THOUSANDS of granite setts originating from an Aberdeenshire quarry are to be laid as new surfacing on Aberdeen’s Union Street.
The light grey cassies, or cobble stones, are being provided to the city centre and beach masterplan project by Moray firm, Tennants Elgin Ltd.
Aberdeen City Council estimates that 1,000 tonnes of set will be laid as paving on Union Street as a feature of the new surface, complementing the surrounding historic granite buildings as well as supporting a local north east business.
Huge granite boulders were blasted and then removed from Avochie Quarry near Huntly, and taken to the firm’s Elgin site for cutting and finishing. The process involves cutting down the huge boulders with two different grades of stone saws, and then taken inside for carving down to the cassies using smaller and more precise stone saws. Each boulder provides about 150 to 200 setts.
Avochie Quarry is one of five quarries owned by Tennants Elgin. Gavin Tennant, MD of the firm, said, “Our granite is very high quality and we take care and pride in our work which takes the raw stone from our own quarries and then to Elgin to shape them into whatever size and shape is required for a particular project.
“We have an ongoing supply stone for the La Sagrada Família in Barcelona, and have provided stone for Oxford University, Edinburgh University, and St Andrews University and it’s good to finally have a project in Aberdeen. It’s not very often we get to see the product in its finished state and we are honoured we will be seeing local granite setts on Union Street on Aberdeen and the small part we have played in that process.”
Aberdeen City Council co-leader, councillor Ian Yuill, added, “The city centre and beach areas will be significantly improved through the agreed construction works. These are major investments to upgrade the city for the benefit of all. It is great to see a north east firm is providing the granite setts for Union Street Central. Selecting a local business that offers high-quality products is an important way to support our regional economy. This project is good for our area.”
