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Comment by sellmesoap | Hacker News Reader

Due to lack of tech work I've been installing stone countertops. I can confirm we cut on site around half the time, microplastics galore (you can smell the polyester in the air).

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Would love to know your opinion on this then - is there any way onsite cutting could be eliminated, semi or fully automated with wet cutting? Or is the onus always on the contractor to use PPE?

It's on the contractor to use PPE. At my outfit we measure, take a few notes, do most of the cutting and polishing wet at the workshop. But often the hole for the faucet is cut on site after the sink is glued under the countertop in place, there is always dust, I'd rather program in JavaScript;)

The slabs should be "perfect" from the shop. This includes sink cutouts. For whatever reason, there is a tendency for faucet holes to be cut onsite. This bothers me, but it's true.

Not only is it stupidly messy, it's less precise, dangerous, and often the crews are too careless to protect the inside of the cabinet boxes (where the slug of stone that's being cut from the top will drop and bounce around).

I'd love to hear why. What is the templating process and why is it not better?

Show me a job site with square drywall and I'll show you a perfect fitting countertop:) The material is mostly cut with a diamond saw with a water jet to keep the dust down. But if an adjustment is needed there is often some cutting and polishing on site.

But that's the point of templating. It's not a rectangular slab. It's a polygon to accommodate for inconsistencies and should be scribed to the back wall.

And even if something is off, the drywall should be gouged to make the slab fit, rather than stone being cut onsite.

We do scribe the drywall at times, it depends on what's off, by how much and in relation to what. Can't scribe into a cabinet side, and mistakes happen. Even the sink cutouts are cut dry at the shop, so there's a ton of dust exposure for sure. The trades are a messy business. And 'get er done' usually comes before PPE in most trades even now that we have a better idea of what's bad for us, it's a temporary job for me. The slabs are sometimes 500lbs so I can skip the gym at least.

Dry cut in the shop? You are making me want to cry.

I give up. Everything is screwed.

Your job is temporary, but please wear a respirator. :-)

Do everyone a favor and call OSHA on your last day. Nothing about this sounds "okay".

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