Stone Specialist

Preview : the Natural Stone Show 30 April-2 May

16 May, 2013 , By Eric Bignell

Online registration for the Natural Stone Show taking place at the ExCeL exhibition centre in London from 30 April to 2 May this year is already 14% ahead of where it was at this point last time. Here, NSS previews some of the latest in materials, machinery, consumables and services from and for stone companies that will be on show when the stone industry and its customers meet in their own exclusive market place.

The stage is set for another Natural Stone Show hit at London’s ExCeL exhibition centre – and with snow still falling in March it is just as well the organisers listened to exhibitors and visitors at last time’s Show and moved the event on to later in the year (it is 30 April to 2 May this year).

There will be plenty of stone to be seen from all over the World, including a good selection from Britain’s own quarries and mines – and indigenous stones have continued to grow in popularity at the discerning end of the market where quality has always taken precedence over price.

A feature of the Show will, once again, be an area showing the winning projects in the Natural Stone Awards, presented at Lord’s cricket ground in London in November by Stone Federation Great Britain. The area will be used for the afternoon coffee break during the Architect & Designer Day on the opening day of the exhibition (see page 20) and will be on display throughout the show for visitors to enjoy.

You will be able to see some of the companies involved in supplying stone for the Stone Awards projects on their own stands at the exhibition.

The Stone Awards are presented in categories for new build, conservation, interiors, hard landscaping, craftsmanship, technology and sustainability – all of which are, of course, prominent themes at the Natural Stone Show. Among the Stone Award winners with stands at the Natural Stone Show are Stone Developments. The company’s Carlow Irish Blue limestone was used for the Landscape Award Winning project of the Queen’s Walk, part of a huge area of natural limestone paving around the Mayor’s offices in Southwark on the Thames waterfront in London.

The project demonstrated the use of natural stone as a unifying factor in this urban streetscape, said the judges. Stone Developments also supplied the Alta Quartzite used in another London project, which was Commended in the Awards: the Elizabeth Street Public Realm in Belgravia.

Johnsons Wellfield Quarries is another Stone Award company exhibiting at the Stone Show. Its much vaunted Crosland Hill Hard Yorkstone was used in Tudor Square, Sheffield, with its intricate planters, known as ‘Derbyshire Pebbles’, produced by Johnsons’ four CNC robots.

The Bath Stone Group supplied the Bath stone for the The Merchant Hotel, Belfast, which was the winning project in the New Build Modern Style Stone Cladding Category, where the 75mm cladding was praised by the Awards’ judging panel of leading architects advised by trained stonemason Sean Collins, who these days runs the company of Boden & Ward Stonemasons Ltd in Northamptonshire, praised the Merchant Hotel project for the high degree of quality control in the manufacture of the cladding.

Solnhofen Stone Group supplied the stone for another of the New Build Modern Style projects, this time the Commended 12 Upper Street, St Martin’s Lane in London, where vein-cut 50mm Jura Beige limestone was used as the outer skin of the reinforced concrete structure.

Albion Stone, suppliers of the famous Portland limestone, gained recognition for supplying a number of projects honoured. There was Whitbed cladding for No 1 Bartholomew Lane, London; Portland Bowers Roach was innovatively used for passive cooling as large, vertical fins that form a colonnade around the building and shade the glass facades at Bourne Hill Offices in Salisbury, Wiltshire; and avariety of the different beds of Portland stone for Green Park Underground Station in London, where the stone cladding has been turned into artwork called Sea Strata that was given a Special Award. The properties of various beds of Portland limestone were used to create variety in the stonework, which was then carved with a fossil theme by artist John Maine.

Anglo European Stone (exhibiting as MB Stone International at the Stone Show this time) supplied the Caen Stone for the Award Winning project of the East Elevation Quadrangle at Buckingham Palace – and projects don’t come much higher profile than that!

In Interiors, Portuguese company Dimpomar-Rochas supplied Rosal limestone used to build the stunningly slender and elegant Staircase at the Red House and the Moca Crème Fine Grain for the helical staircase sculpted in the entry to a Private Dwelling in North London.

