HSE bans dry cutting of kitchen worktops ahead of inspection drive
The message from the HSE is clear: dry cutting of engineered stone must stop, or employers will face the consequences.
By Belinda Liversedge on 11 May 2026
engineered stone
HSE fines stone company after inspectors discover workshop floor caked in dust
A manufacturer of popular stone kitchen worktops has been fined £60,000 after HSE inspectors found evidence of shocking failures to control dust exposure in the Slough workshop.
By Belinda Liversedge on 06 June 2025
Engineered stone: managing a deadlier kind of dust
Engineered stone dust contains up to 95 per cent silica, and younger workers are dying in its wake from a disease known as accelerated silicosis. Are we going fast enough to address the problem?
By Belinda Liversedge on 26 May 2025
Stonemason fined for exposing workers to silica dust as HSE updates advice for stone worktop installers
A stonemasonry firm has received a fine of almost £20,000 for failing to protect workers from silica dust, as the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) issued new advice for stone worktop installers amid continued calls for engineered stone to be banned over its links to silicosis.
By Kerry Reals on 10 January 2025
Engineered stone worktops and silicosis: a challenging problem
The sudden and alarming appearance of silicosis cases among engineered stone workers in the UK, against the backdrop of a ban in Australia and in some US States, has suddenly brought the question of how to regulate for health protection in the workplace to the fore.
By Kevin Bampton, BOHS on 04 September 2024
Silicosis – time to wake up
Clinicians at the Royal Brompton hospital in London have warned about the dangers of silica exposure in a recent study published in Thorax. They are currently treating the first identified cases of silicosis caused by working with engineered stone in the UK and have called for a ban on artificial stone to ward off the potential for an increase in silicosis cases.
By Jim Shannon MP on 04 September 2024
