The company is involved in all aspects of the process — from when the stone is extracted to when it is processed.

History

Although the company started in 1959, it was not until 1964 that Levantina started extracting marble from the Monte Coto quarry in Pinoso, Spain, under the trade name of Jose María Mañez Verdú.

This marked the start of a productive quarrying and manufacturing industry built around the Vinalopó and the surrounding area, including the companies Esteve y Mañez and Levantina. In 2006, Levantina De Granitos and Bermarmol were also merged into Levantina Asociados de Minerales.

The company also incorporated Graninter, a granite processing and distribution operation based in Porriño.

In 2003, the company’s granite processing plant in Vitoria, Brazil, opened, and throughout this time, the company had been supplying top-quality natural stone for highly prestigious projects.

Levantina has specialized in developing a range of unique and exclusive natural stone materials for architecture and interior design. Moreover, it has strived to develop a variety of solutions, finishes and formats.

Today, Levantina is the biggest producer of Crema Marfil in the world, which enables the company to offer material of high quality as well as to supply high-volume projects.

Stone materials

Crema Marfil from Levantina’s Coto quarry is defined by its rich cream color, excellent physical qualities and durability, and it has been a preferred choice of architects and project owners.

Additionally, Levantina has exclusive and extremely well-known materials such as Marrón Emperador, Mistral and Crema Báltico for interior cladding, as well as limestone and Niwalas for exterior cladding.

The company also offers a wide range of domestic granites, ideal for external or internal use. Furthermore, Levantina is also well-known for offering the top granites from Africa, India and the Baltic from its two factories in Spain, and it supplies its more original materials from its factory in Brazil.

Mining resources and industrial plants

The main source of supply of Levantina’s raw materials is its own quarries, which enables the company to guarantee supplies of its strategic raw materials and undertake important projects.

During 2010, Levantina extracted more than 350,000 cubic meters of natural stone in the form of blocks, and since 1990, Levantina’s quarry in Monte Coto has extracted more than 4 million cubic meters of Crema Marfil, which is almost a total of 820,000 blocks.

The Crema Marfil quarry in Pinoso is considered to be the largest marble quarry in the world.

“The Crema Marfil, which is mined in Levantina’s quarries, counts for around 35 percent of the total production of marble and limestone from Spain. If we consider the rest of the marble that Levantina mines in this national territory, this percentage rises to more than 50 percent of all the marble mined in Spain,” stated the company. The operation employs over 200 people in the mining sector.

The company also has marble quarries of popular materials such as Rojo Alicante, Rojo Coralito, Crema Báltico, Amarillo Marés, Mistral Beige and Marrón Emperador.

In addition, Levantina owns limestone quarries such as Capri, and it offers an extensive collection of White, Yellow and Pink Niwalas.

Finally, the company possesses a large number of granite quarries in Brazil, of which the best-known are Lennon and Marisma. With nine strategically placed factories offering the most advanced technology, seven are located in Spain, with the other two sited in Brazil and Morocco.

The company also owns four factories which process marble, limestone and sandstone. Between them, they have 50 slab and flagstone cutters and 29 block cutters. The stone leaves these factories in various formats, such as slabs and flagstones, for either domestic or international consumption. Three of the factories are located in Novelda and Morocco.

Levantina also processes granite in Novelda and Porriño in Spain as well as in Vitoria. Furthermore, the company has two workshops for cut-to-size work in Novelda and Porriño, allowing it to supply individualized projects.

Logistics structure

Levantina prides itself on having developed one of the most powerful logistics structures in the Mediterranean. The company is able to successfully carry out 165,000 full-load services per year and regularly ships to more than 110 countries. It exports around 25,000 containers per year, and it is considered one of the main customers for the ports of Valencia, Alicante and Vigo.

The company reports that it has developed preferential agreements with the main shipping lines — MSC, Maersk, ZIM, CMA-CGM, etc. to obtain the most competitive freight agreements and to guarantee the availability of containers in a time of shortages. It has also developed its own terminal and railway connection to the ports, with logistics optimization contributing to overall sustainability.

R&D Developments

Among Levantina’s examples of commitment to innovation and development, the company reports the following:

• The launching of antibacterial granite countertops.

• Launching of anti-graffiti treatments, self cleaning for exteriors and anti-stain for interiors, based on nano-technology

• Pioneers in the launching of anti-slip treatment for polished surfaces.

• The latest factory which was opened at the end of 2006 — the Techlam® factory, which is unique in Spain.

Important projects

Levantina has been able to carry out large architectural projects, and it works directly with architects and engineers in applications of paving, cladding, ventilated facades and other technical solutions.

Today, Levantina’s distinctive products are specified by the foremost architecture and design firms, and they are installed worldwide in major retail, entertainment, hospitality, corporate, healthcare, educational and institutional projects. The ability to mobilize major resources makes Levantina one of the principal suppliers of natural stone for major architectural projects such as:

• The Wachovia Bank in Atlanta, GA

• The Hotel in Maryland

• The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Dallas, TX

• The Metropolitan Casino in Las Vegas, NV

• The Cosmopolitan Casino in Las Vegas, NV

• The C & S Tower in Tampa, FL

• The Trump Palace in Miami, FL

• The Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago, IL

• The Trump Towers in New York, NY

Emphasis on sustainability

Levantina’s commitment to the environment is based on the fundamentals of sustainable development, and it focus on the life-cycle of its products. 

“Action areas” for the company include using the most advanced technology for block extraction and processing, with emphasis on the improvement of energy efficiency and recyclable water, as well as respect for the surroundings and the environment.

Levantina also reports that it is the first company in the sector to use plant resins in the production of its products, enabling a reduction in the use of petroleum and CO2.

In terms of waste management, the company initiates selective collection of all manufacturing waste at the source, to facilitate its subsequent treatment. It also has color classification of containers according to the amount of waste to be dumped. Moreover, it develops clean areas for the segregation of waste and methods for the control and reduction of waste generation. It also works to improve and restore the landfill site to optimize its integration into the landscape and the conservation of the surrounding area.

In terms of transport, reduction of CO2 emissions is achieved through initiatives such as the priority of using the railway in order to transport products, which makes logistics more sustainable. The company has returned to transporting natural stone by rail from Novelda to the Port of Alicante, rather than using truck transport.

Levantina is also the promoter of the “Eco-Stone” project, which aims to reduce energy consumption in the production process of natural stone. In addition, it also aims to achieve more energy efficient final products which will benefit producers, final users and the environment.

These efforts have been recognized by organizations with independent criteria, such as the GreenGuard Environmental Institute, which with programs such as “Indoor Air Quality” and “Children and Schools” accrediting sustainable production with a low emission of chemical products that permits Levantina to ensure the protection of health, the environment and the quality of life.     

Levantina recently celebrated the grand opening of “The Granite Center,” its new exhibition space in Novelda, Spain, dedicated exclusively to granite.

Levantina opens “The Granite Center” Levantina recently celebrated the grand opening of its new exhibition space in Novelda, Spain, dedicated exclusively to granite. Under the name “Granite Center,” Levantina presents a great selection of exotic and traditional granites from different parts of the world, as well as quarries within Spain. The Granite Center presents a wide granite collection classified by colors and exhibited under ideal light and visibility conditions that enable the client to be able to admire the great beauty and characteristics of this unique and exclusive material. Levantina features an extensive variety of exotic and exclusive materials in different colors, tones and movements, as well as the most well-known and uniform granites with a medium grain. All of this is available in a multitude of finishes.