Movers & Shakers
Alex Jennings from Algarve Granite
The End of the "Dry Cutting" Era: How the Stone Industry Is Adapting to Tougher Safety Standards
The UK stone fabrication industry is entering a new era of regulatory scrutiny. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has announced more than 1,000 inspections targeting businesses working with stone, reflecting growing concern over exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS), particularly during the processing of engineered stone.
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But as Alex Jennings of Algarve Granite explains in the latest episode of the Movers & Shakers podcast, legislation is only one part of the challenge. Fabricators are also navigating rapid technological change, skills shortages and increasingly demanding health and safety expectations.
Silica Isn’t Just an Engineered Stone Issue
While engineered quartz has become the focus of recent attention because of its exceptionally high silica content, Jennings highlights an important point that is often overlooked.
“Silica is present in all stone, not just engineered products.”
The difference lies in the concentration and the way materials are processed. Engineered stone has accelerated regulatory action because of its high silica content, but all stone fabrication requires effective dust control. The HSE continues to warn that exposure to RCS can cause irreversible lung disease, with symptoms often appearing only after permanent damage has occurred.
Safety Through Technology
Modern fabrication has changed dramatically over the past 15 years.
“Almost everything in the factory is now produced on CNC machinery, giving us consistency, quality and speed.”
Today’s CNC equipment relies on integrated wet-cutting systems that dramatically reduce airborne dust while improving accuracy and productivity. For many businesses, investment in automation has become as much about protecting employees as increasing efficiency.
Compliance Never Stops
One of Jennings’ strongest messages is that health and safety is an ongoing process, not a one-time achievement.
“There isn’t a point where you can say you’ve done enough,” he explains.
Regular air monitoring, independent occupational hygiene assessments, employee health surveillance and continual reviews of working practices are now essential parts of operating a responsible fabrication business and meeting COSHH requirements.
The Skills Challenge
Technology may be advancing, but finding skilled people remains one of the industry’s biggest concerns.
Jennings points to the lack of a dedicated apprenticeship standard for engineered stone fabrication, leaving many businesses to train new employees from the ground up. Combined with the physically demanding nature of the job, attracting the next generation of fabricators is becoming increasingly difficult.
A Lesson Learned the Hard Way
Perhaps the most powerful moment in the podcast comes when Jennings shares his own workplace accident.
Trying to help his team during a busy period, he made a quick cut with an angle grinder and suffered a serious leg injury.
His advice is simple:
“More haste, less speed.”
It’s a reminder that even experienced professionals can be caught out when deadlines and routine take over.
Raising Standards Across the Industry
The HSE’s increased inspection programme should be viewed as more than a compliance exercise. It represents an opportunity to raise standards across the sector and ensure responsible businesses are not undercut by competitors who ignore safe working practices.
As the industry evolves, automation, improved occupational health practices and lower-silica materials are likely to become the norm. Stone fabrication is increasingly a high-tech manufacturing process where productivity, quality and worker safety go hand in hand.
To hear Alex Jennings discuss these challenges in greater detail, listen to the latest episode of the Movers & Shakers podcast:
, where he shares practical insights from the frontline of the UK’s stone fabrication industry.
