slate

Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock.

The foliation in slate is called "slaty cleavage". It is caused by strong compression causing fine grained clay flakes to regrow in planes perpendicular to the compression. When expertly "cut" by striking parallel to the foliation, with a specialized tool in the quarry, many slates will display a property called fissility, forming smooth flat sheets of stone which have long been used for roofing, floor tiles, and other purposes. Slate is frequently grey in colour, however, slate occurs in a variety of colours even from a single locality; for example, slate from North Wales can be found in many shades of grey, from pale to dark, and may also be purple, green or cyan.

limestone

Limestone is a carbonate sedimentary rock that is often composed of the skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, foraminifera, and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate. A closely related rock is dolomite, which contains a high percentage of the mineral dolomite.

About 10% of sedimentary rocks are limestones. The solubility of limestone in water and weak acid solutions leads to karst landscapes, in which water erodes the limestone over thousands to millions of years. Most cave systems are through limestone bedrock.

Limestone has numerous uses: as a building material, an essential component of concrete, as aggregate for the base of roads, as white pigment or filler in products such as toothpaste or paints, as a chemical feedstock for the production of lime, as a soil conditioner, or as a popular decorative addition to rock gardens.

marble

Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated, although there are exceptions. In geology, the term "marble" refers to metamorphosed limestone, but its use in stone-masonry more broadly encompasses unmetamorphosed limestone. Metamorphism causes variable recrystallization of the original carbonate mineral grains. The resulting marble rock is typically composed of an interlocking mosaic of carbonate crystals. Primary sedimentary textures and structures of the original carbonate rock (protolith) have typically been modified or destroyed.

The characteristic swirls and veins of many coloured marble varieties are usually due to various mineral impurities such as clay, silt, sand, iron oxides, or chert which were originally present as grains or layers in the limestone. For example, pure white marble is the result of metamorphism of a very pure limestone or dolomite protolith. Green coloration is often due to serpentine resulting from originally magnesium-rich limestone or dolomite with silica impurities. These various impurities have been mobilized and recrystallized by the intense pressure and heat of the metamorphism. Marble is commonly used for sculpture and as a building material.

granite

Granite is a common type of felsic intrusive igneous rock that is granular and phaneritic in texture. The word "granite" comes from the Latin granum, a grain, in reference to the coarse-grained structure of such a holocrystalline rock. Strictly speaking, granite is an igneous rock with between 20% and 60% quartz by volume, and at least 35% of the total feldspar consisting of alkali feldspar, although commonly the term "granite" is used to refer to a wider range of coarse-grained igneous rocks containing quartz and feldspar.

The term "granitic" means granite-like and is applied to granite and a group of intrusive igneous rocks with similar textures and slight variations in composition and origin. These rocks mainly consist of feldspar, quartz, mica, and amphibole minerals, which form an interlocking, somewhat equigranular matrix of feldspar and quartz with scattered darker biotite mica and amphibole peppering the lighter colour minerals. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass.

Granite is nearly always massive (i.e., lacking any internal structures), hard, and tough. These properties have made granite a widespread construction stone throughout human history.

quartzite

Quartzite is a hard, non-foliated metamorphic rock which was originally pure quartz sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to grey, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink and red due to varying amounts of iron oxide. Other colours, such as yellow, green, blue and orange, can also be present due to other minerals and impurities.

When sandstone is cemented to quartzite, the individual quartz grains recrystallize along with the former cementing material to form an interlocking mosaic of quartz crystals. Most or all of the original texture and sedimentary structures of the sandstone are erased by the metamorphism. The grainy, sandpaper-like surface becomes glassy in appearance. Minor amounts of former cementing materials, iron oxide, silica, carbonate and clay, often migrate during recrystallization and metamorphosis. This causes streaks and lenses to form within the quartzite.

Quartzite is extremely dense and very hard wearing.

Natural Quartz

Natural Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silicon and oxygen atoms. The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical formula of SiO2. Quartz is the second most abundant mineral in Earth's continental crust, behind feldspar. There are many different varieties of quartz, several of which are semi-precious gemstones.

Since antiquity, varieties of quartz have been the most commonly used minerals in the making of jewellery and hard-stone carvings, especially in Eurasia.

quartz

Engineered quartz (not to be confused with Natural Quartz or Quartzite) is predominantly known and referred to in the market as just quartz and is a man made product created mostly from natural materials. Depending on manufacturers, it is made up of 90 to 94 percent ground natural quartz and 6 to 10 percent resins and pigments that are combined into durable and nonporous slabs. The strength of quartz, even in a manufactured form, makes it naturally resistant to abrasion, scratches, dents, and even acids without the need for sealants (to a reasonable extent). The environmental impact of manufactured quartz is low: Quartz is an abundant material and the finished product is nontoxic and non allergenic, and will last a lifetime, reducing the need for replacement.

One of the appealing features of engineered quartz is its wide variety of colours, patterns, and textures. And the range is continuously expanding, spurred on by competition between brands. Note that the colour and texture of engineered quartz are more consistent than natural stone—to some this uniformity is an appealing feature and to others it’s a drawback.

U.c.s. / U.H.S

UCS (or UHS) is an umbrella term for a range of man made products which include Porcelain, Ceramic & Sintered products and are among the new generation materials referred to as Ultra Compact Surfaces. Their application can be used for horizontal, vertical, indoor, outdoor, furniture and work tops.

Made of all natural materials and fired at extreme heat to replicate what Mother Nature has created over millions of years in hard granites. Ultra compact surfaces are made without a resin, but instead with minerals and are manufactured at an extreme heat to ensure that the material will not deteriorate over time when installed outdoors. The surface is made with multiple times the compressive strength of granite, which means it is very strong from the core of the material, and can withstand large amounts of weight, however the trade off for this is that the product is very brittle (like glass) and under the right circumstances can shatter or pop due to the high amounts of tension. The edge of the material is brittle and prone to chipping when cut with current technology tooling, however the chipping can be minimised by using correct techniques and precautions. The material is 100% non-porous, so any liquid is easily removed and not absorbed, because of this, the surface remains extremely hygienic and ideal for preparing food. Similarly, the surface is very difficult to scratch and can withstand high temperatures, so through normal everyday use should remain undamaged.

Natural stone and quartz is full bodied meaning the pattern continues throughout the thickness of the material, however Ultra Compact Surfaces often have a surface printed colour or feature vein like patterns to replicate marble. The print, millimetres in thickness, does not go all the way through the material, however, using today’s technology, we are able to create mitred edges showcasing the vein running through the compact surface top to front edge. To the eye, this visually looks as though the pattern is embedded along the edge. There are some exceptions to this, for example Lapitec, who offer full bodies slabs, meaning the pattern will be present throughout the whole thickness of the material.