Introduction to the Network Scope and Objectives

OSNET is a Targeted Thematic Network on Ornamental and Dimensional Stones, funded by the European Commission under the Competitive and Sustainable Growth Programme. OSNET aims to bring together all the organisations active in the European Ornamental Stones Sector, industry, academia, research institutes, national centres and stone federations. It is expected to be an instrumental tool to meet the sector needs, as it will provide the necessary forum to share problems and experience and to facilitate the transfer and incorporation of technology to the interested European market companies and organisations.

The OSNET Network covers all the range of industrial activities related to quarrying, stone characterisation/classification, stone production and processing methods, tools and equipment used for stone shaping processing and finishing and also environmental protection and safety in all phases of production.
 

The Need for a Network on Ornamental and Dimensional Stones

Stones have always played a significant role in all human activities. The need for stones both for construction and decorative purposes never ceased and became more and more important. This can be easily concluded from the steady increase observed in the stone production since 1920s and also from the particularly significant rate of increase since 1986. The total production of ornamental stone in 1986 was 21.7 million tons whereas this figure rose to 62.4 million tons in 2000 - an increase of almost 300% in fourteen years.
The stone industry is of strategic importance to some economies including that of the European Union (EU).  A significant part (65%) of the total world production can be attributed to the EU countries, representing a market of about 20 billion Euros.  81% of the European stone production comes from Southern European member states namely Italy, Spain, Greece and Portugal. A significant stone processing and machine production industry has been developed in the EU as a result of this activity. Nowadays, about 60,000 companies work in the Ornamental and Dimensional Stones sector in Europe, employing more than 500,000 people.