US20100199608A1

US20100199608A1 - Method And package For Shipping And Curing Manufactured Masonry Panels

Info

Publication number: US20100199608A1
Application number: US12/368,649
Authority: US
Inventors: Wayne J. Buoni
Original assignee: Owens Corning Intellectual Capital LLC
Current assignee: Westlake Royal Stone LLC
Priority date: 2009-02-10
Filing date: 2009-02-10
Publication date: 2010-08-12

Abstract

A method and package for shipping and curing manufactured masonry panels utilizes a package including sets of spaced slotted rails securing groups of masonry panels there between. In use, multiple sets of masonry panels are retained between first and second sets of slotted rails, with pairs of the masonry panels being retained back-to-back, with air flow channels being established between both main body portions and manufactured facial portions of the masonry panels, allowing for further curing of the masonry panels. The masonry panels can be stacked between sets of slotted rails until the desired package size is obtained. Optionally, one or more braces may be attached to the package.

Description

BACKGROUND

Manufactured stone and brick products have gained popularity in the housing industry because of their light weight, variety of style options, ease of installation and relatively inexpensive cost. In general, such products are produced using specialized dyed concrete. The color of the products may be varied to provide a variety of style options to consumers. During manufacturing, partially cured products are removed from molds and stacked into ovens for further curing. More specifically, de-molded products are loaded onto wooden pallets, the wooden pallets are loaded onto skids, and the skids are loaded into the ovens. After further curing, the products are removed from the ovens and pallets, and packaged in boxes for shipping. The time and labor necessary to load the products onto drying racks, unload the products and package the products for shipping is costly. Additionally, if the stones are packaged for shipping before being fully cured, the shipping boxes prevent air from circulating around the products and heat generated from further curing may cause condensation to appear on the surface of the products, thereby affecting the color of the stone or brick and creating unsightly staining.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to methods and packages for curing and shipping manufactured masonry panels. The package may include groups of manufactured masonry panels retained between sets of spaced slotted rails. In use, the multiple sets of masonry panels are retained between first and second sets of slotted rails with pairs of the masonry panels being retained back-to-back and air flow channels being established between both main body portions and manufactured facial portions of the masonry panels, allowing for further curing of the masonry panels. The masonry panels can be stacked between sets of slotted rails until the desired package size is obtained.
In one embodiment of the invention, each masonry panel includes a main body panel having first and second rows of manufactured stone or brick extending therefrom and a securing bracket extending from a top portion of the main body panel. In use, a set of the masonry panels is inserted into upper slots formed in the top wall of each of a set of spaced slotted rails such that a bottom portion of each masonry panel is retained by the first set of slotted rails. A second set of spaced slotted rails is lowered over the masonry panels and the securing brackets extending from the masonry panels are inserted into lower slots formed in the bottom wall of each of the second set of spaced slotted rails such that the securing brackets are retained by the second set of slotted rails. In this manner, groups of masonry panels can be stacked between sets of slotted rails until the desired height and width of the package is obtained. Optionally, one or more braces may be secured to the package for added stability during transport.
The first and second sets of slotted rails securely retain masonry panels there between such that air flow channels are defined between the main body portions and the manufactured stone or brick of the masonry panels. With this configuration, partially cured manufactured stone or brick can be packaged before being fully cured, and may be further cured within the package without detrimental effects to the appearance of the manufactured stone or brick. Further, oven drying of the package is not necessary and, therefore, no curing oven need be utilized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the invention and the many embodiments thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a curing and shipping package employed in connection with the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the outing and shipping package of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention will now be described with occasional reference to the specific embodiments of the invention. This invention may, however, be embodied in different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used in the description of the invention herein is for describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used in the description of the invention and the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing quantities of ingredients, properties such as molecular weight, reaction conditions, and so forth as used in the specification and claims are to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term “about.” Accordingly, unless otherwise indicated, the numerical properties set forth in the specification and claims are approximations that may vary depending on the desired properties sought to be obtained in embodiments of the present invention. Notwithstanding that the numerical ranges and parameters setting forth the broad scope of the invention are approximations, the numerical values set forth in the specific examples are reported as precisely as possible. Any numerical values, however, inherently contain certain errors necessarily resulting from error found in their respective measurements.
With initial reference to FIG. 1, a pallet 10 carries a curing and shipping package 12 of stacked manufactured brick or masonry panels 14 in accordance with the present invention. More specifically, a plurality of masonry panels 14 are packaged within and supported by spaced slotted rails 16 in a manner that allows for secure shipping and curing of masonry panels 14. As depicted, groups of masonry panels 20-23 may be packaged between multiple sets of spaced slotted rails indicated at 26-30. In one embodiment shown, the package 12 is constituted by five sets of slotted rails and four groups of panels. However, it should be understood that package 12 is not limited to this configuration, but can include any number of desired rails and panels. In the example shown, a first group of masonry panels 20 is retained between first and second sets of slotted rails 26 and 27; a second group of masonry panels 21 is retained between second and third sets of slotted rails 27 and 28; a third group of masonry panels 22 is retained between third and fourth sets of slotted rails 28 and 29; and a fourth group of masonry panels 23 is retained between fourth and fifth sets of slotted rails 29 and 30.
