The Worktop Fabricators Federation (WFF) has relaunched its website, giving the UK stone-worktop sector a clearer, more accessible online hub for guidance, safety information and membership support.

Founded in 2020, the WFF represents businesses involved in the fabrication of natural-stone and engineered-stone worktops. The federation says the new site strengthens its identity while delivering simpler navigation, dedicated sections for news, events, downloads, health & safety, and an improved members’ portal.

Bath Granite and Marble

The homepage now signposts tailored guidance for fabricators, designers, architects and homeowners, supported by new technical content and refreshed best-practice resources. RCS (respirable crystalline silica) safety remains a core focus, with updated advice aimed at raising awareness and promoting safer working across the sector.

The federation says the revamped platform will further support collaboration between fabricators, suppliers, machinery providers and slab producers, reinforcing its role as a unified industry voice.

Brachot Quarry

With more than 1,000 UK businesses involved in worktop fabrication, the WFF describes the relaunch as an important step in promoting professionalism, ethical practice and higher standards throughout the supply chain.

The new site is live at worktopfabricators.org

If you’re a fabricator and want to join WFF or simply wish to learn more about what membership entails, hit Join Now on the homepage.

For further information, contact:

Nigel Fletcher – operations officer

Phone: 07591 339 144

Email: office@worktopfabricators.org

In a market that’s always hungry for fresh thinking, Plasticiet has delivered something genuinely different with Mother of Pearl - a surface material born not from quarries or composites, but from discarded car headlights.

By reclaiming high-grade polycarbonate and reworking it into solid sheets, Plasticiet has created a material that feels less like recycled plastic and more like a premium, design-led surface. Karlite’s silky translucency, achieved using carefully selected mineral pigments, gives it a subtle, almost stone-like depth. Each sheet is crafted and hand-finished, adding to the material’s refined feel.

But its appeal isn’t just aesthetic. Polycarbonate’s natural strength gives Karlite the kind of stability designers can rely on. The material can be joined, machined or thermoformed, opening the door to applications ranging from wall panels and lighting features to signage, furniture and decorative installations across hospitality, retail, residential and office spaces.

The Design Museum’s new long-term display, Tools for Transition, brings together four major research projects that explore how design, materials and community-led innovation can help the UK transition toward greener ways of living. 

Along with the Stone Demonstrator, it’s another initiative initiated by Future Observatory this year that explores ways of construction that are healthier for people and the planet. As Future Observatory Director Justin McGuirk explains, “Future Observatory’s mission is not just to help drive the green transition through design research but to get that research to a broad audience. Tools for Transition brings together the four projects in our flagship Green Transition Ecosystems grants programme. 

Launched during the London Design Festival with the help of the Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC), the exhibition shows how collaborative approaches can reshape healthcare, housing, resource management and climate planning. With material choice and lifecycle thinking becoming central to modern construction, the work on display reflects themes increasingly relevant to the stone sector: circularity, community resilience and the value of regionally rooted material systems.

The first project, Design HOPES, focuses on NHS Scotland and its reliance on single-use plastic products. As one of the country’s largest consumers of disposables, the NHS faces significant challenges in reducing emissions tied to material waste. Design HOPES is working with health practitioners and policymakers to map hospital waste streams and identify durable, reusable and bio-based alternatives to items such as PPE. The exhibition features theatre scrubs and caps produced from plant-based fibres like flax and cellulose, showing how renewable materials could replace fossil-derived plastics without compromising the hygiene standards required in clinical settings. A commissioned visualisation by designer Irena Gajic imagines what an NHS estate could look like by the late 2030s, integrated more fully into surrounding communities and shaped by greener, more resource-efficient systems. 

Another strand of the exhibition, Future Island–Island, is rooted in Rathlin Island, Northern Ireland’s only inhabited offshore island. With a small population and a heightened exposure to climate impacts, the island provides a testbed for community-driven resilience. The research supports residents in setting up circular systems to manage waste, resources and local production as part of Rathlin’s goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. Repair cafés, shared waste initiatives and design-led approaches to local materials all play a part in building self-sufficiency. Material innovation is prominent: Rathlin’s sheep’s wool, previously undervalued, is being channelled into the Rathlin Wool Hub, where it becomes a useful raw material for craft and product design. Meanwhile, the Beach Clean 2.0 initiative is transforming marine plastic washed ashore into functional items for the community. In the exhibition, naturally dyed wool sits alongside categorised marine plastic samples, and an interactive installation by Rifke Saidler introduces visitors to Rathlin’s coastline and stories. While highly localised, the work highlights principles of resource circularity, decentralised production and community ownership that could be adopted in other rural or coastal regions.

