Process: How Bricks Are Made Report (Band 9)
Band-9 Task 1 process report on brick manufacturing, with stage-sequencing, passive-voice control, and industrial vocabulary.
The diagram shows how bricks are made for the building industry. Summarize the information by selecting and reporting the main features.
A Band-9 model report
The diagram illustrates brick production as a seven-stage linear process, from clay extraction to packaged delivery.
Overall, raw clay passes through preparation, forming, and drying before high-temperature transformation, ending in quality sorting and dispatch. The process blends mechanical shaping with thermal chemistry.
Initially, clay is dug from quarries by excavator and transported to the plant, where a metal grid filters stones before a roller crushes the remainder into powder. Water and sand are then mixed in to achieve workable consistency — preparation complete, forming begins. The mixture is either molded into wire-cut shapes or pressed in moulds, emerging as raw green bricks.
Drying follows in two phases: first a 24–48-hour chamber drying, then natural air exposure. Once moisture drops sufficiently, kiln firing transforms the product: moderate heat first, then extreme temperatures approaching 1,000°C, which vitrify the clay into durable ceramic. Finally, fired bricks cool for two days, undergo quality grading, and are packaged for delivery.
The essence is controlled dehydration plus heat: water in, water out, chemistry locked. Seven stages convert mud into masonry — among humanity's oldest industrial transformations, still fundamentally unchanged.
(187 words)
Examiner notes: why Band 9
Task Achievement (9): Overview counts stages (seven) and names the transformation arc (preparation, forming, drying, firing, dispatch). Every stage reported in sequence with key parameters (24–48 hours, 1,000°C).
Coherence & Cohesion (9): Strict chronological flow with varied sequencers (initially, then, following, once, finally). Preparation/forming/drying/firing paragraphing mirrors process phases.
Lexical Resource (9): Industrial precision: "quarries," "workable consistency," "wire-cut," "green bricks," "vitrify," "masonry." Technical terms used correctly and naturally.
Grammatical Range & Accuracy (9): Passive dominance appropriate to agency (materials acted upon), with active clauses for natural changes. Sequencer variety throughout.
High-scoring phrases
- linear process — straight sequence (technical framing)
- thermal chemistry — heat transformation
- workable consistency — right texture (precise phrase)
- green bricks — unfired product (industry term)
- vitrify — glass-harden (exact verb)
- mud into masonry — alliterative transformation close
Quick answers
How do I avoid repeating then and next?
Rotate sequencers: following this, at this stage, subsequently, once X is complete. Six sequencers cycled naturally beats then repeated ten times.
How much passive is right for processes?
Majority passive for actions on materials (clay is dug, bricks are fired), active for natural changes (water evaporates). Match voice to agency.
Should I count the stages?
Yes, in the overview: a seven-stage linear process. Numbering stages upfront demonstrates the overview criterion immediately.
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