Fabrication

What happens to the stone before it is a surface

The photographs below are the workshop, not a finished room. They answer the question a project photograph cannot: what happens to the stone between the block and the surface.

In the workshop

Giallo Siena marble slabs on stands in a workshop, with a worker finishing one by hand — Slabs on the stands in the workshop. The ground is a golden ochre with a brown network running across it, and the vein direction is read before the saw passes.

The colour and the veining are a range rather than a swatch. The published description of this lithotype is a deep ochre-yellow with yellow veining and pale reddish patches; the stock in the workshop carries a more golden ground with a heavier brown network. Both are this material, and the bed decides which one a block carries.

What we do to it

Cut To Size

Cut to size. Slabs are cut to the dimensions on the cut list, with the vein direction fixed before the saw passes.

Edge Profiles

Eased, bevelled, ogee, bullnose, mitred and laminated edges, as specified. A mitred edge makes thin material read as a thick slab; a laminated edge builds apparent thickness from two pieces.

Bookmatching

Bookmatched and vein-matched. Consecutive slabs from one block are opened and sequenced so the movement runs across the job rather than stopping at each slab.

Mosaics

Mosaics and cut-to-size tiles, produced to the module and to the joint width.

Furniture

Tables, vanity tops, counters and other furniture pieces in stone, cut and edge-finished.

Lead Time

Material held in our own warehouse ships from stock. Anything not held is cut to order, and the production window is confirmed with the quotation. ⛔ No number is stated here because a stated number would be a promise the warehouse cannot keep on its own.

Where the stone is worked

Dispatch is from our processing base in the Shunde and Yunfu cluster, and the loading port is chosen against the shipping line. Terms are quoted FOB or CIF against the destination. The stone is quarried in Tuscany and the processing is done in China — two separate places, and we do not merge them.

What this stone asks of you

A heavily brecciated structure. The stone can be brittle along the white calcite fault lines, so edge profiling needs care at the corners, and slabs normally arrive resin-backed.
The block carries naturally formed cracks. If they are not repaired during processing, the finished piece is imperfect - so the question of whether a crack can be avoided has to be asked before the size is fixed.
Within one block the slabs differ from each other in colour distribution and in the movement of the grain. Two blocks do not carry the same yellow. Slab grouping is a decision, not an afterthought.
Calcite 95-98%. The stone is acid-sensitive: food, drinks and cleaners etch it and dull it. A penetrating sealer reduces absorption and does not make it acid-proof.
Traditionally an indoor stone. The visible fracture structure is the reason it does not belong in a heavily trafficked exterior position.

Keeping it

Clean with a pH-neutral cleaner made for marble, on a soft cloth, sponge or non-abrasive mop. Avoid vinegar, lemon-based cleaners, acidic descalers and abrasive compounds.
Seal after installation and re-seal on a 6-12 month cycle, depending on the finish, the application and the condition of the stone.
On a polished floor, directional lighting makes etching and residue more visible. Entry protection and steady routine cleaning do more for the surface than aggressive periodic stripping.
Furniture feet get felt pads. Cutting boards and coasters go on the counter. Spills are blotted, not wiped.

Enquiry

Tell us what the job needs

Tell us the application, the size and the finish you need, and we will come back with what we can actually supply.

There is no checkout here and there is no price list. A stone enquiry is an agreement about material, size, finish and destination, and the answer depends on those four things. Send them and the reply carries what can actually be shipped.

Request a quote