|
contents | events | |||||||||
| Stone+tec 2015: Expert knowledge at first hand  The commitment and professional expertise of the fair's honorary sponsors have always made Stone+tec's supporting programme very special. This year too, the BIV (Association of German Stonemasons), DNV (German Natural Stone Association) and FFN (German Tile and Natural Stone Association) are providing extensive support to the industry gathering in Nuremberg and their involvement promises to deliver a supporting programme with practical relevance featuring familiar highlights and new content. Stone+tec, the International Trade Fair for Natural Stone and Stoneprocessing Technology, will open its doors from 13 to 16 May 2015 at the Nuremberg exhibition centre.The sponsoring associations are all particularly committed to honouring outstanding architectural talent and stone craftsmanship and making them more visible to the public. The trade fair offers the ideal platform for doing this and therefore two of the most prestigious awards from the German natural stone sector are traditionally presented at the Stone+tec in Nuremberg. The first of these is the German Natural Stone Award, which demonstrates the importance of natural stone in contemporary architecture and its exemplary nature as a durable and sustainable building material. This award ceremony takes place on the day before the fair during an architectural seminar organised by the German Natural Stone Association (DNV). The second accolade, the Peter Parler Award, recognises the contribution of stonemasons to nurturing and preserving our cultural heritage and will be presented for the eighth time at Stone+tec on Thursday 14 May. The award is in acknowledgement of high-quality work on monuments in natural stone. The jury looks for creative craftsmanship and professionally conducted and carefully documented conservation. The Peter Parler Award, which is endowed with a total EUR 15, 000 in prize money, is sponsored by the German Foundation for Monument Protection and the Association of German Stonemasons (BIV). Encouraging young professionals "Transcending boundaries together" is the theme of this year's European Competition for Young Stonemasons, which the BIV is organising in collaboration with stone masonry associations from Austria, South Tyrol/Italy and Switzerland. Over two days, young stonemasons get the chance to demonstrate their craftsmanship on a square block of sandstone, creating a piece of work on the above theme based on their own designs. The winners will be announced at Stone+tec during the BIV stonemasons' party on Friday 15 May 2015. This networking event will open with a presentation by entrepreneur Wolfgang Grupp. As the sole owner of textile firm Trigema, Grupp is one of the most high-profile representatives of the German SME segment, and his public appearances serve above all to promote Germany as a manufacturing location. Together with the BIV, the German Tile and Natural Stone Association (FFN) will also use Stone+tec 2015 as a platform to actively recruit young talent. Two young representatives of the crafts of stonemasonry and tiling will create a mosaic fountain and will also be available to answer questions about their craft from trade fair visitors at the joint stand of the two associations in Hall 3. The completed work will be handed over to a childcare centre in the Nuremberg region after the trade show. In addition, the two associations will host an Expert Forum on Friday 15 May about working properly with natural stone surfaces. The free one-hour event will focus on issues like natural stone surfaces on stairs and terraces, stain protection and impregnation and natural stone on alternative laying systems. Dust-free zone and Made in Germany As well as the expert forum and activities to encourage the next generation of professionals, the BIV is also involved in the organisation of three special shows. In cooperation with the DNV, special work pieces made primarily of natural stone from Germany will be exhibited in the special display area "Made in Germany". The associations see this presentation as a showcase for German natural stone processing designed to highlight the special creativity and versatility offered by natural stone. Together with industry associations BG Bau (construction industry) and BG RCI (raw materials and chemicals) the issue of reducing dust when working with stone will also be explored. The special "Dust-free Zone" show illustrates the risks of careless handling of stone dust and presents effective measures to reduce or prevent dust. Customer focus: contemporary cemetery concepts The BIV will showcase selected examples of new, demand-driven gravesite concepts and their implementation. The special show will present high-quality, creative and contemporary forms of gravesite design that have a positive influence on cemetery development and represent a counterpoint to the trend towards anonymous burials and woodland burials. Other offerings from the supporting programme include: Architecture seminar the day before the fair. The DNV will host a seminar for professional knowledge-sharing on building with natural stone Guided tours of the fair for designers and architects (DNV) Stonemason café: Opportunity for swapping experiences and networking at the BIV stand Photo shoot as part of BIV's image campaign "Getting creative with stone" Panel discussions and specialist presentations (BIV) including on the following topics: the future of the craft of stone masonry, current training and professional development provision, contemporary cemetery concepts. write your comments about the article :: © 2015 Construction News :: home page |