Forest of Dean Stone Firms, Black Mountain Quarries, and Johnsons Wellfield Quarries all contributed their stones for a project honoured in the Craftmanship section of the Awards – the ‘Apple Tree’ paving at the front of Hereford Cathedral, which the judges described as an “exquisitely conceived and executed 75mm thick giant stone jigsaw puzzle”.

Quite a lot of the projects honoured in the Stone Awards were in London, which continues to be one of Europe’s construction hot spots. Last year’s Olympics played its part, but even without that effect London would have been busy because the world’s wealthiest companies and individuals want to be in the UK capital – or at least within easy reach of it, which has also led to some major building work in some of the leafier parts of England over the past five years.

These are offices and homes with marble bathrooms, floors and columns, granite worktops, and exteriors of limestone, sandstone and granite walls and hard landscaping – even the occasional fountain.

But it is not only in and around London where work continues, and the Natural Stone Show attracts visitors from throughout the British Isles, including a good contingent from Ireland. In fact, it also welcomes visitors from across the world.

They come to see the British and overseas companies that want to sell their products, and to have a good time meeting old friends and making new friends while they are doing so.

During the three days of the Stone Show it will be the centre of attention for the stone industry in the UK and for many stone companies in Ireland, providing an unequalled opportunity for the construction industry and its specialist stone sector to see the latest in stone and associated goods and services.

At the heart of the Show is the ‘Stone Village’, an area hosted by Stone Federation Great Britain where its member companies exhibit – including quarry operators, stone processors and service providers.

Indigenous stones are vital for maintaining the character and vernacular traditions of the British Isles, but the stone industry is international and the majority of stone used in the UK is imported, which is reflected in the international representation of exhibitors once again at the Stone Show.

This time the overseas exhibitors include a contingent of quarry companies from Portugal that is forming a pavilion of its own within the Show.

Portugal is the third largest exporter of stone in Europe and fifth worldwide. It is famous for its pink Rosa Portugal marble and beige Moleanos and Moca Creme limestones that will be exhibited at the Natural Stone Show alongside some of the country’s stones that have yet to make such an impact on the stone industry internationally.

The companies taking part from Portugal include London Show regulars Dimpomar, MVC, Lusorochas and C Mata Export. They are being joined by a number of other companies under the umbrella of the Portuguese Stone Association, Assimagra, and yet another Portuguese exhibitor if Gargola Gotica, although it is not part of the Portuguese pavilion.

Dimpomar is an established and respected name in the UK Market, exhibiting at every Stone Show since the 1990s. That has served the company well, with its materials regularly specified in high profile projects.

MVC returns to promote Portuguese limestone suitable for flooring, cladding and wall linings, including Vidraco Moleanos, Calcario Candeeiros, Moca Crème, Codacal, Rosal, Azul Valverde, Ataija Azul, Fig Heige and Fig Blue.

Lusorochas is another limestone specialist providing stonemasonry and cut-to-size stone for major developments. Recent projects have included New Bond Street, London, and the impressive Atelier House, Barbados, a palacial residence with 2,300m2 of living space, outdoor terraces, pool and luxury gardens. Lusorochas supplied all the interior and exterior floors as well as the bathrooms in Moca Creme limestone and the kitchen tops in Kashmir White granite.

C Mata Export owns various quarries in central Portugal. The stone is processed at its factory in Casais Robustos (Minde), enabling Carlos Mata to offer all of the well-known Portuguese marbles and limestones in slabs, tiles and cut-to-size in a variety of finishes including polished, honed, sawn, hammered, flamed and sandblasted.

The Assimagra contingent in the Portuguese pavilion includes Ruipedra, Granitos do Norte, Granitos Pardais, IGNEA and Solancis.

Granitos Pardais and Granitos do Norte show Portuguese granites from their own quarries in Northern Portugal, including Gray Alpendurada, a medium grain greyish granite, and Yellow Mondim, a fine to medium grain granite with some yellow phenocrysts that give it its name.

