A day in the life of a Slate Quarry:

The sight of towering slate faces and the smell of fresh-cut stone – this is the heartbeat in the day in the life of a slate quarry.

Morning – Safety First Lads:

A typical morning at our slate quarries starts with our dedicated teams arriving hungry for the day ahead, as well as crib time. All the necessary safety wear is gathered and they head on into the quarry for the daily inspection of machinery/saws and pre-start checks. They’re in for a day that is without a doubt going to involve lots of hard work and the occasional pasty, if it’s a Friday.

The slate quarrying machines once checked are fired up and ready to begin the day. There are various roles within the quarries, all of which are vital to a successful day. Our quarry operatives start by revealing slate stone from the quarry face. They decide which rocks are distributed amongst the quarry. For example, any slate stones with a vertical face that are perfect for facing stone will go into piles, so that they can be cut by our experienced sawmen.

Mid-Morning to Midday – is it lunch time yet?

After their first crib break at 10am, it’s back to the machines they go. The selected facing stone will be cut either to 100mm or 150mm bed depth, with a natural face or sawn face and single or double quoins if required.

Stone suitable for aggregates will be transported to the crushers and screens to size/sort with continuous crushing and screening throughout the day. Although crushing is quite self-explanatory, screening is a little different. For example, in one of our quarries we have a screening machine that effectively separates crushed rock into different sizes. It’s like the sorting hat from Harry Potter, except it doesn’t yell Gryffindor every now and then.

Afternoon – lunch devoured? Get back to work.

With their bellies full, they head back to their machines for the final leg of the day. During the day, our quarry operatives will also be radioed to load any material for customers coming into the quarries.

As the afternoon draws to an end; the machines are powered down and inspected for any wear or damage before leaving.

And that just about sums up the average day in the life at our slate quarries.