The L.E. Smith Company, the nation's largest single location fabricator of laminate countertops introduced a web-based Quartz quoting tool - Squad - that offers quoting in real time. The company also says it will not charge for offal on its Quartz countertop orders.

Countertop supply consolidator enters Northeast with fourth acquisition in six months.

Architectural Granite & Marble (AG&M), a leading supplier of countertop surfaces will launch four new colors in its MetroQuartz line for KBIS 2017.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's new rules limit exposure by workers to crystalline silica, aiming to curb lung cancer, silicosis and other ailments suffered by those cutting engineered stone countertops and surfaces, and similar materials.

The North American Building Material Distribution Association (NBMDA) and the International Surface Fabricators Association (ISFA) have formed a partnership designed to enhance communication and collaboration between the two industry trade associations. Its objective is to improve training opportunities available to surface fabricators by leveraging the local relationships and logistics of their distributor suppliers.

MONTREAL, Quebec — Arborite is bringing its laminate experience to the residential sector with Maison, a new family of products designed for the kitchen. Maison, which launches across both the United States and Canada in 2016, will be the umbrella for curated lines focused on the residential consumer and specifically, the kitchen.

Hardware supplier Richelieu shows how to cut the right angle on a caulking nozzle to make a properly shaped bead of caulk to seal the seam between vertical and horizontal surfaces.

Mass-Granite, a granite countertop manufacturer in Acton, MA, faces $87,000 in OSHA fines for exposing employees to safety hazards, including some for which it was fined previously but didn't correct, according to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration.

VT Industries acquired Rome, GA-based Capitoline Products, a regional laminate countertop and decorative panel manufacturer.

Formica Corporation, the inventor of laminate, has introduced six new Formica® Brand Laminate PremiumFX™ patterns: four fresh stone and concrete looks as well as two new horizontal wood finishes.