Ruipedra owns three limestone quarries providing a direct supply of Moca Crème, Zambujalstone and Moleanos. Solancis is a major player in the Portuguese stone sector with 40 years’ experience. It owns 13 limestone and marble quarries and exports to every continent. Among the latest projects to use its stones in the UK was the Four Seasons Hotel in London.

The Stone Show also has a French contingent of eight major limestone producers whose products are popular for projects around the country, particularly in London.

Spanish company Levantina, which has two large warehouses in the UK, is a genuine world reference point for the international natural stone industry. It owns 40 quarries and if you have ever used Crema Marfil there is a good chance it came from Levantina’s

El Coto quarry in Alicante, which is said to be the largest marble quarry in the world.

There will be stone from across the globe on the stand of London wholesalers Stoneworld, based in Park Royal Lane, returning to the show.

Among the wide selection of stones on show will be a contemporary range of exotics and Stoneworld’s Stone Italiana quartz brand.

Stoneyard, another well-established London-based wholesaler, has an island at the Show to present its wide range of internationally sourced natural stones in various finishes including polished, honed, flamed, bush hammered, sandblasted, chiselled and split face.

Trade Price Stone exhibits for the first time, having rapidly established itself as one of the largest stockists of Brazilian slate in the UK. Not that it sells only Brazillian slate – it also offers limestone, mosaics, granite, pavers and slabs.

Trade Price offers a personalised service to the trade, including client branding on any products bought from it so orders can be seamlessly delivered directly to a customer or their clients, saving on storage costs and ensuring the fastest possible delivery.

Indi Natural Stone has made a significant impact on the UK market and will offer a good selection of popular granites including Black Absolute and Galaxy. It also has slate and Quantra quartz from Pokarna.

Engineered quartz continues to be popular for interiors and there will be plenty of it exhibited. As well as those brands already mentioned above, there will be more from Interfloor-UK and Cimstone.

Interfloor-UK is the sole UK distributor for Gulf Stone Quartz tiles manufactured in Oman. Black Opal, White Pearl, Sapphire, Ruby, Silver Grey and the newly launched Mocca are just some of the tile colours stocked in sizes from 300 x 300mm up to 600 x 600mm.

Cimstone returns to the London exhibition to display its full colour range of slab and tile.

Stonecrest Marble is celebrating its 10th anniversary and at the show will mark the occasion by launching a new Marble tile called Diana Royal. Available in both polished and tumbled finishes and available in sizes up to 600 x 900mm, Diana Royal is a rich blend of taupe and cream tones and natural quartzite.

Stone Senses is another company returning to ExCeL this time with many exclusive stones processed in its factories in Morocco and Tunisia. With more than 30 years of experience, Stone Senses is well-placed to provide architectural solutions for any project from a large commercial newbuild or renovation to a domestic kitchen, bathroom or living room. There is more stone from around the world on the stands of wholesalers API, Oxford Granite, Nile Trading and others.

Not much stone is used in interiors these days without being treated. Even an increasing amount of stone on exteriors and for hard landscaping is treated to help keep it clean and tackle contaminants such as chewing gum and grafitti.

The choice of products available for treating stone is increasing all the time, while grouts and adhesives are also being specially formulated for use with stone.

The Stone Show offers a chance to obtain specialist advice and source products from a comprehensive selection of stone treatment manufacturers and agencies. The best known in the UK is the

market-leading Lithofin. It will be exhibiting its extensive range of premium products, including MN Stain Stop Eco, a ready-to-use impregnator that is water based and nearly odourless. There is Wash and Clean, an everyday cleaner specifically made to be used in conjunction with stone protection products to enhance their effectiveness and long life. But you need to visit the stand and talk to the experts to find out just how comprehensive the Lithofin product offering is and how you can benefit from it.

Lithofin is celebrating 25 years in business by offering extra discounts on its products bought as Stand Packs. It is also offering a promotional Tiler’s Test Kit, which includes a selection of trouble-shooting and key maintenance products.

Stone Republic is promoting Apex Fix Flexible Adhesive and Apex Grout products in addition to its range of Apex water-based and solvent-based impregnating sealers.

