Stone Masonry Training – From Buechel Stone Dealers to You

As we’re wrapping up one of our Rock College II trainings with an incredible group of Buechel Stone dealers’ leaders and reps from all over the country, we thought we’d give you a peek at a few of the key topics that contribute to best experiences in natural stone. Throughout our Rock College I and II courses we talk about full and thin veneer stone masonry, cut stone applications, landscape stone product basics, a variety of stacked stone and grout installation techniques, and more. We teach what it takes to be there from concept to completion in an engaging combination of settings; including a traditional classroom, quarry and plant tours, and hands-on experiences.

Rock College I

Regardless of whether or not you’re one of our distributors or natural stone dealers, Buechel Stone’s Rock College I was created for your benefit. It’s our way of duplicating natural stone knowledge and expertise through a network of certified Buechel Stone dealers to reach even the most remote corners of Canada and the USA. So that every architect, designer, engineer, builder, landscaper, contractor, mason, homeowner, or consultant can experience personalized Buechel Stone service and assistance through every step of the process by working with a certified rep who’s invested the time to train with us firsthand.

Buechel Stone’s Rock College I is a time-tested way to get the best, most dependable training in the natural stone industry – guaranteed. Classes are capped at 12 stone dealer participants per training to allow for a better experience. During Rock College I, participants observe and experience:

• • Who Buechel Stone is

• • Natural stone production processes

• Our exceptional collection of natural stone products: Building Stone Veneers, Cut Stone, and Landscape Stone
• On-site viewing of quarrying and production processes
• Sales & marketing support
• Hands-on activities to better understand production processes
• Visit our design center for stone installation inspiration
• Work on sales scenarios and how to help utilize natural Stone Resources
• Take a pre and post-test to receive a certificate of completion

Rock College II

Buechel Stone’s Rock College II is even more in-depth training with the prerequisite of having attended Rock College I. Class is capped at 20 participants. During Rock College II, attendees spend a day and a half with Buechel Stone’s leadership and industry experts to learn:

• Buechel Stone’s expectations for providing best experiences
• Understanding architects and what it takes for them to value you as a resource
• Getting involved with other experts and networking in trade associations
• Understanding 3-part specs and how you can help specifiers
• Building Stone Veneer installations – good, bad, and ugly (expanding on the details, like those in our masonry blog, about how to install full and thin veneer stone in a variety of stacked stone or grout installation patterns)
• Basics of doing blueprint take-offs
• Working with architects and stone masons on shop drawings and templates
• Cut Stone products – understanding the products and their capabilities
• Hands-on natural thin stone veneer installation
• Take a pre and post-test to receive a certificate of completion

Dealer participants of Buechel Stone’s Rock College trainings not only show up, they jump in with both feet and embrace the business of lifelong learning. So like with everything we do, we’re on a mission to make sure they receive the best in natural stone training experiences. And we’re sharing a few examples with pictures to show you a little bit of how we do that.

The best way to quench the thirst for knowledge is to provide as much information as possible. So we don’t hold back. Not only do we showcase some massive stones, but we also bring in stone industry and masonry experts on everything from sales, marketing, specifications, architectural renderings with stone, blueprints, shop drawings, stone masonry installations, and more.

One of the most anticipated hands-on experiences is when participants get to try their hands at stone installation on day two of Rock College II. By the time they go through nearly two courses including everything from classroom collaboration to quarry and production tours to understanding project team stone resources, roles, and needs; they’re ready to give their brains a break and apply some of what they’ve learned by getting their hands dirty with a crash course in stonemasonry. After a quick demo from our Laticrete rep, we let the group have at it.

The challenge of our hands-on natural thin veneer stone installation means that not only do participants depart from Rock College II with a certificate of completion, but they have a new appreciation for all stone project processes – from concept to completion. And before they leave, almost all attendees admit to learning and doing things that they had never done before.

Ronald E. Osborne is quoted as saying “Unless you do something beyond what you’ve already mastered, you will never grow.” We’re challenging Buechel Stone dealers throughout North America to do something beyond what they’ve mastered so we can grow best experiences in natural stone to your corner of the world. Perhaps the best way to showcase our knowledge and enthusiasm for the process, is with this clip of highlights of our most recent Rock College II grads applying stone veneer to cement board after a brief demo from our Laticrete rep.

Buechel Stone’s Rock College from Buechel Stone Corp. on Vimeo.