At the heart of Quality Stone Concepts’ business is an appreciation for a team environment and sense of community. Owned by M. Ryan Culicerto, Terry J. McClaskey and Tony Pirrone, the Virginia Beach, VA-based fabrication company has widely transitioned since it was founded in 2007.

Many in the industry will be gathering for StonExpo/Marmomac at The International Surface Event (TISE) in January 2020 in Las Vegas.

While fabricators might see a light blue or a random project that uses different colors, generally what they are receiving requests for are materials with shades of white and gray for kitchen countertops.

With the objective of making stone installation and repair easier and more accurate, manufacturers continually work to develop new and improved products to meet the demand. The following is a sampling of the latest products for adhesion and chip/stain repair available on today’s market.

At the age of 12, Alex Elzein accompanied his father on his first stone project. This sparked his interest in the stone world. Elzein went to college where he received his engineering degree and joined the corporate construction world. However, he kept thinking about the stone business.

I feel I would be remiss if I didn’t bring up the issue of shop safety after recently hearing about another tragic accident where falling slabs took the lives of two shop workers. It was just another day for these workers until the unimaginable happened.

The day fabricators could use just one saw blade or one core bit is mostly over. Because of the expansion of new and different materials to the market, CNC tooling companies and suppliers have to continuously update their tools.

My favorite thing to say about us is: ‘We are not the best stone company in Chicago because we are the oldest. We are the oldest, because we are the best,’” said Tom Van Etten, when speaking about his family owned business Galloy & Van Etten, which was started in 1899.

It should be no surprise to anyone that our market is constantly changing and we, as fabricators and business owners, have to adjust our operating models to stay innovative and competitive, but most importantly, cater to an all-knowing, multi-generational customer audience.