A range of Bellinzoni stone treatments is offered by the Waters Group, including Idea Gold, a nano-sealer that changes the electrostatic forces of the stone to repel liquids for a lifetime. Also from Waters Group is Idea Black, for dark granite work surfaces. It not only seals the surface but also deepens and enhances the black.

Among LTP’s full range of sealing and maintenance solutions is its ecologically advanced water-based impregnating sealer, Mattstone H20. It also offers LTP Stonefoam, which is ideal for use inside and out.

Vulcaseal is promoting Vulcaseal MC133, a biodegradable maintenance cleaner for stone and tile surfaces, and Vulcalseal V240, which offers protection for polished and crystallised marble and all low porosity surfaces.

Dry Treat is exhibiting in collaboration with stone wholesaler The Marble & Granite Centre, which is now distributing the Dry Treat products.

Dry Treat was developed in Australia. It does not go in for fancy packaging but Stephen Pike of the Marble & Granite Centre, who has been in the stone industry for a long time and is one of its most respected and knowledgable specialists, says he believes Dry Treat has the best sealing and cleaning products in the market today – which is why he is selling them (the collaboration between the two companies was reported in the February issue of Natural Stone Specialist).

Fila is launching a water-based version of its best-selling MP90 sealant. Part of Fila’s Green Line, the new MP90 Eco is a penetrating stain proofer and, like all Fila Green Line products, has been developed with the environment in mind while still offering uncompromised performance and versatility. MP90 Eco is

LEED-compliant, EC1-plus certified and suitable for use on food contact surfaces, although it is just as effective on exteriors for weather and grafitti protection.

MP90 Eco has a low VOC content, is non film-forming and does not alter natural surface colours. It comes ready-to-use and is applied undiluted with a flat brush or lambswool applicator on to a clean, dry surface. Excess product should be removed from porous materials after ten minutes. On floors, use a floor polishing machine with a white pad. On less porous surfaces, product should be left to penetrate for four hours or so.

MP90 seals, protects and promotes easy maintenance. It is available in 250ml, one litre and five litre containers, with a litre covering approximately 30m² of stone, depending on the porosity. MP90 will be shown alongside other Fila water-based solutions, including PW10, which protects against rising damp; PT10, a high performance protector; and FilaRefresh, a no rinse spray that cleans delicate surfaces without affecting appearance. It reinforces anti-stain protection and is certified safe for contact with food stuffs. It even has a fresh citrus scent.

Another recent developments on show from Fila is FilaMax, a super-strength wax-remover;

Like Fila, Massimo Piraccini Treatment and Stonecare Europe are from Italy and they will be showing their ranges of sealants, detergents, slip resistance and anti-graffiti products, as well as a selection of stone care kits.

In the adhesive market, Ardex is exhibiting a range of tile adhesives and grouts that benefit from its Rapidry Formula Technology, which virtually eliminates the risk of water staining. You will also be able to see the company’s CPD Academy website, which enables architects to take RIBA-approved CPD on-line, download product information and explore case studies.

Apex Grange is on hand to offer fix, seal and general stone treatment solutions from an assortment of manufacturers including Ardex, Mapei, Weber, Schluter, Wedi, Akemi and Tenax.

And if you can’t put off investing in new machinery any longer but want to make sure you get the latest technology at show deal prices, you should come and see what’s on offer at the Natural Stone Show.

The Waters Group, for example, is exhibiting alongside Thibaut, the French machinery manufacturer whose innovations are certainly equal to the challenge they face from the Italian giants. Waters also represents American waterjet company Flow in the stone sector.

The Thibaut brand has been the mainstay of the Waters Group’s machinery offering for many years. Waters also sells Montresor edge polishers as a complement and, of course, it will be showing all the latest developments in tools, safety gear and handling equipment, consumables, dust suppression and water recycling, not to mention digital templating from Prodim’s Proliner.

One of the Group’s most popular tools is its exclusive MitreClamp. It is ideal for use in association with the MitreForma that the company sells – an inexpensive saw just for cutting mitres that some stone processors who have bought it describe as their best ever investment.

