With changing consumer shopping patterns, an accelerated pace of business and the need for real-time visibility, the Information Revolution has created a great need for technological advancement in the stone industry; it is up to all of us to answer the call together or be left behind in its wake.

The natural stone industry is filled with companies of all sizes, but we know that most are small-to-medium size companies. When it comes to marketing and training, I often hear about limited budgets and staff resources.

There is no doubt that our industry is going through monumental changes. During our last Rockhead Group meeting last April, our members had an opportunity to listen to industry leaders about key indicators that are shaping the future of our business. 

When a group of fabricators and other stone industry members come together at a fabricator forum, it immediately becomes an arena for an exchange of ideas, experiences, advice and solutions.

While working for another company primarily doing tilework, Kurt Bartzsch was given the challenge to start the company’s fabrication shop. Bartzsch primarily learned on a trial-and-error basis before going out on his own.

Whether it is a new hire or a current employee, proper training, including cross-training, is important. Employees that are properly trained and cross-trained result in maintaining a high-quality efficient fabrication shop. Below are a few tips to help develop a valuable training program.

Visits to a stone shop or slab yard should not be a life threatening experience. But the truth is, stone can be dangerous and accidents happen all the time. They happen to stone workers, contractors, truckers and to the public.

As an online forum, the SFA provides day-to-day information crucial to the nuts and bolts of the fabrication business, on demand and nearly in real time. When this power’s leveraged, you find a variety of answers to almost any concern you may have, often by others who have already encountered the same issue and can offer a solution, or at least some candid insight. 

What started 11 years ago as The Granite Buyer’s Club with a few top-tier fabricators that shared a collective enthusiasm of the outdoors has since evolved into the Artisan Group.