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TRANSCRIPT
K. SCHIPPER: Hi, I’m K. Schipper with the latest in hard surfaces industry news from Radio Stone Update.
0:32
Once again, unfair-trade tariffs have popped up, although this time neither quartz nor the United States are involved. Instead, ceramic tiles from both India and Turkey will now be subject to unfair-trade tariffs in European Union countries.
The European Commission imposed duties ranging from 4.8% to 20.9% on tiles, including porcelain. The action is valid for imports into all 27 member states of the European Union. The action was taken Feb. 9 and took effect Feb. 11.
The commission acted after a complaint against Indian and Turkish imports in November 2021 by the Brussels-based European Ceramic Tile Manufacturers Association. The investigation that followed focused on imports from July 2020 to June 2021. During that time, product from India and Turkey totaled approximately 68 million square meters, or about 8.3% of the total market share in EU countries. Turkey accounted for 56.5% of the shipments.
By contrast, ceramic imports in 2018 from the two countries came to approximately 41 million square meters, or about 5.2.% of the total EU ceramic market. The investigation also found that EU-made ceramic producers have technically been selling products to member countries at an overall loss since 2018.
The commission reported it found sufficient evidence of product dumping and issued varying duties based on data received from companies in India and Turkey. India’s rates ranged from 6.7% for the Icon Group, to an 8.7% countrywide rate for most companies.
A special rate for Indian manufacturers cooperating in the investigation included several companies in The Antique Group, which figured in the recent U.S. tile tariff review, and Lioli Ceramica Pvt. Ltd., the producer acquired by Caesarstone.
Turkey’s EU tile tariffs go from 4.8% to 9.2% for companies named in the investigation to a countrywide “all others” rate of 20.9%. EU tariffs are effective for five years, although the rates can be reviewed after one year in force. They can also be renewed.
3:03
Porcelanosa has opened a new €55-million- manufacturing facility at its headquarters location in Villareal, Spain. Designed to produce its XSTONE sintered-stone product, the fully automated plant is capable of manufacturing up to 14 million ft² annually.
The facility incorporates 375,000 ft² of floor space, and is designed specifically to produce large format porcelain and sintered stone in panels up to 320 X 160 cm, in thicknesses ranging from .6cm to 2 cm., with the capability of producing 3 cm surfaces, as well.
For the press selection, two advanced presses have been installed, integrating the latest 3-D design technology to achieve visual continuity in any dimension of the piece. The machinery has been unified in enameling, decoration and texture, achieving a better quality and resolution in the slabs.
The firing system consists of a 250 meter – or 820 feet – long kiln that produces slabs with the best technical performance for the cutting and machining of the material. To further enhance quality, individual sorting is carried out, along with a digitized inspection system.
To power the new plant, a total of 4,475 solar panels with an output of 2.4 MWp have been installed on one-third of the roof to promote self-consumption of energy. Other sustainable measures include the recover of 100% of the heat from the kiln for drying processes, the reuse of 100% of water through a treatment facility for industrial use, and recycling of 100% of waste for reintroduction into the production system.
The plant will lead to 125 new jobs.
5:02
Manitoba’s Tyndall Stone has received a global heritage designation for its broad significance to humanity. A building material used in Manitoba for nearly 200 years, the designation puts the stone on the same level as the Carrara marble used in ancient Rome.
A fossil-laden limestone, the cream-colored stone often has a tapestry-like mottling from marine organisms that lived at the bottom of a tropical sea that once covered the area, making it a popular feature in architecture. Canada is the only source in the world for the stone, and Manitoba is the only province where it’s quarried.
Donna Gillis, fourth generation co-owner of the Gillis Quarries in Garson, Manitoba, told the Canadian Broadcasting company that, “It’s an honor. We’ve always said it’s not like other limestones. There are other limestones in Canada, but this is a unique deposit and the fossilization is really different.”
Founded in 1910 by August Gillis, the family-operated quarry is the only one in the world mining the stone. There were a handful of others, all in Garson, but the Great Depression claimed most of them and the Gillis family then acquired the properties.
Tyndall Stone was discovered in 1823 by Hudson’s Bay Company employees who noticed an exposure along the banks of the Red River near Selkirk. The stone was first used to build the company’s warehouse and wall at Lower Fort Garry in 1832. The stone began being quarried widely at the end of the 19th century.
Tyndall Stone is widely used in the nearby city of Winnipeg, but also appears in the Canadian Parliament Buildings in Ottawa, the Banff Springs Hotel in Alberta, the Canadian Museum of History in Quebec, and Canada House in London. Of the 32 stones on the worldwide list, Tyndall Stone is the only one from Canada.