The third project, Transforming Homes, addresses a national challenge: the retrofitting of older homes. Working in Bristol and Swansea, the research explores how council-built houses from the 1920s to 1940s - many affected by damp, poor insulation and outdated layouts - can be redesigned to remain viable for another century. The team collaborates with residents and local authorities to monitor performance indicators such as heat loss and humidity, and to experiment with retrofitting methods grounded in locally available materials. The exhibition includes community-made model houses and a commissioned architectural model by Studio Saqqra, built from reclaimed stone and bio-based materials including hemp and wood fibre. These choices reflect a growing recognition of the value of regionally specific materials and the embodied carbon benefits of reusing existing stock. 

The final project, Public Map Platform, looks at how communities can better understand the environmental changes happening around them. Working with residents of Anglesey in North Wales, the project blends scientific datasets with sensory and cultural memory, integrating stories, sounds, and local knowledge with environmental data to build a more holistic view of the island’s climate risks and future planning needs. The exhibition features community-made zines about Anglesey’s wildlife and landscapes, as well as a handwoven textile artwork by Sahra Hersi that captures everyday experiences of place that are not always visible in maps. 

Taken together, the four research strands illustrate how design and material innovation can support communities to navigate both the immediate and long-term challenges of climate transition. The exhibition also underscores a growing need for collaboration between designers, scientists, local authorities, material producers and the public.

Design Museum Director Tim Marlow underlines the exhibitions significance, “Future Observatory is unlike any initiative in any museum in the world. Its work is transformative, and the Design Museum is both energised and inspired to showcase this ongoing design research.” As mentioned, Future Observatory’s flagship Green Transition Ecosystems programme underpins the exhibition, and with AHRC announcing a further £15 million to extend the initiative to 2028, the Design Museum signals a long-term commitment to design-led climate research. As Future Observatory Director Justin McGuirk explains, “Future Observatory’s mission is not just to help drive the green transition through design research but to get that research to a broad audience. Tools for Transition brings together the four projects in our flagship Green Transition Ecosystems grants programme. These are ambitious, multi-partner collaborations tackling systemic issues, and the display makes them brilliantly accessible. We can’t wait to see this work evolve as Future Observatory moves into our second phase.”

Tools for Transition runs on Level 2 of the Design Museum until autumn 2026 and is free to visit.

Fresh off the back of winning the On The Tools Traditional Craftsperson of the Year Award, stone mason Rachael Wragg shares with us some of her unique perspectives from her role at Lincoln Cathedral. 

What does a typical day look like for you?

Work at the cathedral can be very repetitive like a lot of masonry jobs; working the same stone for weeks or re-pointing on the building for months. But at the same time it can be changeable and reactive. We're part of the staff on a working building, so are often called on to do emergency repairs in the building, help the faculties team moving equipment, and even emptying the gutters when they overflow! There's always a weird odd job to get roped in to, but it keeps it interesting. 

How integral are materials to your day-to-day?  

Obviously stone is integral to my job. We are very lucky at Lincoln to have had our own quarry for many decades (recently quarried out!) and have a large supply of stone reserved for repairs to the cathedral. We recently opened a new cutting facility with 2 new saws so we can process our own stone. This direct line to a stone source means we can access the materials we need very quickly. 

What are the biggest lessons you have taken forward from your original training? 

I was very lucky to be part of one of the last class of apprentices to be able to complete the traditional level 3 NVQ apprenticeship qualification before the course was changed. This meant I was able to spend much more time on the tools. Time spent on the tools, gaining that experience is invaluable in this craft. 

After my apprenticeship in masonry at Lincoln cathedral I went on to complete a foundation degree in Historic buildings conservation and repair with the Cathedral Workshop Fellowship (CWF), and am now halfway through a master's degree in Historic Buildings Archaeology at York University. Going in to higher education while working has given me a broader perspective of my job as a cathedral mason and helped inform my path through the cathedral workshop system. 

Which project/s are you most proud of being involved with and why?

I was very proud to have contributed in a small way to the West Front works at Lincoln 5 years ago. But most recently, building two full new pinnacles on Lincoln Cathedral's 13th-century chapter house has been a real highlight! It's not often that you’re able to completely rebuild an entire feature like that, so it was a real treat! 

What do you feel are the main challenges facing the stone and surfaces industry today?

I think getting new people, especially young people, interested in training as masons or heritage craftspeople in general. 

