Lifetime Achievement Award: Peter de Kok
LAS VEGAS — Peter de Kok, founder of GranQuartz and a leader in introducing new technology to stone fabricators in North America, is the recipient of the 2018 Migliore Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Natural Stone Institute.
Peter de Kokde Kok received the honor Jan .23 at the institute’s annual awards ceremony during The International Surface Event (TISE) 2019 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas.
As one of the Marble Institute of America’s earliest members and a long-time member of the Building Stone Institute, it’s highly symbolic that de Kok became the first recipient of this award since the merger of the two associations.
de Kok’s career in the natural stone industry began in the 1950s with his father, Theo, exporting Impala granite from South Africa to Europe and North America. That eventually expanded into the introduction of numerous other stones into these markets. de Kok also interned with German granite producer Deutsche Steinindustrie AG, providing him an opportunity to experience first-hand the stone technologies being developed in Europe.
de Kok would later be instrumental in getting little known stones specified for high profile projects in iconic North American cities.
He launched GranQuartz Trading Inc. in the mid-1970s in Atlanta and began introducing new machining technologies. He also began a long-term commitment to multiple stone associations, predominately the Marble Institute of America and Building Stone Institute. He was constantly looking for opportunities to innovate the quarry segment.
In 1986, there were no trade shows yet in North America for showing large capital equipment. de Kok provided substantial support for the creation of StonExpo and later served multiple terms on the StonExpo Federation.
de Kok’s support of multiple industry initiatives during this decade, including a five year term on MIA’s board of directors, is impressive. Since his semi-retirement in 2012, he has been a constant advocate for the supplier community, the need for better industry data, advancement of the Women in Stone program, and the call for an industry check-off program.
“The industry was very good to me, so it seems reasonable to me to try and support the associations in any way possible to help them and the industry grow,” de Kok said. “To be honored by my peers in this way gives me tremendous pleasure. I am proud to have played a small part in the industry.”
In accepting the award, de Kok acknowledged his wife Vivian, employees and partners at GranQuartz, and Peter Edwards, to whom he credited the founding of the StonExpo trade show (now part of TISE) in 1987.
“Finally,” noted, “to all of you in the room. I’m proud to call many of you friends, as I have known some of you for 30, 40, 50 years. Each one of you has contributed, in some way, to my knowledge of this industry.
“I’m grateful to all of you for allowing an immigrant, with just a high-school education, to come to this wonderful country of hours. I’d like to say that I’m proud of being an American.
“And, I stand before you, proof positive, that lucky beats good.”
To learn more, visit www.naturalstoneinstitute.org/migliore.
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