Stone News

China, Strong Growth in the Stone Industry
Access to the WTO and the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games boost the Chinese economy. The stone industry strengthens its world leadership in production and in large exports

China's stone industry keeps on growing:according to China Stone Industry Association's figures, the average rate has been of 13% over the last fifteen years.

China's membership of the World Trade Organization approved on 10th November last year will lead to an increase in exports, already at record level.

Also, the decision to hold the 2008 Olympic games in Beijing brought an enthusiastic wave to China's economic and industrial environment. As it is, the Olympics will lead to an increase in building and construction, with obvious advantages of using marble finishings and stone.

Other than its richness in raw materials, China can rely on very competitive labour costs: this went up from 0.34 to 0.44 dollars per hour (with a yearly growth rate of 9.8 % from 1997 to 2000), yet it is 60 times lower than in Europe. Nevertheless, yields are still very far from western average rates: the rate of labour productivity in China is about 150 sqm/man, as opposed to 5,000 sqm in other countries.

One example of the dangerous competitiveness of "Made in China" material in the European market is the recent decision of the Bavarian Government to pave Muenchen's second airport terminal with 110,000 sqm of Chinese granite. G603 Chinese Granite was preferred to other local materials since it costs some millions of Marks less and has similar quality standards (resistance to compressive stress and abrasion, water absorbance).

While Germany meditates on the chances and challenges of the progressive fall of custom duties, how does Italy plan its strategy against China's competitiveness? It certainly will focus on design and advanced technology, currently in demand in China's markets. This is also the opinion of the Foreign Trade Institute, organizing Italy's official participation to Batimat China Exposition (Shangai, 23-26 April), on building, housing and interior technology, material, and products.
by Sara Golfieri

European Ports for the Stone Trade
The role of ports in the stone trade. An overview of Marina di Carrara in the Apuan-Versiliese district

The role of ports in the stone trade and in stone industry development is a determining factor, of course, since most industry trade takes place at an intercontinental level. Hence the relevance both of suitable spaces for storing large quantities of blocks, slabs and products, and the availability of high-level equipment for the transportation of goods in temporary storage. The most well known ports in trading stone in Europe are Marina di Carrara, Vigo, and Antwerp. Following behind are Larvik and Turku, mainly for outbound shipments.

Not only is Marina di Carrara "Italy's national port for shipping stone" (handling 72% of Italy's overall stone imports and 23% of its exports, in 1995), it is one of the world's largest industrial ports. It maintains steady links with 85 ports in 48 countries to all continents. More stone is unloaded in Marina di Carrara than is shipped (stone unloading counts for over 84% of total unloading as compared to 75.33% of loading, in 2000). Oddly enough, the port was created for outbound marble shipment, and the development of such a massive flux of incoming goods came unexpected even to the most optimistic.

The port was originally to serve the surrounding marble valleys of Carrara, Massa and Saravezza; nowdays the port is exploited by the whole of Northern Italy.
Most large overseas exporting countries (India, Brazil, South Africa), and Spain, conveniently unload in Tuscany the goods they deliver to the rich markets of the North of Europe and of Northern Italy, mainly in the area of Verona. The goods reach their destination by truck or by rail, after being sorted at the transport node of "Area retroportuale Apuana".
The latest figures on stone shipment - 80% of which are rough granite blocks - show a decrease by 13.8% over the first ten months of 2001 (-180,000 t.); the figures are compared to 2000, a record year (1,519,360 t.). Therefore, despite the fall, it is the second best performance in the port's history. A 10% fall was also recorded at the Marghera-Venezia port, recently acquired by Porto di Carrara S.p.a.
(a loading/unloading management company created by a merger of the local Port Company with privately-owned enterprises).

Over the first ten years of 2001 Tuscany's total unloading went down by 6.75% (-70,000 t. as compared to 1,174,251 t. of 2000), mainly because of the fall in un-processed marble exports; marble granulates and other products performed better.

