They cut the movement out of a large piece of granite for a sink. It was clearly explained as I spent extra money for a piece of granite with better movement. I was very disappointed that they wouldn't do anything about their error. It was well noted many times of what I wanted and why I wanted it. They were unwilling to split the difference on the extra $400. They sent a warning in the mail to put a lien on my house until I paid in full.
Description of Work: Installed granite countertops
Rating Category
Rating out of 5
quality
5.0
value
2.0
professionalism
2.0
responsiveness
1.0
punctuality
3.0
$8,000
Response from STONE CREATIONS
We feel the matter of the installation for the member is closed and resolution has been reached. She received a superior fabricated and installed product in the time requested which was less than our standard lead time of 10 business days. The member came to our facility to see if we had Ivory Silk Granite and Crema Bordeaux Granite material in stock as she had been working with another area company who according to the member had “sold” her slabs to someone else out from under her. We found out later she simply had never signed a contract nor put a deposit down on her project and the material of course was allotted to another client who had followed proper procedures. We actually had a similar issue with the member where we chased her for weeks to submit her paperwork and deposit as she was in a hurry to have her project completed. She became frustrated when we would not proceed with scheduling until we had her paperwork in order. Scheduling commenced as soon as we had her paperwork and she had her plumbing supplies on hand. Her initial meeting was with our designer Lisa and she was able to see Ivory Silk Granite that we had on hold for other clients. She was made aware of the hold and that we would need to order more material in for her project. We were able to source material from the same vendor and very close lot to the lot she viewed at our facility. She was provided HD photography of the material available for us to purchase for her project. We did not have Crema Bordeaux in stock but provided HD digital photography of slabs that we could source as well. Because the member did not have cabinet drawings nor any idea of sizes needed, we offered to provide her with free on site consultation for us to take measurements for quotation and review her color choices. I personally met with the member at her home to review her requests and take measurements to receive a quotation. She delighted in spending most of her time in telling me how she made the first cabinetmaker remake her cabinets numerous times because she didn’t like them or he didn’t listen to her and now he was out of business and she was using a partner cabinet company to the first and it was their problem and she was not paying them. She further decided while I was there that she didn’t like the color of her master bath cabinets that she selected, so she was going to make the new company rip out those cabinets until she was satisfied. It was obvious that these companies did not have signed contracts nor change order processes, so they were at the mercy of the member. The plumber let us know that he personally followed her around and made her sign a change order for every decision on the project based on other subcontractors’ experiences on the project and several issues their company had. Because we have been in business for more than 25 years, I was confident in our policies, procedures and processes that I was not concerned that we could provide a quality product. This was my only meeting with the member. The member was told at her initial meeting, of our unique service that allows clients to “layout” their material after their template which helps us with avoiding perceptions of what we think is most beautiful versus the client’s perception. It also allows us the opportunity to show and discuss flaws, cleavage and quarry fills that we can either restore or will need to avoid. At her second visit with Lisa, when it was clear that the material again she was viewing was not her exact slabs and we would need to order the material in for her; it was again [per our policy] offered that the member return once the slabs were received and “layout” her slabs. [Shipping commences after receipt of paperwork and 50% deposit] the member’s general contractor is well aware of this policy as his clients for years have been afforded the rare opportunity to be involved in this part of the fabrication process. Lisa forwarded to the member a HD digital photo of both slabs that were required for her project so she had the ability to approve all the material used in her installation and comment on those slabs, no specific replies were received. Once we determined the date that the material was going to arrive, our production coordinator Robin contacted the member,for the THIRD time, and offered for her to come and personally review her material and lay out the slabs. She declined. Her comment at that time, as one slab had significantly more movement and deeper color than the other, that she desired the most movement on the island and the plainer material on the perimeter countertops. There was nothing specific as to where the movement was to be placed on her island, nor what portion of the slab she considered the most beautiful. If there had been our next level of procedure would have been enacted where we “blue tape” out the material and send digitals for approval. Again, the member was in a hurry and didn’t want to “waste the time” to come up again to lay out her slabs. In our layout stage we found in the vein that the member references [after the installation of the completed countertops] large pitting and quarry fill from soft Mica deposits. The quarry fill looked yellowed and out of place and could not be restored to our quality procedures [Stone Creations is a restoration company that many fabricators in the state send their challenged slabs to - to repair] and therefore needed to be avoided. We realized that we could maintain a significant amount of the movement desired and remove the pitting and fill by placing the sink cutout in this area. The member was not consulted as she simply stated she desired the most movement on the island which we had provided. Again no specific requests had been made until after her kitchen was installed. In regards to the member waiting for her project to commence she has forgotten to mention that in fact, we scheduled an initial patterning template date per her request on October 3rd, 2012 at 9am. Our installer arrived 8:47 am and once he arrived there his was told by the painters we could not access the site because they were painting and we would need to reschedule. Our policy is to have the homeowner present to go over details. The member did not come to the jobsite to meet our installer, she did however instead of calling our office she sent an email at 8:42am. She had been made aware when the appointment was made our installer’s day starts at 6am. We confirm our schedule the night prior to avoid these types of situations. Our installer moved on to the next job site of his overbooked day. We rescheduled to another day that was compatible into the member busy schedule and our lead installer’s schedule. Our template schedule is typically booked out more than two weeks in advance. We feel since the member only signed her paperwork on 9/21/12 and we ordered her material on 9/22/12 and the material arrived on 10/3/12 that this was better service [7 business days] than most companies can provide. We ordered, received [our policy requires we must have a client’s material in house prior to template] and scheduled measuring in that timeframe. Besides the fact that we could not get in to pattern, it was realized that the member did not have her prep sink on hand. [Our contract states all plumbing items must be on site] Our contract also clearly states if we need to come back to the jobsite because we cannot perform our duties additional charges will levied. In the member case we did not add the additional trip charges, instead we tried simply accommodated the best new measure/pattern date of 10/15/12. It was made clear again she needed to be present on site. We installed the project 6 business days after we measured/patterned. Our standard lead time told to the member by our production coordinator, Robin is 10 business days. We feel that a four [4] business day improvement is more than punctual or responsive. Two of those production days are a finishing process and applying our patented DRY TREAT process that requires a full 24 hours to cure. Despite our best efforts the member did not follow our recommendation to view and layout her slabs personally. We sincerely regret that she was unable to fit it into her schedule. The material she received was the last of that type of material with prominent veining and any further materials were completely washed out, so what she has is the most beautiful material that was available at that time and in the ensuing months. We also went above and beyond to provide the most abbreviated service times we could, but alas was not able to fulfill her expectations. We provided what we were contracted for in material and services for the contracted price. She could not get the material she desired from the other fabricator it was not available. We did not owe a refund in any manner nor additional countertops she desired for her other room in concession.
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Service Categories
Countertops and Backsplashes,
Cabinet Making
FAQ
STONE CREATIONS is currently rated 1 overall out of 5.
No, STONE CREATIONS does not offer free project estimates.
No, STONE CREATIONS does not offer eco-friendly accreditations.
No, STONE CREATIONS does not offer a senior discount.
No, STONE CREATIONS does not offer emergency services.
