Hanson Brick announces the addition of Hibernia to its commercial brick collection in the North region

June 6, 2007 - TORONTO - Hanson Brick, the largest brick manufacturer in North America, has launched Hibernia, a new black brick well suited for building accents and unique design creations.

"Market demands compelled us to create this unusual brick," said Frank Buck, vice president for regional sales for Hanson Brick's North Region, which includes the Great Lakes region, New England and Canada. "We believe it will inspire creative architectural designs and it will offer architects more choice when it comes to choosing a dark colour brick."

Modular dimensions

Hibernia is currently available in CSR and modular, with additional sizes available upon demand. Coated in manganese to create its black colour, Hibernia has a leathery appearance and tiny hints of the red clay underneath.

Laid up with black mortar, this brick creates a smooth, uniform look. However, creative mortar colour combinations completely change the character of Hibernia.

"We encourage architects and designers to be imaginative when it comes to choosing a complementary mortar colour for Hibernia," Buck said. "This is an incredibly expressive brick and the feeling of the building can be drastically altered by changing the mortar colour."

Hanson Brick is North America's largest brick manufacturer, with approximately 1,600 employees and operations across the United States and Canada. The company provides its customers with superior selection and service, offering more than 1,000 styles of brick in five regional brick collections. Hanson Brick is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Hanson Brick is part of Hanson PLC (NYSE:HAN), an international building materials company, with approximately 26,000 employees and operations in 15 countries. Hanson PLC is the largest producer of aggregates, the second largest producer of pipe and the third largest producer of brick in the world.

www.hanson.com/na/brick

For more information:
Dana Haydock
704-926-1301
dhaydock@wwlcreative.com

Heather Tamol
704-926-1326
htamol@wwlcreative.com