It is no secret that the Brazilian granite industry has grown tremendously over the course of the last decade. In the early 1990s, Brazilian granite suppliers began seriously marketing material to the American market, and exports of granite from Brazil to the U.S. reached a total of $19.5 million in 1994. Five years later, that total reached $42.9 million, and by 2004, a total of $267.9 million worth of Brazilian granite was exported to the U.S., placing Brazil a close second behind Italy in terms of granite exports to America.
For several years now, the American stone industry has been on an incredible upswing -- particularly stone fabricators. In general, business has increased, and most shops seem to be busier than ever.
The GMM Rotex 39, available from Salem Stone, answers the need for high-speed, high-accuracy applications such as automated production lines, complex interior work, spiral staircases and other architectural pieces.
The Denver Quota CNC machine, available from VIC International of Knoxville, TN, has rapidly grown in popularity, VIC reports, citing the unit's price, features, ease of use and service.
The ways (metal guide surfaces) and drive components are shielded from dust and water, and they are designed to stay clean and lubricated for long life.
No matter how many times I travel to Italy, it never gets old -- and not just because of the excellent food and wine I enjoy while I am there. As editor of Stone World Magazine, I am fortunate enough to travel to Italy at least two or three times each year, and every time I go, something new seems to be taking place in the stone industry.
The first consideration for any countertop fabricator that wants to grow is usually deciding what type of saw to purchase. Whether manual or automatic, the heart of a shop's production is the saw. If you are not cutting enough slabs, your saw is the bottleneck to increased throughput. The different configurations cut by the saw determine what can be fed to the edging machine, CNC and other operations. By carefully choosing a saw, a facility can often pay for its purchase within a year and reap years of profits many times the original investment.
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