Creating iconic surfaces – Part 1: Four decades of innovation

For nearly 40 years, Caesarstone has continually redefined the kitchen and bathroom stone surfaces market, with revolutionary new advancements earning the brand’s in-house R+D team a reputation as the think-tank for the wider surfaces category.

From pioneering the very first quartz surfaces in the late 1980s addressing critical performance issues inherit in natural stone, through introducing authentically organic engineered stone surfaces that have become signature designs in the KBB sector such as Statuario Maximus, Frosty Carrina and Empira White, Caesarstone has always been the surfaces brand that has been at the forefront of the ‘art of the possible’.

In more recent years, alongside beautiful marble and granite inspired motifs and colourways, Caesarstone has also shaped the consideration of industrial themed surfaces across commercial and residential interiors.

“Within six months of joining the Caesarstone team in the mid-2010s, I was privileged to be launching Rugged Concrete, a first for the industry”, explains Jonathan Stanley, VP of Marketing and Customer Service at Caesarstone UK & Ireland, of a surface that was quickly followed by further Caesarstone designs that explored robust construction finishes with dynamic tonal variation, unique tactility and weathered patinas that completely reinvented what “stone” could mean to designers and homeowners alike.

“Products like Rugged Concrete, Cloudburst Concrete, and Airy Concrete quickly found acclaim in the KBB market because there was nothing like these designs in the market – even now, these remain critical designs in our portfolio and speak of the brand’s passion for exploring ideas beyond the obvious.”

This passion for design is spearheaded by the Caesarstone’s in-house design team. Whilst working closely with leading global trend forecasters to understand wider, often complex, societal changes long ahead of other players in the space, there is also a refreshingly simple approach of taking a deeper look at the world around us, as Caesarstone’s Head of Design, Mor Krisher, explains, candidly:

“With every new product, our design process begins with the same consideration, an exploration of the world outside our window. Whether it is the motion and beauty of a changing coastline, the stillness and calm of the desert landscape, or the diverse urban textures seen in our bustling towns and cities, it is crucial for us to experience and observe the world around us.”

As Caesarstone diversified their product portfolio, entering the Porcelain market earlier this decade, this passion for exploration, design and craftmanship remained a hallmark.

“In developing our Porcelain surface, we celebrate the unique properties of the material, embodying the natural elements of marble and stone, as well as the industrial aspects of concrete and metal” says Krisher. “Critical to our team is the refinement of the nuances of the finer details, in the defining of delicate multi-toned capillaries, and dominant arteries which emphasises the materiality of the surface and express the human touch evident in any Caesarstone surface.”

As concerns regarding the control of Respirable Crystalline Silica in the worktop fabrication market began to emerge, Caesarstone were again at the forefront of the industry in developing a low-silica natural mineral alternative to traditional high silica quartz surfaces, first in developing new designs such as the innovative and sustainable Pebbles Collection, and further mineral designs in the Time Collection to beginning the transition to a crystalline silica-free (CSF) portfolio using increased recycled material content.

“The Pebbles Collection showcased the qualities of the Caesarstone design team and the uniqueness of our brand’s approach” explains Stanley. “Mor and his team took a material challenge – how can we reduce the levels of RCS in our products without impacting the performance that Caesarstone products are known for – and turned the question on the head in terms of asking themselves what is possible with new technology that may not have been possible in quartz?”

“The choice to move towards a low-silica future inspired our creative references – if we wish to protect nature, then it was vital for us to experience it, from its most humble of origins – the simple pebble,” explained Krisher at the time of launch. “Within each stone there is a history of both the power and subtlety of the elements, a record of these transformative processes that can be felt in the palm of your hand.”

“Each stone is shaped by the ceaseless motion of water and wind, earth and sun. Under the impact of these great forces, the pebble becomes soft and smooth to the human touch, yet under careful observation, this modest stone reveals subtle veins or capillaries and gentle tonal shifts, hinting at the intricacies found in nature. These hints of complexity mirror the surfaces themselves – gentle tonal movements and soft textures underplay the massive change in technology behind these scenes in these surfaces”

This desire to protect nature had defined Caesarstone’s progression to becoming a CSF brand. The newly introduced Caesarstone ICON technology uses proprietary material science to substitute high-silica quartz content with post-industrial recycled materials instead.

This transformation in surface design was met with rigorous performance testing – ensuring that this new material would perform to the same levels homeowners and designers had come to expect from the Caesarstone brand, and in line with the company’s wider ESG programme, comply with leading building and construction performance standards, and is supported by third-party material declarations, with EPDs now available for global Caesarstone ICON models.

Edward Smith, Managing Director for Caesarstone UK & Ireland, discusses the transition: “For us, this shift to ICON is not just about swapping a quartz surface for a CSF surface. It is about empowering our value partners to make the right decisions with the right education. From our pioneering education programme for fabricators in Master of Stone that supports them in mitigating the risks in RCS, to establishing a safer, more environmentally secure future for us all, ICON represents the wider transformative journey that Caesarstone is on. Of course, it helps that our category-leading design team continue to surprise us with the potential in this technology..."