IntroductionAs an engineer, one must know about the materials used in the construction site. All structures are constructed of materials known as engineering materials or building materials. It is necessary for an engineer to be conversant with the properties of such materials.The service conditions of buildings demand a wide range of materials with specific properties. Hence the properties of the materials are to be studied properly to select suitable building materials. In this section and in the subsequent sections, the properties and uses of some building materials, such as bricks, stones, cement, concrete and steel are discussed.The common brick is