Heritage crafts in England are made up of an ageing workforce with very few youngsters coming through. It sadly only takes 2 generations for a craft skill to die out, so we urgently need new people to train in these trades. Our built heritage in the UK is an essential part of our culture, and if we lose the intangible heritage -and the skills to maintain them - then we will start to struggle to maintain our beautiful buildings. 

In your opinion, what are the positives of using stone in the built environment?  

I think using any natural material - stone or wood - gives people more connection to the natural world. Aside from the sustainability aspect, there's something very tangible and grounding about living and working amongst natural materials. 

Make Architects is celebrating two decades of design, collaboration and community-building with CO-CREATE, a major exhibition at the Building Centre in London from 17 November to 8 December 2025. Set within the venue’s Main Gallery, the show offers visitors a rare look behind the scenes of one of the UK’s most distinctive architecture practices, with a particular emphasis on the materials, models and tactile processes that underpin Make’s work.

Founded in 2004 by Dr Ken Shuttleworth, Make established itself as the UK’s first employee-owned architecture practice, a structure designed to give every staff member a voice in the design process. That ethos remains central to the practice’s identity. Shuttleworth founded Make with the belief that architecture benefits from collective intelligence: a studio where ideas are shaped through dialogue, constructive exchange and shared ambition rather than top-down direction.

The practice’s collaborative approach is underlined in the exhibition’s title. CO-CREATE reflects the range of conversations that inform Make’s projects, with clients, end users, local communities, researchers and the next generation of designers. This philosophy is presented through an array of  intricately detailed and beautifully created physical models, alongside sketches and developmental drawings that come to life on large projection screens. The meticulous detail of such models highlights the practice’s devotion to iterative testing and helps to inform viewers just how projects such as Four New Bailey, Eden and One Leadenhall evolved.

Make is known for its investigative use of materials and its willingness to interrogate both traditional and emerging construction methods. CO-CREATE foregrounds this aspect of the practice’s work, with displays focused on material samples, research prototypes and mock-ups that illustrate how stone, brick, timber and hybrid material systems have shaped the form, performance and identity of Make’s architecture. 

As the architectural sector continues to scrutinise embodied carbon, local sourcing and the circularity of materials, Make’s decision to feature these elements prominently offers timely insight into how contemporary practices are responding. The exhibition positions materials not as afterthoughts but as foundational drivers of architectural expression, environmental performance and community impact. Alongside them, 3D printers whir, producing forms from thin air in just the same way the team creates the awe-inspiring scale buildings using plant-based PLA filament.

As a practice, Make balances imaginative design with a commitment to resilient placemaking — delivering buildings and public spaces that prioritise longevity, social value and environmental responsibility. With studios in London, Hong Kong and Shanghai, Make operates across a diverse range of typologies, including workplace, residential, cultural and urban design projects, always with an eye to material integrity and contextual sensitivity.

Through CO-CREATE, visitors are be able to trace how these principles translate into built reality. 

The exhibition runs at the Building Centre from 17 November to 8 December 2025, with entry free to the public.

As we recently shared, the One Island, Many Visions exhibition and symposium, hosted by the Portland Sculpture & Quarry Trust (PSQT) in Doreset, showcased many unique uses and interpretations of stone.

One such example comes from sculptor Mark Hudson, who produces most of his works intuitively with direct carving. Such an immediate and unplanned process requires a yielding stone that can still endure physical impacts. Portland Stone can be carved in any direction, and has qualities that the carver can respond to such as greater or lesser hardness or softness, small fossil remains, hollow parts, inherent fault lines, and pre-shaping by quarrying. 

Mark is a committed stone sculptor who is currently undertaking an MA by Research at Oxford Brookes in partnership with the Portland Sculpture and Quarry Trust. Mark Hudson has been based at the Portland Sculpture and Quarry Trust for the past four years on a residency where he has produced works such as Body Bound. He describes the piece as having “An energy and movement which reflects the writhing, externally expressed organs of a body, constrained by the large rope that binds it,” and offers a prime example of the intricate forms that Portland Stone allows with careful craftsmanship.

Ab Initio is a new, 8m long, permanent installation at Tout Quarry Sculpture Park & Nature Reserve in Portland, Dorset. The piece was created by Livia Spinolo as part of the One Island, Many Visions exhibition, a collaborative event between Portland Sculpture & Quarry Trust (PSQT) and artist members of the Royal Society of Sculptors (RSS).