From D Zambelis is the machinery of Gisbert, a brand that has had a significant impact on the UK stone processing market since it was introduced by Zambelis at the Natural Stone Show in 2008.

Zambelis is back at ExCeL this year showing the latest developments from Gisbert, some of which have been made as a direct response to suggestions from Zambelis to meet the requirements of the market in the British Isles – although one of the aspects that attracted Zambelis to Gisbert in the first place was that the manufacturer was willing to modify each machine to meet the requirements of individual customers.

Zambelis also represents Achilli, the Italian maker of saws and machinery, as well as selling a comprehensive range of tools and machinery, including the highly respected Italian-made Nicolai diamond tools that Zambelis has now added to the branded ranges it offers.

Even newer to the market is Breton UK, set up in 2010. Benefitting significantly from the highly respected name of Italian stone machinery manufacturer Breton, the UK company is headed by Carl Sharkey, who is also still selling American digital templaters into Europe as Laser Products Europe.

Breton UK has now also taken on distribution of Sasso Meccanica edge polishers in the UKâ€ˆand Ireland, although Sasso is taking a stand of its own at the Show.

A Stone Show regular back again this year is National Masonry, which sells MarmoMeccanica, Cobalm, Weha, Ghines, Galeski, Ital Mecc, Sintolit and other brands, all of which will be on show on the company’s stand at the Natural Stone Show.

Italian machinery giants exhibiting on their own stands in London include Intermac, part of the huge Biesse corporation, Prussiani, Omag, Marchetti and Fantini.

And if you decide to invest in new machinery or really want to explore the potential of your existing kit it will be worth talking to Birmingham company Delcam. With subsidiaries on the Continent, in America and in Asia, Delcam is one of the world’s leading suppliers of advanced CADCAM solutions for manufacturing. Its software is used by more than 40,000 organisations in 80 countries, with its range of design, manufacturing and inspection programs providing complete, automated CADCAM solutions for taking complex-shaped products from concept to reality.

Like the machinery companies, some of the diamond, hand and power tool and equipment manufacturers will be exhibiting in their own right while others will be partnering distributors.

Either way, there is plenty to choose from. To drop some names: Encore Diamond, Sankyo Diamond Products, Superabrasives, Apex Grange, Edge Tools, Superabrasives, Tabularasa, as well as the tooling that will be shown on the stands of machinery manufacturers and agents that also sell tools and consumables.

That is a taste of what the Natural Stone Show has to offer this year. The next issue of Natural Stone Specialist will be the Official Show Catalogue, listing all the exhibitors with contact details and stand numbers.

But don’t wait until then to go online to www.stoneshow.co.uk and register. It will save you having to queue up to register at ExCeL.

Registrations are already 14% up on this point of the Show two years ago, so the signs are looking good for another great event. We will see you at ExCeL!

The Natural Stone & Building Conservation Conference programme

Architect & Designer Day – Tuesday 30 April

The opening day of the Natural Stone Show includes a one-day workshop from CPD Providers Network members Veronafiere from Italy. There will give an international perspective on the selection, sourcing, detailing and maintenance of natural stone.

This is a day especially for architects and designers so that the industry’s creatives can get to grips with the nature of stone. It offers the opportunity to learn the basic criteria for selecting and specifying stone and includes case studies.

The day will be based in the stunning South Gallery rooms overlooking the Royal Victoria Dock at ExCeL.

The programme for the day

10.00–10.30am

Registration and light refreshments in the Stone Federation Great Britain Village (Stand D26).

sponsored by Stone Federation Great Britain

10.30–11.45am

International Architecture in Natural Stone: Sourcing, Selection and Testing of Natural Stone for Global Building Projects – presented by Vince Marazita, Marazita & Associates, International Stone Consultants, California, USA.

Case study: Horizontal Architecture in Porphyry. Award winning requalification project in Rosa, Italy, by Andrea Angheben, Agency for the Development of Porphyry.

Preview : the Natural Stone Show 30 April-2 May

The Natural Stone & Building Conservation Conference programme

Tooling manufacturer celebrates 65 years

D Zambelis invite fabricators to special event

Conserving external stone monuments