In today's age of highly evolved manufacturing processes, we have grown accustomed to consuming high quality products at relatively good value.

With globalization, high automation, and tightly controlled quality control processes, we consume products that are far superior to products manufactured in past decades. Consumers have demanded and receive higher quality products and services than ever before. Likewise, in the dimensional stone industry we have witnessed great advances in manufacturing processes that have allowed quarries and fabricators to extract and produce granites and marbles that never before could make it to market.

New manufactured products such as quartz, solid surface and refined laminates have emerged that compete with granite and marble, yet are manufactured under near laboratory quality environments. This processing makes these surfaces appear nearly flawless, and often creates quite a distinction between Manufactured and Natural Products. As an importer and distributor of natural stone slabs, we often get questions from consumers and fabricators about "flaws" in the stone. These most often concern fissures, fill and veining. Of course these flaws are merely natural elements in the stone.

As industry professionals, it is essential that we educate ourselves about our products, and the methods used to produce these products. Further, we need to be prepared to educate our customers to help them understand that they are dealing with a natural product with natural characteristics, rather than manufactured products with highly consistent and predictable characteristics. When it comes to granite and marble slabs...it's only a rock!

When we talk about the exotic colored "granites" that have become so popular, it is essential to understand that most are not geologically "true granites." We use the term "granite" commercially to accurately describe "Metamorphosed Granites." These are stones that have granite like minerals (quartz, felspars and micas). Other rocks like basalt, schist, labradorite, and gneiss fall into the commercial definition. For a more detailed explanation, please see the following link at Geology.com: http://geology.com/rocks/granite.shtml

This leads us to the issue of fissures and fill. Many decorative stones attribute their colors from mineral and organic staining. These minerals react with moisture that penetrates a rock bed through cracks, fissures and veins. Over time and through heat and pressure, the rock beds develop beautiful decorative characteristics. One of the most popular colors of granite in the Northwest is Minsk. The Minsk quarry shows how raw the natural stone is. It also demonstrates many of the natural challenges for producers to deal with filling the natural fissures to make it decoratively acceptable. Factories attempt to fill open fissures with quartz sand and colored resins to mask the fissures. In addition, these exotics are resin sealed on the face and the back of slabs with mesh reinforcing. Once sent through the rough grinding and polishing process, most producers can present a very acceptable and attractive product. When a fissure has been completely filled with a complimentary colored resin with stone chips and sand, and is smooth to the touch (not out of plane), this is generally considered "Industry Standard."

Of course, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." Some consumers absolutely love the movement, veining and coloration of these "exotics," while others require more monochromatic colors with little or no movement. The trade off for those drawn to the exotic colors is that they often must accept some filled fissures and veining in order to get the appealing colors they enjoy. This requires an element of salesmanship and training on the part of distributors and fabricators staff and sales team.

When we as industry professionals fully understand the challenges and limitations to working with natural stone, and can adequately communicate the intrinsic nature and characteristics of the exotic colors to our staff and customers, we stand a better chance of up-selling and generating greater profits and producing better customer relations.

Torin Dixon is owner and director of Montana Stone Gallery, an importer and distributor of stone slabs in Missoula, Montana. Contact him at tdixon@montanastonegallery.com

Minsk Quarry, Close-up of fissures filled with resin

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