Materiality is at the heart of Livia’s practice, and the opportunity to participate in a 6-month residency allowed her to undertake a practice-based investigation into the ecological, historical, and cultural dimensions of Tout Quarry Sculpture Park and Nature Reserve, while gaining insight into the PSQT multidisciplinary approach to landscape regeneration. The residency culminated with the group exhibition in the autumn, but the legacy of the work lives on.

Image Credit: Mark Vellacott

Latin for “from the beginning”, Ab Initio signifies a return to origins, reconnecting with principles of place, ecology, and the craft of dry-stone walling. The artwork highlights how traditional walling skills can be integrated into contemporary art practice to address environmental change and support habitat regeneration.

It is a sculptural habitat designed with curved lines that capture sunlight from varying angles. Its amphitheatre-like forms reflect and retain heat within the concave structures, generating a microclimate with slightly elevated temperatures that creates shelter and encourages plant growth. The elevation of the walls above the ground reduces wind speed, aiding the dispersal and settling of wind-borne seeds. Cracks and cavities within the dry-stone walls have proved to be ideal niches for flora, insects, invertebrates, and small mammals. The thermal properties of the stones are particularly beneficial for small reptiles, offering warmth and shelter. The developments of the sculptural habitat will remain under observation and will be documented in the years to come.

The project, sponsored by Dorset DSWA, was initiated in partnership with fellow artist Ros Burgin MRSS and developed in collaboration with Peter Curtis and Phyllis Warren of the Dorset Branch of the Dry-Stone Walling Association, Hannah Sofaer, Creative Director of the Portland Sculpture & Quarry Trust, and with valued contributions from naturalist Bob Ford (PSQT).

For more information about the residency visit: www.learningstone.org/micro-residencies/livia-spinolo

The enduring relevance of traditional stone craft was placed firmly in the spotlight earlier this month as the Stone Federation hosted the latest edition of the Stone Heritage Conversation at the Society Building in London. At a time when the construction industry is reassessing the carbon cost of its material choices, the event set out a timely reminder: heritage-led stone practice, rooted in repair, reuse and longevity, offers lessons that modern construction can no longer afford to overlook.

Bringing together heritage architects, structural engineers, contractors and client bodies, the evening was chaired by the Federation's Stone Heritage Forum and opened with a welcome from Stone Federation Chief Executive Jane Buxey, followed by a keynote from Stone Heritage Chair Bernard Burns. Both emphasised the growing need for conservation-minded approaches as the sector looks for low-carbon strategies grounded in proven durability.

Speakers reflected the breadth and depth of contemporary heritage work.
Will Palin, Chief Executive of Barts Heritage and Patron of Sheerness Dockyard Trust, presented the multi-award-winning Sheerness Dockyard project, an exemplar in sensitive repair and adaptive reuse. Jamie Coath, Senior Partner at Purcell, explored the Manchester Town Hall scheme, highlighting how the project’s commitment to nurturing the next generation of craftspeople is as significant as the restoration itself.

Robert Greer, Director at PAYE Stonework & Restoration, delivered an insightful session on spolia, the ancient practice of reclaiming and reusing stone, positioning it as highly relevant amid today’s retrofit agenda. As his essay in the first Stone Collective book underscores, the heritage sector’s long-established methods align naturally with circularity and resource efficiency.

The evening concluded with a panel discussion featuring Historic England’s Clara Willett and Szerelmey’s Bernard Burns, who, alongside the speakers, unpacked shared themes around long-term stewardship, embodied carbon, and the vital role of specialist skills in safeguarding historic assets.

Across presentations and the discussions that continued into the networking session, a clear message emerged: the heritage stone sector offers a vital corrective to the quick, high-carbon construction approaches that dominate much of today’s industry. Its methodologies, centred on repair, reuse, longevity and material integrity, provide not only cultural and architectural value but a credible pathway toward genuinely sustainable building.

Stone Federation extends thanks to the evening’s speakers, to sponsors PAYE Stonework & Restoration and Stonewest, and to all who attended and contributed to another successful Stone Heritage Conversation.

Future Observatory has pulled back the curtain on the Stone Demonstrator, a three-storey, open-air prototype now standing in Empress Place on the Earls Court development site. Designed by Groupwork with engineering input from Webb Yates and Arup, the structure is already turning heads across the stone and construction sectors.

At first glance, it reads like many other facades, with supportive columns holding up and brick casing. Look closer, and it becomes clear the team has created a bold architectural statement aiming for nothing short of a rewrite of the UK’s construction playbook. 

