Cut Stone & Stone Product Manufacturers NAICS 327991

Feb 21, 2026 - Progress on Silica Safety

• The Natural Stone Institute’s State of Silica Safety: 2024–25 Progress Report & 2026 Roadmap signals a major shift toward more rigorous silica‑exposure management across the US stone products industry. The new report highlights progress in scientific research, medical guidance, training, and regulatory engagement, developments that will shape compliance expectations for fabricators, quarries, and manufacturers. A key milestone is NSI’s partnership with Yale School of Medicine, which is producing science‑based guidance, new air‑sampling protocols, and the largest US dataset on respirable crystalline silica exposure in fabrication shops. Expanded training programs, certificate courses, and stronger collaboration with OSHA and the Mine Safety and Health Administration indicate rising expectations for documented safety practices, medical surveillance, and the elimination of dry cutting. For stone producers, this roadmap signals increasing regulatory scrutiny and a growing need to invest in engineering controls, monitoring, and workforce training to maintain compliance and protect industry viability.
• Brazil’s exports of natural stone jumped by 20% between January and October to $1.24 billion, despite steep US tariffs of up to 50% on granite, marble, and soapstone, according to the Brazilian Natural Stone Association. Still, the levies caused sharp declines in shipments of materials most relevant to US stone product manufacturers, with granite exports falling 14.7%, marble down 9.8%, and soapstone plunging 54.6%. Only quartzite, which is seeing significant growth, especially for kitchen and bathroom countertops, is exempt from US tariffs. Lower volumes of tariff‑impacted Brazilian stone ease competitive pressure on US producers of cut stone, while makers of stone products that rely on Brazilian exports face tighter supplies and higher costs, especially for granite and marble. While tariff turmoil continues, US producers should look to diversify sourcing away from Brazil and strengthen their domestic supply chains.

• The 50% tariff on imports from Brazil that took effect August 6 could have "catastrophic results” on the countertop sector in residential construction, Stone World warns. According to the Natural Stone Institute (NSI), the most popular natural stone countertop materials are geologically present only in Brazil and the color and color patterns of domestic substitutes make them unsuitable for residential countertop construction. The lack of domestic alternatives makes Brazilian stones for countertops irreplaceable. Moreover, companies with existing contracts aren’t able to adjust them to account for the increased costs due to the higher tariffs, eroding or erasing their profit margins. According to NSI, more than 500 US stone distributors import stone from Brazil. India and China, other targets of the administration’s tariff wrath, are also major importers of stone to the US.
• Producer prices for cut stone and stone product manufacturers rose 2.7% in November compared to a year ago, after rising 3.1% in the previous November-versus-November annual comparison, according to the latest US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The industry producer price is at a record high level following a prolonged steady climb. Employment by lime, gypsum, and other nonmetallic mineral product manufacturers was flat year over year in November, while the average industry wage rose 5.1% YoY in December to $28.74 per hour, easing from its peak in November, BLS data show.