A couple of weeks ago, I took a very unique trip with a trade delegation of almost 30 North American members of the Stone Fabricators Alliance.

In my role as Stone World editor, I report on stone fabrication shops across the country on a regular basis.

As usual, in this edition of the Stone World Fabricator E-News, we are including two different "Fabricator Case Studies," which serve as example of how different shops operate, what machinery is in place and how their overall production is achieved.

A few days ago, I returned from a trip to the Lake District of England, where I got an in-depth look at the production of the region's unique slate materials.

A couple of weeks ago, I attended the Stone Fabricators Alliance (SFA) MegaWorkshop in the St. Louis suburb of Collinsville, IL.

For the past 16 years of my life, early fall has meant a trip to Verona, Italy, for the Marmomacc trade fair (believe me, I am not complaining).

Before I get to the main point of this column, let me first state that I have historically considered myself a “stone purist.”

A couple of years ago, I generically referred to industry low-ballers as "hacks with rail saws."

Last month, I attended a session of the Marble Institute of America/Stone World education series in Boston, MA, where I also moderated a Fabricator Forum.

I know it is a strange headline for an editor's column, but I am looking to draw attention to Stone World's new Web site -- www.StoneWorld.com -- because I think it is the most comprehensive source for stone industry information that you can find.