EU declares an official definition for sintered-stone materials; natural-stone vendors at Coverings write $25 million in business; April 2023 U.S. hard-surface imports on tepid pace; more.
Radio Stone Update is presented on the first and third Wednesdays every month at 9 a.m. everywhere on Earth with the latest news and insights in hard surfaces. Check our archives at www.radiostoneupdate.com.
EU declares an official definition for sintered-stone materials; natural-stone vendors at Coverings write $25 million in business; April 2023 U.S. hard-surface imports on tepid pace; more.
Radio Stone Update is presented on the first and third Wednesdays every month at 9 a.m. everywhere on Earth with the latest news and insights in hard surfaces. Check our archives at www.radiostoneupdate.com.
K. SCHIPPER: Hi, I’m K. Schipper with the latest in hard surfaces industry news from Radio Stone Update.
00:28
There’s an official definition for sintered stone – in Europe. Lapitec announced earlier this month that the European Commission and European Organisation for Technical Assessment adopted a new document that details a new product category for sintered stone.
European Assessment Document 090142-00-0404 will soon be included in the Official Journal of the European Union – the OJEU – offering the following definition for sintered stone:
“An industrial product consisting of a wet mix of minerals, without the use of resin or cement. The material is cold-formed by vacuum vibro-compression and then consolidated, after drying, by sintering at temperatures between 1,100 and 1,200 degrees Centigrade. The production process is reversible. The material can be used in architecture and design for various interior and/or exterior applications and can be installed by means of adhesives, structural bonding, or mechanical fixings.”
The OJEU listing also will contain the details on essential characteristics of the surface and specifies the test methods necessary to verify performance. Surfaces that meet the requirements of the new EDA can be CE-marked and circulated more easily within the European Community’s borders.
The definition closely aligns with Lapitec’s production process, including the use of vacuum vibro-compression that is also key in engineered-stone manufacturing lines from parent company Breton S.p.A.
The document also notes the environmental sustainability of sintered stone by not using petroleum derivatives in production, and that it can be recycled – the reference to the reversable manufacturing process.
2:31
Brazilian companies exhibiting at Coverings 2023 in Orlando, Fla., this past April generated more than $25.6 million in business, according to the industry export association Centrorochas.
Featuring 71 companies in 17,000 ft2 of exhibit space, the Brazilian Pavilion was organized by “It’s Natural – Brazilian Natural Stone.” The program supports the exports of natural stone maintained by Centrorochas in partnership with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency ApexBrasil.
An after-show survey of vendors at the pavilion by Centrorochas found almost one in five registered results beyond expectations. Besides the $25.6 million in direct business, the entrepreneurs expect almost $127 million more in commercial transactions over the next 12 months.
More than 5,000 contacts were made by Brazilian companies during the event, including attendees from the United States, Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica and the Caribbean. An executive with the “It’s Natural” program attributes the great demand for Brazilian products to the fact that the country offers more than 1,200 varieties of natural stone.
The Brazilian stone sector also has the lowest CO2 emission rate in production when compared to other coating options used in architectural projects. The “It’s Natural – Brazilian Natural Stone” program is designed to stimulate and increase the exports of Brazilian natural Stones.
4:11
Speaking of Coverings, on-demand content from the April 2023 event is now available. Tile and stone professionals can access the Coverings website and YouTube channel to see a collection of 82 recorded learning opportunities from the event.
On-demand education is broken into four distinct playlists, guiding users to sessions that were recorded at Coverings’ three show-floor stages.
The 35 sessions available via the “Installation Innovation Stage” playlist include how-to classes on a wide variety of new product installations. The 13 selections in the “Trends & Solutions Stage” recap the tile and stone industry’s latest product trends and solutions that were introduced and highlighted at Coverings 2023. And the “Fabricator Stage” offers 12 practical presentations and demonstrations from experts in the stone and fabrication industry.
Another 32 videos of the “Conference Sessions” show a number of worthwhile panel discussions, interactive sessions, and insightful presentations from leading industry experts on the topics derived from the show’s core tenets of “Sustainability,” ‘Health and Wellness,” “Outdoor Spaces,” and ‘Timeless Luxury.”
On-demand content access is located at https://www.coverings.com/on-demand-content or www.youtube.com/@coveringsshow/playlists.
Coverings 2024 will be held April 22-25 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. You can sign up to be notified when registration opens at www.coverings.com.
7:13
EMERSON SCHWARTZKOPF: This is Emerson Schwartzkopf. U.S. hard-surface imports continued on a slow roll in April, with the $366 million in customs value only increasing by 2.6% from March. That’s still 12.4% behind April 2022’s numbers, however.
