Engineered stone and silica: what it means for your worktop

Crystalline silica is a natural mineral found in quartz, sand and many rocks. Sawing, grinding or polishing a silica-rich surface throws off very fine dust. Breathing that dust over months and years can cause silicosis, an incurable lung disease, along with other lung conditions.

Engineered stone, the material most people call quartz, is usually very high in crystalline silica, which is why the people who cut and fit it are most at risk. The risk is to the workers. Once fitted, a worktop isn't being cut, so it doesn't release this dust.

The Health and Safety Executive's 2026 guidance for engineered stone workshops rules out dry cutting as unacceptable and expects water suppression on tools, suitable breathing protection and regular health checks for workers. It also tells employers to move towards lower-silica material. The HSE planned more than 1,000 visits to fabricators across Great Britain over a year to check how they control dust.

This is guidance rather than a ban. Engineered stone is still legal to make, sell and fit in the UK. Australia went further and prohibited engineered stone benchtops, panels and slabs from 1 July 2024.

Silica content varies a lot between surfaces:

• Engineered quartz: usually very high, although lower-silica ranges are now sold.
• Quartzite: a natural stone that is mostly quartz. HSE figures put quartzite above 70% crystalline silica, so it needs the same care in the workshop.
• Granite: has some quartz in its mix of minerals; HSE figures put it at up to 30%.
• Marble: mostly calcite, with very little crystalline silica.
• Porcelain and sintered stone: varies by product, so check the data sheet.

Natural stone is not automatically safer to cut. What matters most is how the workshop controls dust.

Several of the big manufacturers, including Cosentino and Caesarstone, now sell ranges with far less crystalline silica than standard quartz, some of them based mainly on recycled glass. Many look just like the plain and marble-effect quartz people already choose.

Labels vary, so ask for the crystalline silica percentage on the product data sheet for the exact design. Lower silica cuts the hazard in the workshop, but wet cutting and good dust control are still needed.

• What is the crystalline silica content of the exact product I'm choosing?
• Is a lower-silica version available in a look I like?
• Is the stone cut with water suppression in the workshop?
• Will any cutting happen in my home on fitting day, and how is dust controlled if so?

We are happy to answer these for any material we quote for.

If quartz is the look you want, choosing a lower-silica range is an easy way to back safer working. To steer clear of engineered stone altogether, porcelain, granite and marble are all options, each with its own care needs. The material comparison guide sets them side by side.