Details of masonry panels 14 wilt be discussed in more detail with reference to FIG. 2. At this point, it should be understood that each masonry panel 14 is generally very similar, such that details will only be discussed with reference to masonry panel 14A. Masonry panel 14A includes a main body panel 40 having a front face portion 42 and a back face portion 43. Main body panel 40 includes a slanted or tapered bottom portion 46 and a top portion 47 from which a securing bracket 50 extends. Securing bracket 50 is formed from metal and includes an offset fastener receiving portion 52 adapted to receive fasteners (not shown) in a recessed manner to secure masonry panel 14A to a wall (not shown). First and second manufactured, such as stone or brick, facial portions 56 and 57 extend in respective rows and are attached to front face portion 42 in a vertically spaced and laterally offset or other suitable manner such that a first mortar receiving portion 60 is defined there between. In a manner known in the art, the manufactured facial portions 56 and 57 are made from a colored concrete composition, but may be made from other suitable materials. More specifically, masonry panels 14 are created in a mold (not shown) and partially cured for a suitable period, such as approximately 18-48 hours, before being de-molded. Once de-molded, masonry panels 14 can be packaged in accordance with the method of the present invention, as will be discussed in more detail below.
As best seen in FIG. 1, each slotted rail 16, which can be comprised of wood, plastic or any other suitable material, includes top, bottom and opposing side walls 62-65. Top wall 62 includes a plurality of laterally extending upper slots 66 formed therein. Similarly, bottom wall 63 includes a plurality of laterally spaced lower slots 68 formed therein. Upper slots and lower slots 66 and 68 may have any suitable shape. For example, in the embodiment shown, upper slots 66 comprise rectangular slots and lower slot 68 comprises a rectangular slot having first and second notched portions 70 and 71 at the open end of each slot 68. See FIG. 2. At this point, it should be understood that each slotted rail 16 in rail sets 27-30 are generally the same such that details for each rail need not be separately described. With respect to the bottom slotted rail set 26, this rail set may be formed in the same manner as the other rails sets 27-30 or may include only upper slots 66 formed therein as depicted in FIG. 1. Likewise, it should be understood that the top set of rails 30 of package 12 need not be formed with upper slots 66, as depicted in FIG. 1 and may only include lower slots 68.
Reference will now be made to sets of slotted rails 16A and 16B in FIG. 2 in order to describe a method for packaging masonry panels 14. It should be understood that slotted rails 16A and 16B represent rails from adjacent sets of rails, such as 29 and 30 of FIG. 1. As demonstrated by slotted rail 16A, each upper slot 66′ is adapted to retain a set of back-to-back, paired masonry panels such as 14B and 14C. More specifically, upper slots 66′ are adapted to receive respective bottom portions 46 of masonry panels 14B and 14C, with the angling or tapering of bottom portions 46 aiding in positioning of panels 14B and 14C in upper slots 66′. The depth of each upper slot 66′ is such that a bottom portion 76 of the first facial portion 56 rests upon top wall 62′ of slotted rail 16A when masonry panels 14B and 14C are fully received therein. In other words, as shown in FIG. 2, packaging masonry panels includes the steps of inserting respective bottom portions 46 of a first set of masonry panels 14C into the plurality of upper slots 66′ of the first set of spaced slotted rails 16A such that bottom portions 76 of respective first facial portions 56 abut the top walls 62′ of the slotted rails 16A. In this position, respective securing brackets 50 of masonry panels 14B and 14C are also arranged back-to-back and in contact with one another. In this configuration, offset fastener receiving portions 52 abut and aid in creating an air circulation gap 78 between the respective main body panels 40 of masonry panels 14B, 14C. The remainder of upper slots 66′ in slotted rail 16A may be likewise loaded with masonry panels 14 until each of upper slots 66′ supports two back-to-back masonry panels 14. At this point, it should be noted that the spacing of upper slots 66′ are such that masonry panels 14C and 14D supported by adjacent upper slots 66′ do not touch, and an additional air circulation gap 80 is maintained between manufactured facial portions 56 and 57 of opposing masonry panels 14C and 14D.
Once the desired number of paired masonry panels 14 are loaded into slotted rail 16A, slotted rail 16B is then lowered over respective securing brackets 50 such that the securing brackets 50 of each set of masonry panels, such as 14B, 14C, are received into a respective lower slot 68′ of slotted rail 16B. More specifically, the method of packaging masonry panels further comprises the steps of inserting respective securing brackets 50 of the first set of masonry panels 14B, 14C, into the plurality of lower slots 68′ of a second set of spaced slotted rails (represented by 16B), such that top wall portions (not separately labeled) of respective facial portions 57 abut respective bottom walls 63′ of the second set of spaced slotted rails. As clearly illustrated, lower slots 68′ are multiple times more narrow as compared to upper slots 66′ in order to securely retain masonry panels 14 within slotted rails 16. In use, first and second notched portions 70 and 71 aid in the aligning and loading of masonry panels 14 into slotted rails 16. More specifically, notched portions 70 and 71 provide a wide opening through which securing brackets 50 may be received to help guide securing brackets 50 into lower slots 68′. The process of loading masonry panels 14 between slotted rails 16 is continued until the desired number of levels of masonry panels 14 have been established for package 12. Optionally, one or more braces 84, straps or bands, may be attached to package 12 in order to provide additional stability during transport.
Advantageously, air circulation gaps 78 and 80 between masonry panels 14 provide sufficient circulation such that partially cured masonry panels 14 can be loaded into package 12 of the present invention for additional curing of the panels. Further, the manner in which masonry panels 14 are packaged prevents condensate staining of the manufactured panels 14 as the panels continue to cure. As a result, defective product returns are minimized and customer satisfaction increased. It should also be appreciated that manufacturing and labor costs are reduced by providing a package 12 that also constitutes a shipping container and that allows for further curing of masonry panels 14 without the need for a dryer.
Although described with reference to various embodiments of the invention, it should be readily understood that various changes and/or modifications can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit thereof. For instance, although brick masonry panels are depicted, it should be readily understood that the present system could be utilized in conjunction with other types and styles of manufactured stone products, generally being referred to herein as masonry products or panels, requiring an extended curing period. Further, the number of masonry panels 14 in each group of panels 20-23 is not limited by the example depicted in FIG. 1. In general, the invention is only intended to be limited by the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A method of packaging and curing manufactured masonry panels comprising:

