INSIDE THE SHOP

Aaron Danke, education manager of the Natural Stone Institute, greets attendees of the Colorado Stone Summit at MSI’s facility in Denver, CO.

Stone World, in partnership with the Natural Stone Institute, has resumed its in-person Stone Summits for 2021. The first one launched in Ohio in July followed by Pennsylvania in August. Most recently, the Colorado event was sponsored by MSI at its Denver, CO, facility on September 23, 2021.

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Deviating from its usual format of a morning presentation led by an industry expert and breakout sessions in the afternoon, the Colorado Stone Summit featured separate panel discussions, which encouraged questions and interaction from attendees. The morning kicked off with “Safety and Your Facility.” Among the panelists was Dr. Cecile Rose of National Jewish Health in Denver. Rose spoke about the health risks of Silicosis, what fabricators should be aware of in their shop when cutting stone and how it can be prevented. Also on the panel was Paula Perry of Water Treatment Solutions in Concord, NH, and Jeff “Corky” Courtright of Planet Granite in Colorado Springs, CO.

After a break, where attendees could speak with sponsors of the event and learn about their products, a second panel took the stage to discuss “Building an Efficient Fabrication Shop.” Josh Dacek  and Scott Polak of Brekhus Tile & Stone, Inc. in Denver shared their company’s experience with expansion, and Alex Llanos of CMS North America, Inc. joined the panel to give perspective from a machinery manufacturer.

The morning concluded with Dany Anderson, MSI Denver branch leader, accepting a certificate for the distributor of stone, tile and other hard surfaces generously hosting the event. During the lunch break, participants were invited to tour the slab warehouse to view the company’s full in-house collection.

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After lunch, Joseph Percoco of Percoco Marble & Tile Co. and Scott Higginbot of Dry-Treat, Inc. discussed alternative stone finishes and stone care and maintenance. They stressed the importance of knowing the characteristics of each stone so that you can educate your customers.

All of the sessions were moderated by Mark Meriaux, accreditation and technical manager for the Natural Stone Institute. The day concluded with a closing reception, which allowed everyone to mingle and further get to know each other and learn more.

Next up is the Arizona Stone Summit – hosted by Arizona Tile at its facility in Tempe. Duane Naquin of Stone Interiors will speak on stone shop management. The event is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, 2021.