Natural Stone is one of the world’s most natural processes which results in an undeniably beautiful product. Most of our stone is quarried in India, with our Granite and interior products been sourced from all over the world.
Our stone is quarried in large blocks from individual quarries all around India. These blocks are then transported to a factory and cut into slabs. They are then placed in a calibration machine to ensure that the stone is a consistent thickness throughout the slab. Any stone that does not reach the criteria will not be used or may be used for a different purpose e.g. un-calibrated stone. There are multiple different machines that create all types of stone including different finishes such as honed and brushed. After this process has been completed different finishes such as antiqued, chipped edges and distressed will be completed using specialised finishing methods.
As a company, we are aware of our ethical responsibilities, so we have chosen a supplier in India who are members of the ETI. The ETI is an alliance of companies, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and trade unions. It exists to promote and improve implementation of corporate codes of practice which covers supply chain working conditions.
We as a company, work very closely with our suppliers making frequent visits to India and other parts of the world to ensure we know exactly what the process of our stone is. This also helps us build a great relationship with our suppliers, ensuring an excellent product range and consistency with the product packaging and also the timely process. We value the relationships we have with our customer and suppliers, as we believe that a trusting open working relationship is an essential part of business.
Once the stone has passed a quality test, it can then be packed and start its travel to reach us here in the UK. There are many different ways that this Natural Stone can travel. From India this stone is generally on the water for around 18 days. It then needs to be transported from a ferry port in England to our yard in Doncaster. From here the stone will be checked and put into stock accordingly. Some of the products that are sourced from other parts of the world such as Spain may be transported by road to us here in the UK. Due to the travel of the stone and the characteristics of different products, breakages can always happen. If they do occur this isn’t a problem, they will be swapped with no issue as long as the product has not been laid.
The beauty of natural stone is that you can never guarantee that the stone is going to be a particular colour. It has many variations due to it been a natural product. Some vary more than others. As an example Mint Fossil Natural Paving can vary a lot, not one of the pieces are the same. This is unlike Kandla Grey that tends to be generally consistent in colour. Interior products can vary even more such as marble. Veining can be inconsistent and heavier veined on some tiles more than others. This is the beauty of Natural Stone. The inconsistencies make Natural Stone a beautiful choice and is the pure meaning of Natural. The earth forms this stone therefore a guarantee of colour is impossible. Due to the colour variations I would advise that you get all of your stone at the same time. This is to ensure that the product is sourced from the same block of stone, avoiding a bigger contrast of colour or variations. When placing the order, I would order 10% more than the value needed to cover any breakages or cutting wastages. Dimensions given are nominal and slight variations can occur due to the nature of the product. This needs to be allowed for in your project design.
Regarding stock quantities, we always keep a large amount of stock at our yard. This is to ensure we rarely let our stockists and customers down, meeting the demand with a supply. If a product is going to be out of stock, we will always inform you and have an estimated lead time of when the product will be back in our yard.
I will be writing an informative blog later this week regarding the processes, planning your project, Guide to Laying and all of our relevant delivery information and what you need to know.
RF Paving – www.rflandscapeproducts.co.uk