providing a first set of spaced slotted rails, each rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and a plurality of spaced, upper slots formed in the top wall;

providing a first set of masonry panels, each of the masonry panels including a respective main body panel including a bottom portion, a top portion and a securing bracket extending from the top portion;

inserting the respective bottom portions of the first set of masonry panels into one of the plurality of respective upper slots of the first set of spaced slotted rails such that the respective main body panels of the first set of masonry panels are retained by said first set of slotted rails in a spaced manner;

providing a second set of spaced slotted rails, each rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and a plurality of lower slots formed in the bottom wall; and

inserting the respective securing brackets of the first set of masonry panels into one of the plurality of respective lower slots of the second set of spaced slotted rails such that the respective securing brackets are retained by the second set of slotted rails; wherein the first and second set of spaced slotted rails and the masonry panels are retained as a package.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the masonry panels are only partially cured when packaged and the method further comprises further curing the first and second sets of masonry panels within the package.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the package is a shipping package and the method further comprises shipping the package.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second sets of masonry panels includes a plurality of manufactured facial portions, said method further comprising retaining the first and second sets of masonry panels in the package such that air flow gaps extend between the manufactured facial portions of the first and second sets of masonry panels.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising supporting the package on a pallet.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising attaching a brace to the package to further secure the package for transport.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of lower slots includes at least a first notch portion to aid in the step of inserting the respective securing brackets of the first set of masonry panels into the plurality of lower slots.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein each masonry panel further includes a first row of manufactured facial portions extending from the main body panel and defining a bottom portion of the masonry panel, and the method of packaging further comprises inserting the respective bottom portions of the first set of masonry panels into the plurality of upper slots of the first set of spaced slotted rails such that bottom portions of the manufactured facial portions abut the top walls of the first set of spaced slotted rails.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein each masonry panel further includes a second row of manufactured facial portions extending from the main body panel and including a top wall portion, and the method of packaging further comprises inserting the respective securing brackets of the first set of masonry panels into the plurality of lower slots of the second set of spaced slotted rails such that the top wall portions of the second row of manufactured facial portions abut the bottom walls of the second set of spaced slotted rails.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a second set of masonry panels, each of the second set of masonry panels including a respective main body panel including a bottom portion, a top portion and a securing bracket extending from the top portion;

