Who are the WFF?
The Worktop Fabricators Federation (WFF) is trade association for stone fabricators, launched in 2020. The non-profit organisation was formed by a group of fabricators from different companies, during a trip to visit a material supplier. The group came to a shared realisation that if they met to discuss challenges they faced within the industry, it was easy to knowledge share and find solutions. The WFF was created to serve as a community for fabricators and suppliers to the stone industry; an open forum for them to exchange ideas and best practices in a collaborative environment, with the aim to raise standards across the surface fabrication industry.
How do the WFF assist their members?
The WFF has a mission to endorse best practice and encourage professionalism within stone fabrication and stone masonry. They also act as a representative for their members, to give them a unified voice and represent their best interests. Some of the objectives the WFF focus on are as follows.
Health & Safety
The WFF have implemented various initiatives since its formation and published guidelines to provide fabricators with clear health and safety guidance for safe working practices. Given the prevailing threat of silicosis, one key focus is helping to prevent hazardous dust exposure and ensuring workshops have effective systems in place to manage the safety of fabricators. These often include wet-cutting, dust extraction and suppression and water treatment, alongside other essential measures such as safe lifting and handling, controlling noise and vibration, and proper use of PPE.
Skills Shortage
A shortage of the required skillset is a significant challenge within the stone industry. As younger generations enter the workforce and more experienced workers retire, vital skill and knowledge can be lost without being trained and passed on. Typical workshop conditions can be cold, wet and dirty, and as such it can be a challenge to recruit the right candidates to the industry.
The WFF helps address this skill shortage by fostering a collaborative community where members can share knowledge, discuss challenges, and learn from each other, while also encouraging investment in training and the adoption of more modern software systems to improve productivity. In addition, the WFF is looking to support the development of apprenticeship schemes to help attract new talent into the industry and build a more skilled workforce for the future.
Stability & Sustainability
The WFF fosters a culture of continuous improvement, helping enhance profitability through enforcing strict health and safety standards, and more efficient working practises. This approach reduces the need for rework, improving business performance whilst minimising waste.
The Quality Mark Scheme launched this year aims to recognise more responsible businesses by identifying worktops that have been produced safely, to promote better protection of fabricator health. This initiative has been driven not only by rising cases of silicosis linked to unsafe working methods, but also by increasing awareness of wider health risks, tightening health and safety regulations, and a growing demand across the industry for better accountability and higher working standards. The WFF will be arranging regular workplace assessments carried out by occupational hygienists to evaluate workplace health hazards.
To promote more sustainable working practices, the WFF works closely with regulators such as the HSE to ensure members have access to the latest guidance that supports not only safe practices, but also more efficient and responsible use of resources. This is shared with fabricators through solutions such as dust monitoring systems, improved processes, and more efficient use of materials and water in the factory. As well as this, the WFF encourages fabricators to minimise waste, adopt responsible disposal methods and continuously reduce their environmental impact to help drive greater sustainability across the industry.
Why do Stonegate sponsor the WFF?
Becoming a member of the WFF involves meeting strict criteria that reflect the organisations commitment to its objectives. Potential members must demonstrate safe and responsible working practices before joining and are then required to complete a probationary period as part of the onboarding process.
At Stonegate, we have the same passion as the WFF, to help build a successful, safe and profitable stone industry, by supporting fabricators in the UK and beyond. By sponsoring the WFF, we have the opportunity to actively engage with fabricators, collaborate, share expertise and provide training and education to allow them to achieve their goals in a safer and more effective way.
If you’re interested in becoming a member of the WFF, reach out to the Operations Officer, Nigel Fletcher, or visit the Worktop Fabricator Federation website on worktopfabricators.org for further details. If you are a fabricator looking for advice or training on stone fabrication, you can book in a visit to our Innovation Hub at Stonegate House, or browse our Knowledge Base for a hub of informational blogs, articles and videos on tooling, materials, regulations and much more! For further details, contact our customer service team on [email protected] or 01482 620400.
