GRANITE FROM QUARRY TO YOUR KITCHEN CASE STUDY

GRANITE FROM QUARRY TO YOUR KITCHEN CASE STUDY

FROM QUARRY TO YOUR KITCHEN GRANITE WORKTOP J OURNEY You enjoy beautiful granite worktop, but do you know how it arrives to homes, where are the quarries of this natural material located and in How does it get from deep within the earth s core to your kitchen counter? What form do we receive it? History : Granite is a genuine natural rock, elegant, magnificent and with long history. According to scientific estimations, granite rock formed over millions of years due to changes in earth s crust. Today, we can enjoy the beneficial properties of these beautiful rocks by using this valuable material for covering kitchen worktops. Nowadays, there are many artificial materials with granite imitation available, but nothing can replace genuine and luxurious granite. As one of strongest stones on earth, granite is a highly sought after building material. It has been used for centuries and is known for its strength and durability. It is great to use both indoors and outdoors, and is highly resistant, even to acid rain! Granite gets its strength from the various minerals in stone. The minerals interlock with one another, which produces a very strong substance. This strength makes it a great material for countertops. It is durable, easy to clean, and is relatively stain resistant. Plus, its natural beauty adds value to your home! Granite begins its life thousands of miles below the earth s surface as magma. As the magma builds pressure and rises through the cracks in the earth s crust, it cools, and granite is formed. 2

GRANITE WORKTOP IS THE RIGHT CHOICE FOR DECORATING YOUR HOME, IF YOU VALUE: Beauty. No other material can offer so many beautiful colors and unique rock patterns. Durability. Granite lasts virtually forever because it is nearly impossible to damage it. Resistance to heat. You can place hot pots, pans and ovenware directly on granite worktop, without fear of damaging it. Natural. This genuine natural material entails natural energy accumulated over millions of years. Earth s crust contains endless quantities of different varieties of granite. Despite its high value, only 10% of quarried granite starts a new life as a kitchen worktop. Remaining 90% goes to other industries that also appreciate the valuable properties of granite. Granite is available in millions of different shades and colors. It is crucial to match the colors when extracting granite, because they vary by both location and depth of extraction. The rocks lying deeper in the ground are more compressed and have darker pattern, while those closer to the surface have lighter shades. 3

WHERE DOES GRANITE COME FROM? FROM QUARRY TO COUNTERTOP Granite has a long way to go before ending up as worktop. Almost every country has its own granite repositories, but major granite quarrying takes place in India, China, Africa, Brazil and Scandinavia. Large granite reserves allow these countries to export this material all over the world. India, China and Brazil represent main countries that quarry unprocessed granite blocks, which are then cut into granite slabs in various size and thickness. Stonecutters around the world manufacture granite worktops from polished slabs. 1- MINING AND DETACHING In order to obtain the stone from the earth, it needs to be mined. Miners outline a large section of the rock wall, and drill holes in the section for explosives. Explosives are fed into the holes, and then set off to detach the desired section 4

From there, the large section is divided into more manageable chunks. Although the sections are smaller, they are still heavy! A 10 foot section that is 5 feet wide and 5 feet deep weighs nearly 20,412 Kg! 2 - CUTTING AND POL ISHING : To obtain an accurate cut, diamond saws are used to cut the slabs down even further. Diamond saws can cut around a foot per hour, so you can imagine that it takes a while to cut down large granite slabs! After the slabs are cut down to manageable sizes, they are polished to a shiny finish. Cutting by Water Cutting by saws 5

Polishing Machine Some stones are given a rough finish called flaming. When a stone undergoes flaming, a 2,000 F flame is run across the surface of the stone along with water to prevent cracking. The intense heat of the flame causes the quartz inside the granite to explode, which produces a rough surface. This kind of finish is often used for non-slip flooring. Stone Flaming Machine Storage of slabs after polishing 6

3 - MEASUREMENTS AND FABRICATING : After the slabs are polished and finished, they are ready to be fabricated for your home! Careful measurements of your current kitchen space ensures that the cuts we make are accurate, and that your new countertop will fit perfectly and look beautiful. There is two ways to measure your kitchen : Normal Templating Digital Templating Each slab of granite is unique and no two pieces are alike! Installing granite in your home is a great investment that can increase the value of your home and make it look beautiful! Normal Templating Digital Templating 7

4 - INSTALLING : Now it's time for installing in your kitchen 8