The lack of recognition of the DeLank Cornish granite Diana Memorial in Hyde Park, London, in the Stone Awards in November has raised an eyebrow or two, especially in Northern Ireland, where the granite was worked by masons S McConnell & Sons of Kilkeel.

The stone was shaped entirely by machine using ground-breaking computer technology to turn the concept by Gustafson Porter into granite reality of high standard in just 32 weeks - for which credit must also be given to stone specialists CWO of Chichester who installed it.

The project was entered into two categories of the Stone Awards - Craftsmanship and Landscape. In the Landscape category there was no Award winner. The only project recognised, with a commendation, was a gabion-walled maze.

In the January-February issue of Perspective, the magazine of the Royal Society of Ulster Architects, Andrew Haley and Peter Hutchinson say the lack of silverware at the Stone Awards has stimulated debate about the "worthiness" of such machine-produced elements.

They come down in favour of the quality of the work. They say: "Fundamentally, however, without the detailed knowledge of how to work with stone and the intellect associated with the programming, the technology itself would be powerless.

"The resultant products are no less a work of craftsmanship than a piece carved by hand, nor does this new process undermine the future for the traditional approach. Each has its place, its opportunities and its limitations, and each relies on the skill of the people who understand the materials and what can be achieved with them."

The memorial has become a victim of its own success - it was London\'s second most popular attraction last summer with visitor levels reaching 5,000 an hour. Then the filters became blocked and someone slipped over and within a fortnight of opening it was shut again. Now it has been fenced off, a warden patrols the area and signs have been put up warning people of the dangers of paddling.

Mssrs Haley and Hutchinson regret the loss of connectedness that was supposed to be an essential element of the monument but say it should not detract from the "genuinely exciting" development of cutting edge techniques that have made S McConnell & Sons world leaders.

"Through the Diana project they excelled. They dared to go beyond their comfort zone, with no-one else to turn to for advice - and they succeeded."

Norman McKibbin, the managing director of McConnells, admits he was surprised the memorial received no recognition in the Stone Awards. "We were miffed and CWO were the same. And the architects were totally taken aback.

"Everyone who\'s seen it or had anything to do with it thought it was a unique piece of stonework and remarkable that it was achieved in such a short period of time. The architects writing in Perspective thought that, but the industry itself does not see it that way. If the industry isn\'t going to recognise innovation we\'re going to be stuck in some limbo."

Bernard Burns, director of CWO, project managers, admits he was surprised the Memorial did not receive recognition in the Awards. "In terms of the stone quality and its fixing, and the fact it was done on time and on budget is a triumph - and no-one has criticised that."

Mary Bowman, who worked on the project for Gustafson Porter, says: "It\'s an exemplary bit of stonemasonry, regardless of it being cut by machinery. We think McConnells are just fantastic. We had a fabulous relationship with them and hope to work with them again."

Jane Buxey, director of Stone Federation Great Britain, who run the Awards scheme, says: "The entries are judged completely fairly. The judges\' decisions are final and they shouldn\'t be questioned on those decisions afterwards. They judge fairly by the criteria they are given. But, of course, everyone\'s entitled to their own opinions."

What\'s your opinion? Have your say by emailing us on: see below