In 1971, Granite Importers Inc. of Barre, VT, was established as an importer of granite from South America for the monument industry. Through the years, the company evolved into a full-scale plant for architectural stonework operation - specializing in cubic work, customized moldings, columns, steps, coping, paving and veneer. Today, Granite Importers’ portfolio includes a range of large-scale projects, including prestigious government, university and hospitality buildings as well as residential work - primarily on the East Coast.
Construction of a new Georgia Public Health Laboratory (GPHL) in Waycross, GA, was recently completed, and the building was designed to be a “sister” facility to the main Public Health Laboratory in Decatur, GA. As a result, the new structure is similar in both physical appearance and internal design so that if the Decatur facility were to become non-functional, staff and equipment could be transported into comparable space at this alternate location, and resume research with minimal retraining time. And to mimic the architecture of the original building, Rubble Stone - comprised of granite pieces that included scrap material and byproducts from other stoneworking processes - was employed for the exterior facade of the 23,840-square-foot Waycross facility.
Located just about 100 miles north of Yellowstone National Park, Slabworks of Montana in Bozeman, MT, has experienced significant growth since it first opened its doors in 1994. What began as a two-man operation has now blossomed to a staff of 18, and the company’s facility has also expanded in terms of size and equipment.
Located on the open plains of Milbank, SD, Dakota Granite Co. operates a full-scale stone-processing plant and several quarries. The company was incorporated in June of 1925 as a wholesale quarrier/fabricator of Dakota Mahogany monuments. Initially, it had seven employees who worked at a shop and quarry that was six miles east of Milbank. Today, Dakota Granite has grown to include approximately 85 employees, and in addition to manufacturing monuments, the company has established itself as a block supplier.
Since it first opened in 1989, Amendola Marble and Stone, Inc. of White Plains, NY, has certainly undergone a transformation. Its principals, Sergio and Maria Amendola, initially started the company as a tile showroom, and today it has flourished into a full-scale fabrication shop that produces stone and engineered quartz products for high-end residential projects as well as large commercial jobs. Moreover, the Amendolas further expanded their business by establishing a subsidiary company, Custom Counters, Inc. in Waterbury, CT, in 2004.
Since its beginnings in 1987, CaesarStone Quartz Surfaces has continued to expand and evolve. Today, with over 200 employees in the U.S. and 600 worldwide, the Israeli company has more than doubled its slab production capacity within the last three years. It has a national distribution system in the U.S. with over 20 distributors, and it owns six CaesarStone branches nationwide, including Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Washington, DC, New York and Miami.
Standing in the heart of the Village of Tinley Park in Illinois is an Arts and Crafts style train station with limestone cladding and a slate roof, which has become the center of attraction in the community. In particular, the station's three-story clock tower with an observation deck contributes to the overall character of the design. The train station was the first step in a master plan targeted at resurfacing the "Old World charm" of the village.
The importance of Marmomacc to the world of stone was demonstrated by this year’s “Marmomacc Meets Design” initiative, which paired leading international designers with 10 Italian stone processors. The pairings focused on the “lightness” of stone in developing objects such as lamps as well as entire booth designs.
The 42nd edition of Marmomacc, the International Natural Stone and Technology Exhibition, took place from October 4 to 7, 2007, at VeronaFiere in Verona, Italy. And according to its show organizer, the increasingly international event confirmed its role as a landmark show in the natural stone industry by posting impressive attendance figures.
When designing the new Natural Science and Engineering Research Building at the University of Texas at Dallas, the architects wanted to reflect the colors of the existing architecture on campus, but at the same time, they wanted to create a distinct natural-looking appearance for the structure. After some deliberation, it was determined that Texas limestone would be the most appropriate material for the project, and as a result, the local stone was used throughout the interior and exterior of the building. “Our first design goal was to design a state-of-the-art, functional laboratory that is responding to the users’ needs,” said Stuart Baur, Associate Partner at Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Architects LLP in Los Angeles, CA.
