StoneDimensions

In an effort to consistently provide more value to our members, the Marble Institute has put together a task force of about thirty members to create a major improvement to the Restoration/Refinishing chapter of the Dimension Stone Design Manual. Leading the effort are MIA's Technical Director, Chuck Muehlbauer and members Keith Graves and Brian Kornet.

According to Muehlbauer, "The Cleaning, Maintenance, and Restoration chapters of the MIA's Dimension Stone Design Manual are the only two chapters that have not received significant revision in the past 10 years. This fact, coupled with the realization that the restoration sector of the industry is currently the fastest growing sector of MIA membership, makes this project an essential improvement to our manual. The size of the committee, plus its inclusion of some of the most experienced individuals from this specialized field, gives me great confidence that this endeavor will produce a comprehensive, consensus-based document from which both the design professional and trade communities will benefit."

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Homestead Exemption laws, in their most basic terms, protect a primary residence from being sold to satisfy the claims of general unsecured creditors. Many states have these laws, which are designed to encourage investment in personal real estate and also to spur commercial lending. If you recall, during the O.J. Simpson trials, one of the preemptive moves that Mr. Simpson made before the civil judgment was issued was to purchase a home of significant value within the state of Florida and establish residency in Florida. Aside from the sunshine, this was done primarily because of the generous homestead exemption laws found in the State of Florida. Homestead exemption laws shield the equity in one’s primary residence from the claims of creditors.

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By: Peter T. de Kok

The stone industry started much the same way all over the world and, often, still continues that same way. A laborer stumbles across some stone in a field, starts to quarry the stone and a business is born. He gets older and in time his children take over. This has been the pattern going back to the, forgive the pun, Stone Age. Now, if the truth be told, a large segment of the industry remains true to this pattern. Father to child, generation after generation. At least in earlier times, the father never saw much need for the child to study as the child's career was almost pre-ordained: "Take over the business! It was a good business for me, it will be a good business for you. I did not go to college, why should you? Learn how to cut and polish stone and all will be well."

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By: Selma Regina Tosta, International Law Specialist

In general, contracts represent a functional and instrumental mechanism for the success of any company.

This article aims to address the importance of the analysis of contracts in the advancement of good company development.

The concept of the contract has its origins in the XVII century, with the break from feudalism and the circulation of goods and services, where it became necessary to regulate the relationships of rights between subjects, regardless of their social class. It was based on one of the oldest doctrines of Roman law. It acquired the characteristic of a “mutual agreement” from the theory of Kant, in France, in the XVIII and XIX centuries. It established legal ties, capable of producing effects in legal relationships.

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Spring is here and if the current rebound in housing market maintains its momentum, this could be the best period for sales since the start of the recent recession. There are a couple of caveats, however, that could throw a monkey wrench into the high hopes.

Although housing prices rose 8.1 percent in January from the 2012 period, the biggest gain in 6-1/2 years, according to the Wall Street Journal, a housing shortage is developing. The newspaper says the number of homes for sale has fallen to the lowest levels in decades. In a growing number of markets, there are tens of thousands of homeowners who cannot or will not sell their properties because the values have dropped so low.

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Q: We recently installed some kitchen tops for a customer. As is our standard, we cut a radius at the corners around the breakfast bar. We do this on all of our jobs, because we feel it is less vulnerable to chipping than a sharp, 90° corner, and we also feel it looks better. The customer is now complaining that she wanted a 90° corner without the radius, even though we clearly showed this on a drawing that she approved prior to fabrication. Is there a document that says that this is a preferred condition over the sharp, 90° corner?

A: No, there is no document that states that, and there probably never will be, since it truly is a matter of taste. My personal preference, if this were being installed in my home, is to have it cut to a radius, for both of the reasons that you mentioned. One could also suggest that this enhances occupant safety, since a toddler banging their head into a 90° corner will have a greater “ouch” than the radiused detail, but I wouldn’t say that this is an overwhelming safety issue.

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An article entitled “Stone, The Original Green Building Material,” by Brent Ehrlich, was recently published in the March 2013 Environmental Building News, and is available on BuildingGreen.com. It is a terrific discussion of both the “green” qualities of natural stone, and our industry’s efforts (or lack thereof) to promote natural stone for use in green building projects.

In his introduction, Ehrlich states what we all know, “Other manufactured building products have their chemical makeup and their production and sales data monitored and aggregated…and then get them certified 'green' as a way of marketing to the green building community. With a lack of baseline data, the stone industry has not been able to provide clear metrics and third-party documentation that are the basis for standards and green certifications used by competing industries.”

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The Marble Institute of America's Accreditation Program has just experienced its most active quarter of growth since the program's first 3 months in existence. Activity in the commercial arena has been especially encouraging and is a sign that the economic conditions that ravaged the industry over the past several years are receding. Jon Lancto of Surface Products and Chairman of the Accreditation Commission said, "following an extremely positive StonExpo, we knew that it was time to ramp up our recruitment efforts for the Accreditation Program, we had been hearing for several years that the economic climate was just not right to push a credentialing program. Many MIA members are looking for 2013 to be the year they become accredited."

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WASHINGTON, Feb. 7 - Builder confidence in the 55+ housing market for single-family homes showed continued improvement in the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to the same period a year ago, according to the National Association of Home Builders' (NAHB) latest 55+ Housing Market Index (HMI) released today. The index increased 10 points to a level of 28, the fifth consecutive quarter of year over year improvements.

"We continue to see increased optimism from builders and developers in the 55+ housing segment," said Bob Karen, chairman of NAHB's 50+ Housing Council and managing member of the Symphony Development Group. "Those customers who had been on the sidelines waiting for more stability in their local markets are starting to make their move toward either purchasing a home or renting an apartment that is designed to more specifically suit their lifestyle."

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