Slate from Burlington Stone often finds a home on our projects, the locally produced slate is seen all over the lake district – and the world. Back in May 2025, JCA were thankful to be taken on a tour of Burlington’s Kirkby Moore site to see how the extraction and processing of this sturdy stone takes place.
We arrived at the site on a beautiful sunny morning and were greeted by Director of Sales Ian Ramsey, who would be our tour guide for the day. Ian, along with the Quarry Manager, accompanied us down to the bottom of the quarry pit. The steep sides, raked back, expose the face of the rock, showing the signs of how the slate was formed over 450 million years ago (before life began). An in-depth talk with the experts revealed further geological information, and we learned about how cleavage and bedding determine the quality of the finished product. As we closed in on the rock face we could see the giant chunks of freshly quarried slate. Ian explained how they work with the natural features of the rock and use small black powder charges and diamond wire saws to release these monoliths. The process of breaking down these rocks into useable products starts on the quarry bed, as these boulders are too large to be transported to the top of the quarry they are separated into slabs, weighing around 13 tonnes, and taken to the onsite processing sheds. This was our next destination.
We followed the paths that the slabs would take up to the processing sheds, although the bottom of the quarry was quiet on this day, the sheds were busy with employees breaking down the extracted stone. JCA was guided through the different spaces, following the production line, to see how the staff use large machinery to divide the slabs into smaller and smaller blocks. Some of these blocks are to be made into roofing slate and some are sent to the architectural department to create a wide variety of products. Initially, we were taken into the roofing slate production area where we saw the hand riving of the slate blocks into the sturdy roofing slate that Burlington is known for, and some of the JCA staff got to give it a try! After seeing how the roofing slate is manufactured, we continued onto the architectural department, where we were shown how the bespoke products are crafted and how a variety of finishes are achieved. Speaking to some of the staff in the architectural department gave us a great insight into the work culture and day-to-day operation of the site. It was also interesting to find out how the waste produced by these manufacturing processes is not discarded but upcycled into building aggregates.
We finished our tour back at the main offices, with a presentation on the history of Burlington and the geological composition of the Lake District. This highlighted the difference in the products they sell, such as green and blue slate, and gave good insight into the Cavendish family, who have owned and ran operations at the quarry for over 180 years. It was fascinating to see the trail this rock takes, from being deep underground ground to a useable product. Sitting in the offices at Burlington you get a fantastic view over the lake district – which we were very jealous of – and the stone from this quarry has helped form the vernacular architectural style of its surroundings. It was illuminating to discover where this stone originates and excellent to see the low waste, efficient manufacturing methods which Burlington upholds.
Thank you to Ian Ramsey and Burlington Stone for giving JCA this tour.