8:08
EMERSON SCHWARTZKOPF: This is Emerson Schwartzkopf. December is the start of the Queasy Quarter for hard surfaces, when demand goes slack before business picks up in March. Even so, the $363.8 million dollars in U.S. imports for the month is a significant 9.2% slip from November, and a hard 22.4% fall from the last month of 2021.
How brutal is that year-to-year difference? Consider that, in December 2021 and December 2020, shipment values from the previous year increased by at least 20%. In the biggest sector – Quartz Slab—both shipment value and volume dropped by 32% in December 2022 from the previous year.
It’s also apparent that quartz-slab rates decreased at the end of 2022 when materials went on freighters at foreign docks. The month-to-month difference from November to December in total value was down 10.8% … but shipment volume showed only a nominal slip of 0.69%. That’s barely two-thirds of one percentage point.
The hope of several international observers is that the U.S. market is adjusting to demand, and distributor/importer yards are brimming with material bought at bargain prices with a strong U.S. dollar. It may take until mid-spring to see if that’s the reality, or just wishful thinking.
9:46
SCHIPPER: It sounds like a tall order, but Corian® Design is revising its sample-kit program with a goal of increasing efficiency and service to clients and to aid in recycling of the materials.
The change involves a move to customize sample boxes that will better address customers’ specific design decisions on projects and enable the showcasing of all three Corian product lines, as well as a recycling program for returning samples to avoid landfills.
A new multi-material box will hold up to three Endura™ porcelain-panel samples and six 4 X 4 samples of the brand’s solid surface or quartz materials. Each box will be fully customizable, which should mean less waste and a more personalized experience for individual customers.
Recognizing that hybrid work environments have decreased the need for architectural and design firms to have large sample libraries, the sample kit comes with a prepaid return shipping label to all commercial A&D customers, allowing them to send samples back when they’re finished using them. The samples can then be recycled or repurposed.
In other news around the industry….
11:01
The United Kingdom appears to be following the lead of Australia in getting more serious about the exposure of workers to silica and the dangers of silicosis in the workplace. The All-Party Parliamentary Group – the APPG – for Respiratory Health, has published an update on its 2020 report on silicosis.
The new report says some manufacturers of engineered quartz have reduced the level of crystalline silica in their products, while wet cutting and dust extraction have become more common. The report still says those working in what it calls worktop manufacturing are at a particular risk, along with those involved in mining and quarrying and those involved in construction and demolition.
The report still calls silica the biggest risk to construction workers after asbestos. However, the actual level of silicosis is difficult to pin down, mainly because in 2013 the UK government removed silicosis from the list of notifiable diseases. Among the recommendations in the updated report is that silicosis should once again be included as a notifiable disease.
12:10
MS International Inc. – MSI – recently received a 2023 Top Workplaces USA Award. Top Workplaces USA celebrates organizations with 150 or more employees that have built great cultures. More than 42,000 organizations were invited to participate. Winners are chosen based solely on employee feedback gathered through an employee engagement survey issued by research company Energage.
The program annually surveys more than 20 million employees and recognizes the top organizations across 60 markets for regional Top Workplaces awards. Chris Cournee, MSI vice president of human resources, says the company’s success comes down to the success of its people. MSI is headquartered in Orange, Calif., and maintains more than 40 state-of-the-art showrooms and distribution centers across the U.S. and Canada. It also has domestic manufacturing facilities for Q™ Premium Natural Quartz in Latta, S.C., and Premium LVT in Cartersville, Ga.
13:19
And, Jeff Erickson of Cutting Edge Countertops in Perrysburg, Ohio, will join the executive committee of the Natural Stone Institute as board secretary. Duane Naquin, 2023 NSI board president, said he was pleased to make the appointment. Naquin added, “Jeff’s leadership skills will only further advance the association and our commitment to our membership. I look forward to working alongside him this year.”
During his time on the NSI board, Erickson participated in the EPD countertop report, volunteered on the Sustainability Standard Joint Committee, served as chair of the Gary Sinise Foundation’s R.I.S.E. program committee and participated in several key training programs. In addition to Erickson and Naquin, the 2023 NSI executive committee is comprised on Vice President Katie Jensen, Treasurer Evan Cohen and immediate past president Buddy Ontra.
Remember, the latest issue of Hard-Surface Report is now available at www.hardsurfacereport.com. Our newsletter, Slab & Sheet, comes out on alternate Wednesdays. For a transcript of this issue of Radio Stone Update, go to www.radiostoneupdate.com
For Radio Stone Update, I’m K. Schipper, and we’ll see you here again soon.