The pre-tensioned stone frame, built from modular blocks compressed with steel tendons, promises around 90% lower embodied carbon than an equivalent steel frame and 70% less than reinforced concrete. Add to that a prefabricated kit of parts, reusability, and stone brick façades boasting at least 90% lower carbon than fired clay, and the message is unmistakable: stone is stepping back into the frame, not as heritage nostalgia, but as a serious low-carbon contender.

It’s a collaborative affair, with key players including Hutton Stone, Albion Stone, The Stone Masonry Company and Lunhds. Backers include the Design Museum’s Future Observatory, AHRC, and the Earls Court Development Company, who see the Demonstrator as both a research tool and a spark for industry-wide change. UCL engineers are already developing an accompanying design guide, another sign that structural stone is edging closer to mainstream viability.

For now, the Stone Demonstrator stands as a provocation: a full-scale invitation for architects, engineers and developers to rethink the materials we take for granted. And given its potential applications, this is only the start of a longer story.

A story that, in the coming weeks, Stone Specialist will be diving deeper into. Watch this space for more about the technical innovation,  supply chain behind the project, and what this could mean for the future of commercial stone construction.

Images by Bas Princen courtesy of Design Museum and Future Observatory

Ten years ago, the world of terrazzo was almost exclusively a stone affair. Depending on who you ask, the material dates back as far as the ancient Egyptians. But the speckled surface we use today tells a circular economy story born out of affordability, having first been created by canny Venetian artisans with a plethora of marble waste at their disposal in the 15th Century. However, thanks to an inquisitive approach and research-led endeavour, we now have timber terrazzo made from wood waste, thanks to Foresso. 

And now the evolution continues. Building on Foressso’s success, Low Carbon Industrial (LCI) is an innovative materials company that’s on a mission to reduce the carbon footprint of architectural materials without compromising performance, aesthetics, or practicality. The aim is clear: to create thoughtful low-carbon alternatives that support both design excellence and environmental responsibility.

At the core of their approach is the idea of repurposing existing infrastructure as they look at the realities of day-to-day manufacturing, and how to collaborate and create circular economies where they didn’t exist already. Keen to demonstrate commercial viability to the wider industry, LCI uses material design to improve, decarbonise, and revolutionise the built environment. Meaning it starts with the idea of ‘piggybacking’ on large-scale manufacturing techniques rather than trying to reinvent them. 

Drawing on the experience of launching Foresso, LCI has learnt just how much the design community values tactility, storytelling, and sustainability when executed well. The A&D community is demanding materials that balance performance, sustainability, and storytelling and the team underline the idea that if innovation isn’t visually appealing, people will have a reason not to adopt change. 

Conor Taylor, Foresso and LCI Co-founder, comments, “We live in uncertain, fragile times, and the rise of consumer interest in sustainability can be seen as a response to our ongoing need to consume. It’s a balance between consumerism and personal ethics that has led to a more thoughtful approach to how we shop, where we shop and what we buy.

At its core, sustainability is about doing less, and as a result brands are having to learn how to do more, but more responsibly. Changing tastes and expectations are rippling through every aspect of design as consumers look for products that not only bring pleasure, but they can also connect with in a meaningful way.”

Elenite is LCI’s debut product, designed for architects, designers, and fabricators, it brings richness and character to solid surfaces, with versatile applications across kitchens, bathrooms, and furniture. Made from natural waste materials such as walnut shell, walnut dust, and bamboo fibre, it combines tactile warmth with natural pigments. The surface comes in four distinctive colours, allowing designers to integrate sustainability seamlessly into diverse palettes. Conor underlines the importance of the aesthetic choices behind the range:

“We are seeing a clear shift away from the mass manufacture of the 1990s and 2000s, when endless options of perfectly machined brass and polished stone dominated the industry - and our homes. Today’s consumers are seeking comfort and reassurance from their homes, which is why sustainable surface materials have become a natural, go-to choice. Their soft textures, warm colours, and inherent connection to nature helps to create spaces that feel grounded and restorative.”

Engineered for high-specification environments, Elenite also delivers performance comparable with leading competitors while reducing embedded carbon by 29%, with future production targeting a 50% reduction. Made in partnership with Taiwan-based specialists Meganite, who share LCI’s commitment to doing things differently, it is set to be chosen by those who do, too. The benefits are clear; Elenite contains no silica, formaldehyde, or water, and it’s circular production process recycles all manufacturing waste, while end-of-life sheets can be returned for complete recycling into future batches. In each Elenite sheet, which measure 3660 x 760 x 12mm, there is 35% recycled resin, which equates to 1,900 600ml water bottles being recycled and reused per sheet.

Together with Meganite, LCI is proving that beauty, performance, and environmental intelligence can come as standard.