Galician Vigo has seen a more balanced ratio of unloading and loading: about one fifth of Spain's imports is traded here, and other ports are used for stone unloading in Southern Spain. With reference to loading, too, Vigo accounts for one fifth of the total shipments from the Iberian Peninsula.
by Lucilla Delucchi

Marmomacc opens its doors
Tradition, new ideas and technology: the language of stone becomes a cultural entity. This is the message of this years edition of Marmomacc, the international exhibition of stone and technology

A trade fair that over the years has become an international point of reference for architects, designers and for researchers of new materials to use in their projects: from the commercial, residential buildings, business centres to private villas. They all come to Marmomacc, the international trade fair dedicated to marble and the natural stone, to be held at the Verona Expo Centre from 3-6 October.

Within the trade fair each year, is the section not to be missed on Marble, Art and Culture. Here is an opportunity for the visitors to understand the various trends in architectural planning, showing the multiple possibilities of employing stone and its expressive and constructive potential.

The works some of the great contemporary architects have always added prestige to the event, attracting both students of architecture and professionals alike, drawn to see the work of the famous names as well as seeing alternative uses of granite and marble. This 37th edition of Marmomacc will have at least three events: "New Stone Architecture in Italy", organised by Veronese architect Vincenzo Pavan; the convention "Structure and Surface", on the recent changes in how stone is interpreted in architecture in Italy. The exhibition "Il fuoco & l'acqua", ("Fire & Water"), dedicated to kitchens and baths, the new stars of domestic living areas.

The first event - shows how the designs were developed through, drawings, photographs, prototypes, and video. It brings together scores of works, buildings both public and private, urban spaces, public squares and roads, designed by prestigious architects such as: Augusto Romano Burelli and Paola Gennaro, Gianmatteo and Roberto Romegialli, Francesco Venezia, Mario Botta and Giulio Andreolli for public buildings; Aldo Rossi, Emilio Battisti, Umberto Riva, Antonio Citterio and Terry Dwan, Afra and Tobia Scarpa, Mauro Galantino and Marco Zanibelli, Claudio D'Amato, Mauro Sàito, Studio Archea for private buildings; Carlo Pozzi and Antonio Conte, Alvaro Siza Vieira and Roberto Collovà, Boris Podrecca, Franco Mancuso, Bernard Huet - Architects associates Ceschia and Mentil for public spaces. The exhibition intends to shown a critical balance of the more meaningful architecture in Italy, using in a creative and qualitative way, marble and natural stone extracted from some of Italy's main national marble quarries.

Visual language and the identity of stone materials are the theme of an encounter, organized by the Veronafiere organisers for Marmomacc on Saturday 5th October at 10.00 am (at the Sala Rossini-Centrocongressi Arena), which brings together historians and critics of architecture with authors of some important Italian works to discuss the aspects of the new culture of "Stone Architecture".

Participating at the event will be prestigious names such as Fulvio Irace, Paolo Portoghesi, Romano Burelli, Claudio D'Amato, Umberto Riva, Emilio Battisti e Francesco Venezia. Participants will discuss the existence of an "Italian Stone" architecture identity, the characteristics of which, are the relationship between architecture and local building traditions (e.g. the Mediterranean area or the Alps) and the relationship with the Italian building traditions of XX the century. On the agenda to be discussed is presence and the influence of the international research in architectural interpretation and Italian stone processing the technologies.

The exhibition "Il Fuoco & l'Acqua", ("Fire & Water"), in the last few years has attracted great interest to living areas in the home, i.e the kitchen and the bath connected to these two essential elements in life.

This new interior design frontier has for a long time now attracted attention. The event is fruit of a synergy between "Marmomacc" and "Abitare il Tempo", in collaboration with architects, designers, artists of international renown, such as Giulio Cappellini, Ludovica and Roberto Palomba, Aldo Cibic and Elvilino Zangrandi (two designers who created kitchens taking their inspiration from the country kitchens of the Veneto). Other names include Claudio Silvestrin, architectural studio Simone Micheli, Giovanna Talocci, Giancarlo Vegni and leading companies in the stone industry, the home furnishing, bathroom decor and kitchen sectors (Flaminia, Dornbracht, EffetiCucine, Kos, Minotti Cucine, Stone Italiana, Teuco-Guzzini, Units). The displays are created as environments to enter into. Filled with sensory objects that makes the visitor "react". Lots of interesting designs using materials with "antique" effects (such as stone, marble and wood) and modern effects (such as steel, glass and plastic). The exhibition emerges the visitor in an environment that "stimulates all of the senses".

