Barlass LLC

Ismail Anderson owned and operated a granite fabrication shop for over 20 years. While he loved the craft and the industry, there was always one part of the business that frustrated him: remnant pieces. As much as he valued being a granite fabricator, dealing with leftover material was an inevitable and costly challenge. He faced two major problems: First, when customers came in looking for small pieces—maybe for a vanity top or fireplace surround—they often asked to see the remnants. But every remnant rack on the market was horizontal, making it nearly impossible to properly display the pieces. As a result, those slabs just sat there, unsold and unnoticed. Second, to cut costs, Ismail often imported full containers of slabs from overseas—typically 7 to 10 slabs of the same color, batch, and serial number. But when a job required only 1.5 slabs, the cutting person would take two full slabs, use what was needed, and stash the leftover half somewhere among thousands of other remnant pieces. Later, when another order came in for that same color, no one could find the matching remnant. So, they’d cut two more full slabs—wasting perfectly good material. Ismail knew there had to be a better way. Just before selling his shop, he called an old childhood friend who was a mechanical engineer. They spent a week brainstorming in the workshop. That’s when Anderson’s Racks were born—a vertical remnant rack system designed to organize, display, and protect granite remnants. He applied for a patent right away. Today, Ismail has fully transitioned into the metal business, designing and manufacturing Anderson’s Racks. His former competitors have now become his customers, and his products are being used by fabricators across the country. Anderson’s Racks aren’t just about solving a problem—they’re about respecting the material, reducing waste, and supporting the hardworking fabricators who keep this industry moving.