Alex Jolly, the area production manager for the Martin Marietta Granite Quarry in Cayce, was the featured speaker at the Greater Cayce-West Columbia Chamber Business Meeting, Tuesday morning at Stone River in West Columbia. 

Jolly explained some of the quarry procedures to a packed room of Chamber members and guests. He said that explosives are strategically placed in drilled holes in the quarry that sits at the corner of Frink Street and State Street. He said the rock is blasted in timed succession and the vibrations from the explosions are monitored and regulated by the state. The blasts are normally once a week and occur between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

C-WC Chamber CEO and President Tim James said Martin Marietta is very respectful of its neighbors and the company loves this community.

More facts about the quarry in Cayce:

• The Martin Marietta  Granite Quarry in Cayce was opened in 1893.
• The quarry is three-fourths of a mile wide and 600-ft. deep.
• Annual production at the quarry is 1.8 million tons.
• The quarry employs 30 people in Cayce
• Rock from the Martin Marietta Cayce Quarry has been used for I-20 and I-26, 12th Street Extension, Cofferdams on the Congaree River, VC Summer Energy Plant, and Lake Murray Dam.
• The rock not used locally goes to Charleston and has been used on the Ravenel (new Cooper River) Bridge, the Volvo Car Plant and the Walmart Distribution Center in Ridgeville.
• Crushed stone, sand and gravel are known as aggregates. The aggregates industry provides 1,043 jobs in South Carolina and produces 31 million tons of crushed stone, 9 million tons of sand and gravel, and accounts for almost 80,000 miles of public roads.  
• The Martin Marietta  Granite Quarry in Cayce was opened in 1893. It’s three-fourths of a mile wide and 600-ft. deep.
• Annual production at the quarry is 1.8 million tons. The quarry employs 30 people in Cayce
• Rock from the Martin Marietta Cayce Quarry has been used for I-20 and I-26, 12th Street Extension, Cofferdams on the Congaree River, VC Summer Energy Plant, and Lake Murray Dam.
• The rock not used locally goes to Charleston and has been used on the Ravenel (new Cooper River) Bridge, the Volvo Car Plant and the Walmart Distribution Center in Ridgeville.
• Crushed stone, sand and gravel are known as aggregates.
• The aggregates industry provides 1,043 jobs in South Carolina and produces 31 million tons of crushed stone, 9 million tons of sand and gravel, and accounts for almost 80,000 miles of public roads.