About the Project

The project aims to support the SMEs in the field in answering the recognized needs by improving their skills and networks and by providing them with knowledge on material-technology-trade/logistics. The natural stone market and trade across the Finnish-Russian border and beyond will be promoted. The local preservation of the cultural built value will be enhanced and promoted, which benefits also tourism and society.

The project target groups are stakeholders of natural stone business and enterprises, e.g. natural stone producers and manufacturers, authorities in charge of restoration activities in cites, construction industry and transport business. Beneficiaries are natural stone business, local producers, manufactures, construction and transport enterprises. The project highlights the uniqueness of original natural stones used in the urban constructions and rises the knowledge of this cultural heritage of the traditional stones used in famous constructions. This could benefit tourism, educations and social well-being.

It is expected that the natural stone business and trade across the Finnish-Russian border and beyond it will be promoted. The knowledge of the demands and of the availability of original natural stone for restoration will support business environment. The exchange of knowledge between the stakeholders and the logistic solutions will support the trend upward and the networking activities (matchmaking events and internet tools) will also improve business in natural stone sector and business connected that. In addition, cross-border cooperation is essential to revitalize and emphasize the heritage of local stone production as a common value of the programme area.

The project is divided into five Activities.
 

Project activities general descriptions

Activity 1
Evaluation of the demand of original natural stone in buildings and constructions collecting a catalogue of natural stones used in buildings and needs for restoration in cooperation with authorities.

Activity 2
Evaluation of availability of original stone from old quarries and from alternative stone deposits. Based on the results of fieldworks and laboratory measurements, conclusions of possibilities to re-exploit historic quarries and to obtain traditional stones for restoration works will be drawn. In case that the original stones cannot be quarried in old quarries anymore, alternative sources for the natural stone will be explored.

Activity 3
Evaluation of indicators that characterize the historical stone type as a "fingerprint". This helps to connect the traditional stones to the original quarries. The work includes analysing the stone samples and providing information on the identification. In case of restoration, the patina of old stones should also be achieved, therefore the Activity evaluates methods to produce the appearance of the exposed historical natural stones for new produced stones.

Activity 4
Assessment of new business opportunities cooperatively with stakeholders of the project including logistic operators in South-East Finland and in Russia in order to begin and facilitate cross border business relations with Finnish and Russian actors. The logistic supply chain from the quarry to restoration constructions is described.

Activity 5
Administration of the project and dissemination and exchange of knowledge in the project that allows supporting of business environment in each activity. Means by which the successful dissemination will be gained and all parties will be linked together could be e.g. workshops, seminars, international conference, web pages, newsletters, video, and social media. The dissemination will focus on enterprises operating in natural stone business, but also on enterprises connected to natural stone business i.e. construction industry, transport and restoration business. The idea is also to rise the knowledge of the cultural heritage of the traditional natural stones used in famous constructions, particularly in St Petersburg. Cross border tourism could be developed by generating new tourism routes focusing on traditional stones used in buildings in big cities, especially in St Petersburg.