Popular over the years, has been the training course on the use of the stone and the marble in modern architecture (from 9.30am to 5.pm on Thursday 3rd, Friday 4th and Saturday 5th October, in Sala Respighi-1° piano Pal. WTC). The event is aimed at American architects (*) and architects from other countries, who every year must put in a number of hours refresher lessons in order to remain in the national classification of their country. The initiative, organized by Veronafiere in collaboration with the I.C.E. and Stone World Magazine, offers professionals an indepth study of the latest technologies and decoration of the stone and marble.

(*) Veronafiere has been recognized officially as an "education provider" by the AIA (American Institute of Architects) and is a point of reference all over the USA to those interested in the uses of stone material.

Italian natural stone machinery producers export less 

Italy exported processing machinery for the natural stone industry for over 408 million euro last year. This corresponds to a drop of just under three percent over the value of exports in 2000. The export value rose from over 105 to just under 108 million euro for machinery for sawing and cutting natural stone, but dropped from 315 million to just under 300 million euro for finishing machinery. Just under one third of exports went to the EU countries and Italy delivered another 13 percent to the remaining European countries. The next most important markets were in the Far East, the Middle East and North America. Spain is still the most important partner of the Italian machinery industry in Europe, followed by the USA. Exports to the two countries have, however, declined by an above-average amount in value terms. This applies to an even greater extent to Germany, whose imports of natural stone processing machinery slumped by almost a quarter. However, Germany is still the fifth most important customer after Spain, the United States, Vietnam and China.

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Rules for cooperation with China 

In view of the necessity to tackle the natural stone country China more vigorously, particularly medium-size enterprises in the natural stone industry run the risk of underestimating the peculiarities of the Chinese market. China differs from Europe in that personal and business levels are only seldom kept separate. Every service provided is rather regarded as a personal favor, which means that a refusal can also always be felt as a personal insult. As in most Asian cultures, symbolism also plays a very important role in communication in China: the order in which speakers start speaking, the age structure of the Chinese negotiating team, the duration of the meeting and the subsequent meal together, the persons present during the meal and the food served, the time you have to wait for someone, the way in which you are given a message – nothing is left to chance. China is a culture characterized by a strongly hierarchical nature, in which age and rank play a very much more important role as guidelines for communication than in Europe. The careless disregard of these basic social rules has already made life difficult for many European companies. Europe is a region with a comparatively high degree of legal security. In China on the other hand, where the legal system is still in its early stages, the business world depends on the mutual trust of the partners in the oral agreement. The written form is therefore accorded a rather secondary role in the conduct of negotiations. Not only are the costs of a commitment in China regularly underestimated, but the time required as well. Even though the initial impression often promises a temptingly easy cooperation – the Chinese market is no easy market. A European company in China meets a passionate and aggressive business culture and target-oriented bureaucracy. The combined impact of both aspects should not be underestimated.

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Tyrolit Vincent recently introduced the MR2 diamond saw blade for cutting marble and limestone. The blade can be used on multi-head cutting machines and bridge mills, according to its manufacturer. The segments in the saw blade are produced by laser cutting, starting from a continuous rim blade. The combination of laser cuts and a sintered core has resulted in superior alignment of the diamond segments, giving the benefit of extreme precision, according to the company. This type of cut helps to lubricate and cool the segments. The hook ends of the teeth considerably reduce the noise level and are at an angle that minimizes the stress created on the edge of the teeth. MR2 has a 9-mm diamond segment. It is available in two versions -- 300 diameter with 23 segments and 350 diameter with 27 segments. Both versions have a standard sintered core.