Page 12 - Demo

12 | August 2024
The Stone Detective
Dispenses Legal Advice
Slippery Rock Gazette
The
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ITwas one of those cold Florida morn- ings, chilling down to at least 50 degrees. Yes, folks, that’s downright cold here in Florida. I woke up that morning freezing since my heat hadn’t been turned on the night before. I managed to peel my-
self out of bed in a hurry to head over to the diner for a warm cup of joe to warm me up. I threw on my trench coat, grabbed my fedora, and headed out the door.
The Woody was difficult to start, but after a few tries, she finally kicked over. I parked right in front of the diner, shiver- ing as I got out. I walked in and noticed a stranger sitting where the old Admiral usu- ally sits. He was wearing a fancy three- piece suit and was reading what looked like a legal document. This guy had to be a lawyer. I sat next to him, said hello, and asked him if he was in court today. He smiled and said yes. I introduced myself and told him that I’d served as an expert witness in numerous cases across the U.S. involving stone and tile failures. He looked at me and said, “Maybe you can help me with something.” He mentioned he would be cross-examining a construction expert and that this expert said there was a big difference in his industry between a stan- dard and a guideline. He wanted to know how I would handle the difference in my industry. I took a slow sip of my coffee, cleared my throat, smiled, and told him that I was just involved in a case where this exact topic came up. I also told him I recently added an article on this very sub- ject to my article page at www.stonefo- rensics.com. I told him I could give him a brief overview. So here is what I told him:
First off, there’s a clear distinction between “standards” and “guidelines,” which many people don’t realize. Standards are like the hard rules in the industry, set by big organizations like ASTM or ANSI. They are the must-follows covering
Dr. Frederick M. Hueston, PhD
everything from what physical properties different stones need to have, to how they should be cut and installed. If you don’t follow these, you’re basically asking for trou- ble—think safety risks, legal issues, and structural
mess-ups.
On the flip side, guide-
lines are more like friendly advice from experts. They’re not mandatory but are packed with rec- ommendations on every- thing from design aesthetics to main- tenance. They help professionals make informed decisions but also allow for creativity and flexibility depending on
the project’s needs.
I told him that this is how I understand
the difference and that our industry has sev- eral trade associations that have manuals, and that these are generally not standards but guidelines. I told him I wasn’t sure about other construction trades, and hoped that my perspective helped. He nodded and said, “Thanks– that does help quite a bit.”
It would be interesting to know if he won his case or not. Now that I’m warm and fed, I’m ready to tackle some other proj- ects today.
The Stone Detective is a fictional charac- ter created by Dr. Frederick M. Hueston, PhD, written to entertain and educate. Dr. Fred has written over 33 books on stone and tile installations, fabrication and resto- ration and also serves as an expert for many legal cases across the world. Send your comments to fhueston@stoneforensics.com.
“You will never be happy if you continue to search for whathappinessconsistsof.Youwillneverlive
if you are looking for the meaning of life.”
– Albert Camus