Better Fabrication, Better Installation

Technological advances are great, but if a shop has trouble making a good product with basic equipment, advanced equipment may only cause them more grief at a higher cost – with the added stress of trying to produce more to pay for the new technology.
Conversely, a shop not ready to advance upward in the technological food chain may also change their operating procedures to fit the new equipment … sometimes putting limits on their fabrication offerings and making it harder to do business with them.
On the other side of the equation is the shop that modernizes in order to improve what it already does well with its current equipment. The company views the technology as a way to take a good product and make it better and faster, creating more profit while at the same time holding down the long-term bottom-line cost it can offer to its customers.
In my case, I got lucky and ended up with the positive side of technology. My main fabricator, KG Stevens of New Berlin, Wis., recently installed a Löffler processing line they purchased through Fabricator's Choice of St. Paul, Minn.
The shop was already well versed in technology, accepting templates via emailed CAD .dxf files as well as running multiple CNCs and a waterjet. The Löffler line streamlined the fabrication process, as well as improving quality control at the front end.
How does this benefit a template/install company like mine? Following a job through the fabrication process is a good way to demonstrate.
Last fall, my company received an order for a three-slab Verde Marinace kitchen. It was a difficult job for several reasons.
First, the sink run was 180" long with three angled seams and trapped between two cabinets. On a run that long, any variation in the cutting angle of one of the seams could end up throwing off the ends. In this case both ends were against wood cabinet panels with no splash. If the seam angles were off, there was nowhere to hide.
Second, the raised snack bar was a large custom shape with no good place to put a seam. The cut piece would have to be handled correctly in order to make it out of the shop and into the house.
Lastly, the job barely squeezed onto the three slabs. I knew it had to be laid out carefully in order to get all the pieces out of the material.
The job started out by being measured with E-Template™ and drawn in CAD. I submitted the job and included a theoretical slab layout. From there, the CAD department at KG Stevens formatted the job to work with their software and sent it to the fabrication line.
The Löffler line starts by having the slabs brought to the sawing station. Each one is inspected vertically and horizontally under bright diffused light, and any imperfections are marked so they can be avoided.
Inspecting a slab that is standing up and then lying down is optimal for natural stone, because sometimes an inspection on only one plane will miss details like subtle wire-cut gouges, hairline cracks or bad fills. For quartz surfaces, this inspection step is a great way to locate and avoid resin heavy inclusions.
Each slab is then digitally photographed and stored in the sawyer's computer system. The operator is able to overlay the individual CAD drawings of the pieces onto the photographs of the slabs and break the slabs apart on the screen, creating seamed pieces in a virtual world. For granite and marble that has a defined grain or varied colors throughout the slab, this technology allows the sawyer to match up the parts of each slab that will work best at the seams.
If the quantity of stone selected allows, this can eliminate harsh color changes or cross graining of material. It also allows the sawyer to avoid the bad spots in the stone he marked during inspection.
In the case of an extremely particular client (and we all have a handful), this technology would allow them to view a close representation of their kitchen layout on the stone before anything was cut.
For a fabricator working from stock granite colors, the photo technology allows comparison of full slabs and remnants to determine if they can be combined for a job. This will help utilize stock more efficiently, and avoid color and grain issues that sometimes plague stock color programs.
Working off the slab photographs is also a great way to catalog remnant pieces. The system will know the size of the pieces left over, allowing them to be efficiently labeled and stored.
When I'm installing a kitchen and the homeowner asks me if there is enough stone left over to do a vanity, a simple phone call can give me the answer. And, I don't even have to bother somebody to rummage through the remnants with a tape measure. That's a great sales tool for me in the field.
For my Verde Marinace job, the sawyer was able to lay out all the pieces on the slabs to make sure everything would fit. This is a difficult procedure to do manually, and anyone who’s been short on material because the sawyer shifted the pieces around will know it's an otherwise imperfect process.
Once the layout is complete and the sawyer sends the slabs through, the saw cuts the job automatically. This is where the real benefit occurs when you've got angled seams.
With stick templates and a manual bridge saw, you pray the sawyer lines up the blade well and cuts correctly and doesn't give you a “close enough” and lock the table into a preset angle position. Having run a saw myself for three years, I know the temptation is always there.
With the computerized saw, it cuts on the seam lines from the CAD file. My angled seams lined up nicely in the field, resulting in a great end-to-end fit.
Once the pieces are cut, they’re automatically lifted from the table and sent to the conveyor belt, waterjet or a blade that slices a slot for reinforcing rod. The automated rodding is another benefit for the installer, as it's possible to call for rod where you would like it to be, if you’re nervous about a particular area in the stone.
Having the pieces lifted off the table with a vacuum system is safer than moving them manually. The vacuum system avoids single-point pressure on a piece, which is tough to avoid when you've got two guys trying to work in unison. With my Verde Marinace snack bar, this may have helped keep it in one piece as it was moved from saw to CNC to transport rack.
When the pieces are on the conveyor, they are sprayed clean, dried, and racked until needed. Once called down from the rack, the piece can be automatically flipped over so it’s ready for the CNC or sent to the straight-line polisher.
Having all of these tasks automated is safer for the guys in the shop. Anyone who’s pinched a finger or wrenched a back or arm moving pieces around will have to agree. Plus, fewer injuries to key staff produces a more-reliable workflow through the shop and quicker turnaround time. My clients are happier when they don't have to wait very long for their tops – and, in turn, will probably recommend us.
For my company, the Löffler line has meant that we are getting a better product without having to change our own methods of doing business. Submission drawings have remained the same, as have offered edge profiles and inside radius limits. With the addition of the straight-line polisher, backsplash tops have a more-consistent polish.
With the Verde Marinace job, all my points of concern were handled with ease, and the homeowners were very happy with their finished kitchen.
With temperatures hovering at 0°F during the install, I just about froze. If somebody could just make a line to keep installers warm – now that's what I would call a truly great benefit.
Jason Nottestad, a 14-year stone-industry veteran, is co-owner of Wisconsin-based Midwest Template Service.

This article appeared in the March 2008 and April 2008 print editions of Stone Business. ©2008 Western Business Media