay tiles.

The first high pressure extruded, "dry mix," interlocking, concrete roof tile machine in the United States began operations during 1961 in Fremont, California. Every tile was extruded onto an aluminum mold which would not bend under extreme pressure, precise tolerances could be maintained assuring better fit and weather tightness. Bright, long lasting colors were applied to the top surface only, instead of throughout the body, using a cement-oxide slurry. An accent of flash color could be added for increased depth or beauty. The larger sized tile reduced installation labor since one-third fewer tiles were needed to cover 100 square feet.

Concrete roof tiles have been produced and used in North America for the better part of a century now and continues to be a strong "tried and true" roofing product to this day. Concrete roof tile has been the roofing material of choice in Europe and much of the United States for over a century. The practices that Unicrete has developed over the last 30 years of production are just an extension of history. We invite you to do your research on our product and our warranty.