CHICAGO, IL – In recognition of Construction Safety Week, which was from May 5 to 9, 2025, commercial stone provider GI Stone employees reviewed safety precautions, including protection from inhaling silica dust, which is generated when cutting, grinding and polishing stone. The firm has invested in equipment and technologies to reduce silica dust emissions, including wet-cutting equipment, portable air scrubbers and an air monitoring device that triggers an exhaust and filtration system when silica levels rise above a specific threshold, eliminating 95% of emissions. GI Stone has also enhanced jobsite safety by repurposing a vacuum system used by landscapers to install hundred-pound floor pavers with ease, allowing a single worker to do the same amount of work as five team members while reducing the chance of back injuries and crushed extremities. Similarly, the company recently purchased a machine able to lift stone panels weighing up to 1,000 pounds with the ease of a remote. “We work with stone, but that doesn’t mean we’re in the stone age,” said Brian Tatar, field director at GI Stone.