The entire fabrication process is done by our trained fabricators with no need for third party companies. We do the measurements we do the cutting and polishing and we install it. This way we avoid any possible error in communication assuring a superior end product.
Templating
Once we are ready to make your granite counter top, a trained technician visits your home to take the precise measurements of your counter top. While there they will create a carbon copy of your counter top out of thin pieces of wood. You will have a visual on how your top will sit and how your overhangs and radius will look. At this time you can talk to our templaters and request any modifications or custom work you may want. Once you are satisfied with the look of your tops, they will sign your templates and bring them back to the shop. They may also take drawings and physical measurements to double check the precise fit of your counter tops.
Cutting the Stone
The template, drawings and specifications of your job are then reviewed by our production manager to make sure they are complete. Your hand picked slabs will be then transported and loaded on our top of the line, Italian made bridge saw. After a careful inspection of your slabs - to inspect for faults or cracks or other blemishes in the stone - your templates will be laid on top of the stone and secured down by weights. At this stage our fabricators will move around the pieces of your counter top template to ensure a perfect fit for your seam and if necessary work around any blemishes in the stone. Once we are satisfied with how your job will look, our project manager will cut one by one each piece that forms your counter top. A great deal of attention is paid to your inside and outside corners as well as your seams to ensure that the final products will have the best fit you can get. At this step we use our patented and unique technique in preparing the seams. You will notice that our seams are almost invisible as well as 100% not detectable by touch. This is all due to our unique fabrication and preparation of seams. We can almost guarantee you that you will not be able to find a better seam anywhere else since no one else uses our in house patented technology.
Edge Profiling and Polishing
After each piece is cut and loaded on the polishing tables, our fabricators beging routing and profiling your chosen edge. For a list of our edge profiles
please click here. This step of the fabrication process is done with very precise computer programmed machines that ensure a consistent look and feel of your edge as well as a 0 tolerance across the length of your countertop. Many other fabricators will perform this process by hand thus allowing variations. You can be sure that through us your edge will be 100% consistent.
When all pieces have been fully routed and profiled with your specified edge style, our fabricatos will start polishing them using a sequence of 8 diamond coated polishing pads. The ten years of experience allows us to obtrain one of the highest and most briliant shines on our edges leaving absolutelly no lines visible at 10micron (10x the power of your eyes). A very strict quality control process will go over your edge inch by inch to ensure that there are no lines left withing your polished edges. This is also another step in the process that sets us apart from the competition. Take a quick trip to your local home improvement store or lumber yard and see how many lines are left on the polished edges as a result of poor polishing obtain from their machines. The best polish industry wide is obtained by hand polishing the edges and that is exactly what we do to maintain our reputation of highest quality.
Undermount Sink Fabrication
The sink cutout is a very conspicuous feature of a granite counter top. For under mount sinks the cutout should match the sink shape exactly with a consistent overhand relative to the top of vertical walls of the sink. Fabricating the under mount sink can sometimes be the most challenging part of the job. While granite is the strongest material for your counter tops, when cutting a sink hole the granite at the front and back of the sink becomes very fragile. This is where most fabricators butcher jobs. You will see a lot of jobs done by other fabricators that have seams either on both sides of the sink or right down the middle. We can assure you that kind of job will not be done by Granite Group. To increase the strength of the stone and be able to offer a large piece with a sink cutout in it we employ a process called "rodding" where we insert steel rods in the front and back of the cutout. After the rodding is completed we use a state of the art computer numerically controlled machine (CNC) that will cut out the sink shape (exactly) and rough dress it before polishing. This machine has a 1/64th of an inch tolerance and it assures that you sink will fit perfectly against its cutout. Needless to say this is yet another aspect that sets our quality above everyone else.
Installation and Seams
This is the day you have been waiting for! Today our professional installers will deliver and install your beautiful counter tops. One by one they will bring each piece of your counter tops and carefully set it on your cabinets. They will proceed by leveling each piece using shims to bring the entire counter top to one level and ensure the seams will match perfectly. Once each piece is set in its final place and all are brought to level we will proceed seaming them. Most jobs do not require more than one seam but depending on your kitchen's size we at times are required to make as many as 3 seams to complete your job. We use a high quality polyester epoxy as the seaming material. This epoxy is transparent and we will color match it to your counter top color with different tints. A "parallign" machine is used to tighten your seams and perfectly level them using cam shafts. We do not allow any lippage or miss-alignment on our seams and we make all of our seams 100% undetectable by touch and barelly visible. This seams easier than it is. Each stone has various thickness (up to 1/8" within the same slab) and when put together it will not line up properly. Unless you use modern technology and employ 10 years of experience the seam will not be un-conspicous and thus ruin the entire counter top. It is really important when picking your fabricator to be certain that he can deliver undetectable seams. We can bet our reputation that you will never feel our seams. Stop by our showroom and take a look at our quality and pricing.
