An outdoor tiles manufacturer in India that can also make parking tiles needs three things: presses that can form thick tiles, kilns that fire them evenly, and test reports that show strength and slip resistance. Many Morbi plants make floor tiles. Far fewer make Morbi parking tiles that hold up under vehicles.
Ask for the evidence on the production lot, not on a development sample.
What makes a plant capable of thick tiles?
Parking and outdoor tiles are thicker and denser than interior floor tiles, as set out in what parking tiles are and how thick they should be. A press that makes thin 600x600 tiles may not apply enough force to a thick body, and a kiln profile built for thin tiles can fire a thick one unevenly, leaving internal stress.
Ask which presses the plant uses for these tiles, the thicknesses it has produced in the last year, and whether it makes them regularly or once in a while. A plant that makes them regularly has the tooling, the moulds and the firing curve worked out.
Which tests prove an outdoor tile is fit for use?
Ask for reports on the production lot covering:
- Breaking strength and modulus of rupture, which show whether the tile resists loads, as explained in what load heavy-duty parking tiles can take.
- Water absorption, which should match the body type you ordered.
- Slip resistance for the surface, as covered in R11 and R12 slip ratings.
- Frost resistance, if the tiles go to a climate with freezing, per the tests listed in outdoor tile tests for Europe.
- Abrasion or surface wear, for tiles that will carry vehicles.
How do you separate real capacity from claims?
Ask for the plant to show a thick tile coming off the press and out of the kiln, and for records of the strength tests on the last batches. If the factory buys finished tiles from others, or cannot show the press, it is not the manufacturer for this product.
A laying test matters too. Strength figures from a lab do not replace a sample laid on a proper base. See how to read a laboratory certificate so you know what the numbers mean.
What about packing?
Thick tiles are heavy, and a container reaches its weight limit before it is full. Check the packing plan, the pallet strength and the loading plan with the plant. Our article on how outdoor pavers are packed and shipped gives the details.
What is the right sample and trial for outdoor use?
Ask for tiles from a production lot, not a development piece, and lay them on a proper base with the adhesive or bedding you plan to use. Leave the area exposed to weather and traffic before you commit to a full order if the application is demanding.
For parking use, agree the loading condition with the project engineer first. Strength figures only make sense against a stated load, and the engineer, not the factory, is responsible for deciding what the surface must carry.
Next step
We find plants that make thick outdoor tiles in-house, audit them, and have lots tested to the standards your market uses. Book a free sourcing review with your application and load requirement.