Cut-to-size means every piece leaves the factory at its final dimension. Done well it eliminates site waste, dust and delay. Done badly it produces a container of expensive stone that fits nothing.
Survey before drawing
The single most common cause of cut-to-size failure is drawing from architectural intent rather than from a site survey. Buildings are not built to drawing. Openings drift, walls bow, and levels vary.
For anything where stone meets an existing structure, a physical survey should precede the shop drawing — and the shop drawing should be signed off against that survey, not against the original design set.
Agree tolerance explicitly
Stone is not joinery. A written tolerance, agreed in advance, converts a subjective dispute into an objective check. Tolerance should be stated for dimension, thickness, squareness and flatness separately.
It should also state how it will be measured. Two people measuring the same slab with different methods will get different numbers.
Numbering and setting-out
Every piece should carry a number that appears on a setting-out plan, and that plan should be crated where the installer will find it — not emailed to someone who has left the project.
For phased fit-outs, deliver in installation sequence rather than all at once. Stone stored on a live site is stone that gets chipped.
Build in overage
Site damage happens. A small overage cut from the same reserved batch is cheap insurance; a replacement piece cut a year later from a different batch is a visible patch.
Overage should be specified as a percentage at order stage, and the offcut stock should be retained until the project signs off.
Takeaways
- Survey first, then draw, then cut — never in a different order.
- Put tolerance and its measurement method in writing before production.
- Ship in installation sequence, with the setting-out plan in the crate.