Re: Competitive Edge / Stop Silicosis

Dear YSoA Community,

The YSoA chapter of The Architecture Lobby calls on our profession to put an immediate end to the specification of engineered stone with silica content. We insist on a commitment to collective knowledge sharing across all levels of our profession of the occupational hazards of architectural materials. As the designers of buildings, we stand in care and solidarity with the workers who build our designs.

Engineered stone—crushed stone bound by resin— is also commonly referred to as quartz countertop, quartz surfacing, quartz surface, or quartz agglomerate. It typically contains greater than 90% crystalline silica content compared to 30% in granite and less than 10% in marble. Dry cutting engineered stone, a practice common to small stone fabrication shops with non-union labor, subjects workers to extreme silica exposure. Repeated extreme exposure leads to silicosis, an incurable lung disease now on the rise among 20- to 30-year-old countertop fabricators.

Specifications

The architect holds power through the instrument of material specification. When a worker experiences extreme exposure to silica, the architect is not legally liable but is complicit.

Knowledge Sharing

In the regulatory void left by legislators and administrators architects play a key role in protecting workers by sharing knowledge across firms and with clients.

We commit to working towards a future built with architectural materials that are safe for people and the planet. Pursuant to that commitment, we the undersigned commit to stop specifying engineered stone containing silica content. From our dual position as students and designers, we commit to educate each other on the occupational health impacts of products such as engineered stone.

Best regards,

The Architecture Lobby at YSoA