Quartz surfaces continued this year’s journey into statis in April, with both value and volume varying by less than two percent from March . Year-over-year totals run behind 2022 by more than 10%, with India leading in volume of shipments … but the country is still close to 30% behind last year’s pace.
Marble took a big year-over-year crash in April, declining 18% in import value and 23.5% in volume. Turkey remained the leader among all exporters to the United States in April shipments by a wide margin, but fell one-third behind its 2022 pace.
You can learn more about April imports of natural stone, quartz surfaces and porcelain tile in the latest issue of Hard-Surface Report, available now at www.hardsurfacereport.com
8:39
K. SCHIPPER: The International Surface Fabricators Association – the ISFA – announces the agenda for its 2023 annual conference, which will be held Oct. 16-19 at the Sonesta Ocean Point Resort in Sint Maarten.
With its Caribbean setting, the event will be a mix of business growth opportunities, as well as time for fun in the sun, with education sessions scheduled during the mornings, allowing open afternoons.
Keynote speaker will Rich Hubner from business-standards firm BSI , who will present “Old Dogs & New Tricks: Driving Successful Change in Safety Culture.” Hubner, BSI’s safety practice lead and associate director of business-standards, will explore current trends and the challenges of change within safety programs, including new safety approaches to silica.
Also, on the morning of the 17th, a panel of experts representing a cross-section of the industry will weigh in on the topic of “Building a Strong Company Culture.”
The morning of Oct. 18 will see panels on “Optimizing Software and Systems for Improved Productivity,” and “Implementing New Equipment in Your Shop to Increase Efficiency’. The conference will end Oct. 19 with a networking breakfast and open roundtable discussion.
The conference will open the evening of Oct. 16 with a reception and dinner that includes a celebration honoring the 2023 ISFA Award recipients and the introduction of ISFA’s 2024 board of directors. Registration for the event is open through Aug. 31. Details are available at www.ISFAnow.org/annual-conference.
In other news around the industry…
10:12
Park Industries announces the promotion of Meagan Hegland to National Sales Director and adds Jeremi Cowman as National Sales Manager. The two are expected to help drive the company’s customer-centric sales strategies while expanding its market presence.
Hegland’s promotion to National Sales Director is a testament to her exceptional skills and her steadfast commitment to customer success, according to Park CEO Joan Schatz. She has served as National Sales Manager since July 2021. Cowman comes to Park from an 18-year tenure at a global distribution company where he’s known for building strong relationships, developing sales strategies, and ensuring customer satisfaction.
11:20
Entries for the 2023 Hardscape North America -- or HNA – Awards are now being accepted online. The awards program honors outstanding residential and commercial projects in nine different categories. They include: Natural Stone; Combination of Hardscape Products; Outdoor Living Feature; Vintage Installation; Porcelain Paver; Clay Brick; Clay Brick – Permeable; Concrete Paver; Concrete Paver – Permeable; and Segmental Retaining Walls.
All entries, except the Vintage Installation category must have been completed from Nov. 1, 2019, and June 30 of this year. Vintage installations must have been installed before 2013. The entry deadline is Sept. 1.
For more information, go to www.handscapena.com/hnaawards. Winners will be recognized at the Hardscape North America trade show scheduled for Oct. 18-20 in Louisville, Ky. The HNA Awards are produced by the Concrete Masonry & Hardscape Association and endorsed by the Brick Industry Association and the Natural Stone Institute.
12:37
And, the International Surface Fabricators Association – the ISFA – has announced a Mineral Surfaces training event scheduled for Sept. 13-14, in Massillon, Ohio. The ISFA defines Mineral Surfaces as sintered stone, ultra-compact and porcelain materials.
Hosted by Tower Industries and sponsored by Daltile, the course is designed to arm fabricators with the knowledge and skills they need to meet the growing customer demand for these materials as they compete with quartz and granite.
The two-day program will cover all facets of the fabrication process, including material handling and inspection, cutting techniques including feed rate and blade recommendations, tension release cuts, sink cutouts, miters, overhangs, seaming, polishing and finishing, installation, and chip and scratch repair techniques.
For information on ISFA and its training programs, go to www.ISFAnow.org.
Remember, you can get our most-recent report on what’s happening in the hard surfaces market at www.hardsurfacereport.com/april. Our online newsletter, Slab & Sheet, comes out on alternate Wednesdays. For a transcript of this broadcast, go to www.radiostoneupdate.com.
For Radio Stone Update, I’m K. Schipper, and we’ll see you here again soon.