inserting the bottom portions of the second set of masonry panels into one of a plurality of respective upper slots of the second set of spaced slotted rails such that the main body panels of the second set of masonry panels are retained by said second set of slotted rails in a spaced manner;

providing a third set of spaced slotted rails, each slotted rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and having a plurality of lower slots formed in the bottom wall; and

inserting the respective securing brackets of the second set of masonry panels into one of the plurality of respective lower slots of the third set of spaced slotted rails such that the respective securing brackets are retained by the third set of slotted rails; wherein the package if further defined by the third set of spaced slotted rails.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

providing a third set of masonry panels, each of the masonry panels including a respective main body panel including a bottom portion, a top portion and a securing bracket extending from the top portion;

inserting the respective bottom portions of the third set of masonry panels into one of a plurality of respective upper slots formed in the top wall of the third set of spaced slotted rails such that the main body panels of the third set of masonry panels are retained by said third set of slotted rails in a spaced manner;

providing a fourth set of spaced slotted rails, each rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and having a plurality of lower slots formed in the bottom wall; and

inserting the respective securing brackets of the third set of masonry panels into one of the plurality of respective lower slots of the fourth set of spaced slotted rails such that the respective securing brackets are retained by the fourth set of slotted rails; wherein the package if further defined by the fourth set of spaced slotted rails,

12. A curing and shipping package for manufactured masonry panels comprising:

a first set of spaced slotted rails, each slotted rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and a plurality of upper slots formed in the top wall;

a second set of spaced slotted rails, each slotted rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and a plurality of lower slots formed in the bottom wall; and

a first set of masonry panels, each of the masonry panels including a respective main body panel having a bottom portion, a top portion, and a securing bracket extending from the top portion, wherein each of the bottom portions is retained within a respective one of the plurality of lower slots of the second set of spaced slotted rails and each of the securing brackets is retained within a respective one of the plurality of upper slots of the first set of spaced slotted rails such that the first set of masonry panels are retained by the first and second sets of spaced slotted rails.

13. The package of claim 12, wherein the first set of masonry panels are retained in a spaced manner such that an air flow gap is defined between the first set of masonry panels.

14. The package of claim 12, wherein each of the first set of masonry panels further includes a first row of manufactured facial portions.

15. The package of claim 14, wherein each of the masonry panels further includes a second row of manufactured facial portions.

16. The package of claim 12, further comprising a brace securing the first set of masonry panels to the first and second sets of spaced slotted rails.

17. The package of claim 12, wherein each of the plurality of lower slots includes a notched portion at an opening thereof, said notch portion aiding in the insertion of the securing brackets into the respective plurality of lower slots.

18. The package of claim 12, further comprising:

a second set of masonry panels, each of the second set of masonry panels including a respective main body panel having a bottom portion, a top portion, and a securing bracket extending from the top portion, wherein the bottom portions of the second set of masonry panels are retained within a respective one of the plurality of lower slots of the second set of spaced slotted rails adjacent the first set of masonry panels and the securing brackets of the second set of masonry panels are retained within a respective one of the plurality of upper slots of the first set of spaced slotted rails adjacent the first set of masonry panels such that the first and second sets of masonry panels are retained by the first and second sets of spaced slotted rails in a spaced apart manner.

19. The package of claim 12, further comprising:

a third set of spaced slotted rails, each slotted rail including top, bottom, and opposing side walls and a plurality of lower slots formed in the bottom wall; and

a second set of masonry panels, each of the masonry panels including a respective main body panel having a bottom portion, a top portion, and a securing bracket extending from the top portion, wherein the respective bottom portions are retained within one of a plurality of lower slots formed in the respective bottom walls of the second set of spaced slotted rails, the respective securing brackets are retained within one of the plurality of respective lower slots formed in the bottom wall of the third set of spaced slotted rails, and the second set of masonry panels are retained by the second and third sets of spaced slotted rails.

20. The package of claim 12, wherein the main body panels of the respective first set of masonry panels each include a back face portion and the first set of masonry panels is retained by the first and second sets of spaced slotted rails in a back-to-back fashion such that the respective back face portions are spaced from one another by an air flow gap.