"Success today depends not only on the expertise of your company, but also on the company you keep," said Todd Scott, owner of Smokey Mountain Tops. "Achieving accreditation from the MIA makes Smokey Mountain Tops a member of a very fine company of fabricators.  We are proud of this achievement because it is a reflection of the pride and dedication our employees have to the Artisan Group of premier countertop fabricators."

 To become an Accredited Natural Stone Fabricator by the MIA, a company must have successfully completed three phases of application. Phase one was the completion of a lengthy application that required the applicant company to provide various documents and references which ensure that the company is in compliance with the 10 standards of accreditation as laid out by the MIA Accreditation Commission. Phase two required the company's qualifying agent (the designated company representative responsible for filing and maintaining accreditation records for the applicant company) to pass a 200 question multiple-choice test. The exam tested the applicant's knowledge and application of material usage, installation, fabrication, restoration, care and maintenance, administration, legal/contracts, and jobsite and shop safety. The third phase was a comprehensive site visit, which included a facility review, document review and one or more installation site visits.