How It's Made: HanStone Quartz

Facility and Capacity

Location: Situated in Ontario, Canada, this facility is the largest quartz manufacturer in the country.

Size: The facility spans a vast 250,000 square feet.

Two Manufacturing Lines: Equipped with two independent production lines, each with its own set of machinery for producing quartz slabs. This dual-line setup allows for simultaneous production, effectively increasing output and offering flexibility in manufacturing different types of slabs.

Production Capability: With these two lines, the facility can produce up to 3,000 slabs per week, meeting high demands and maintaining a consistent supply.

Advantages of HanStone Quartz

Non-Porous Nature: Unlike granite or marble, HanStone Quartz doesn't absorb liquids, making it stain-resistant and easy to clean.

Low Maintenance: Its non-porous quality also means there's no need for sealing or polishing, saving time and effort in upkeep.

The Manufacturing Process

1. Ingredients: The slabs are made from a blend of:

-Quartz: The main component, providing strength and durability to the slab.

-Sands and Powders: Fine materials that fill in gaps between quartz particles, enhancing the slab's compactness, uniformity, and appearance.

-Resin: Acts as a binder to hold the quartz and sands together and includes pigments for color.

2. Batch Processing: Typically, 8-9 slabs are produced in each batch.

3. Automation: The process, from mixing ingredients to forming the slabs, is fully automated.

4. Time Constraint: After the ingredients are mixed, there's a 4-hour window to mold and shape the material. This period is crucial because the resin in the mixture begins to set, hardening the mix. It's important to complete the slab formation within this timeframe to ensure proper shaping and quality.

5. Composition: The final composition of each slab is 93% quartz and 7% resin (which includes the pigments).

Molding and Pressing

6. Slab Thickness: They create slabs that are either 2cm or 3cm thick, depending on the requirement.

7. Designs: Add veining patterns to give each slab a unique and attractive look.

8. VibroPress: This machine is used for:

• Pressing: Compressing the mixture into dense, flat slabs.

• Eliminating Air Pockets (Voids): The VibroPress also vibrates during the pressing process. This vibration helps distribute the material evenly and fills in any small air pockets, ensuring the slab is uniformly dense and strong throughout.

Inspection and Curing

9. Initial Check: Before curing, each slab is inspected for the correct pattern and overall quality to ensure it meets design specifications.

10. Cure Slabs in a Kiln Oven: The slabs are then placed in a kiln, a high-temperature oven. Here, they undergo the curing process, where heat triggers a chemical reaction in the resin, hardening and solidifying the slab into a durable material.

11. Post-Cure Check for Defects: After the slabs come out of the kiln and cool down, they undergo another inspection. This time, it's to check for any defects that might have appeared during the curing process, ensuring the final product's integrity and quality.

Cooling and Polishing

12. 20-Minute Cooling: After curing, slabs are gradually cooled for 20 minutes. This controlled cooling is important to prevent warping, which means stopping the slabs from bending or twisting out of their flat shape.

13. Inspect Again: Once cool, the slabs are inspected again to ensure they haven't warped and there are no new defects.

14. Trim Rough Edges: The edges of the slabs are then trimmed to make them neat and smooth.

15. Polish: Each slab is polished to achieve the desired level of smoothness and gloss. This step also allows for different surface finishes, depending on what's needed – options include glossy, leather-like, or textured finishes.

Quality Control and Distribution

16. Final inspection for color and pattern match.

17. Label with manufacturing details.

18. Bundle and ship to warehouses.