Most stone damage isn’t a shipping problem — it’s a quality problem missed at origin. Gemarix inspects every order three times before it ships, and once more during loading. Here is exactly what we check, who checks it, and how you see it.
A flaw found at your warehouse costs ten times what it costs to reject at our yard.
A cracked slab discovered at your warehouse costs ten times what it costs to reject at our yard. That single fact shapes how Gemarix runs quality: we err on the side of pulling pieces, not passing them. Natural stone is variable — that’s what makes it beautiful — but variation is not the same as a defect. Our job is to know the difference, document it, and only send what we’d accept ourselves.
Every order goes through three independent inspections before it leaves the facility, plus a fourth supervised check during container loading. Every step is photographed and shared with you before the seal goes on.
The first inspection happens before the block ever moves. Our team examines each block at the quarry for the things that matter: tone consistency, vein direction, hairline cracks (checked with water-wash and percussion sound), and fissure patterns. A block that fails here is rejected at the quarry — it never enters the production cost chain.
What we checkOnce gangsaw or cutter slabs come off the line, each one is laid out, washed and inspected under daylight before polishing — and inspected again after polishing. This is where most rejections happen: small natural defects that were invisible inside the block become obvious once the stone is cut and finished.
What we checkStructural cracks of any length, large pinholes or patches, finish defects, dimensions out of tolerance.
Natural fissures, colour variation outside the lot range, character marks — flagged with photos for the buyer’s call before shipping.
Within-tolerance natural variation — the stone’s character, not its flaws.
The final inspection is the last chance to catch a piece that should not be in the container. Each approved slab is re-examined immediately before it goes into its bundle or crate: surface clean, finish intact, edges sound, dimensions verified one more time. Pieces that pick up damage in handling between Stage 2 and packing are pulled here.
What we checkThe fourth check happens at the container. Loading is the moment most preventable damage occurs in poorly-run operations — bundles dropped, A-frames not braced, dunnage missed. Our supervisor stays with the container from first piece to door close, and the load is photographed sequentially.
What we recordEach lot carries its own reference number from the quarry block onward. The same reference appears on the slab tags, the packing list, the inspection reports and the loading photos — so if you ever need to ask “which block did this come from,” the answer is one document away. This is how a serious manufacturer-exporter handles natural stone.
Block approval, slab lot, pre-pack and loading sets — delivered before the vessel sails.
Every line item on the packing list carries the lot reference, tying each piece back to its block and inspection record.
Container number, seal number and full load sequence on record before the container leaves the yard.
Commercial Invoice, Packing List, Bill of Lading, Certificate of Origin, Phytosanitary, Marine Insurance (under CIF).
Tell us the stone you’re considering and the destination port. We’ll share a recent inspection set from the same colour family — block, slab, pre-pack and loading — so you can see exactly how we work before you order.