RAPAPORT... Maurice Tempelsman, chairman of Lazare Kaplan International Inc., has again been asked to serve as chairman of the Corporate Council on Africa (CCA). Tempelsman was previously chairman of the CCA from 1999 to 2001. He succeeds Frank Fountain, president of the DaimlerChrysler Foundation. Since its inception in 1993, the CCA has been a leading nonprofit, tax-exempt organization in the United States dedicated to enhancing trade and investment ties between the U.S. and the 53 countries of Africa.
The American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) has added gemologist Marina Epelboym to the team of experts in its AGTA Gemological Testing Center. Epelboym brings 12 years of gemological laboratory experience with her. She was previously head officer in the diamond final grading department of EGL USA.
Gem Certification & Assurance Lab (GCAL) is now offering a “zero tolerance” consumer guarantee on all of its diamond grading certificates. The zero tolerance guarantee ensures the accuracy of the cut, color and clarity grades and the carat weight assigned to GCAL-certified diamonds, announced the company, which added that it intends on making the guarantee available to any retail customer anywhere in the world. According to GCAL, at any time during the two years following a GCAL diamond certification, a consumer may submit the diamond for a challenge.
In related news, GCAL recently upgraded its website, www.gemfacts.com, with several new features including a certificate search and verification feature, a web page detailing its zero tolerance consumer grading guarantee, and an online video highlighting key processes in the lab. The certificate search and verification function is an online feature not commonly available to the jewelry trade, according to GCAL. It will provide retailers and other diamond sellers with a quick, easy way to access and verify certificate information for their inventory and for customers online.
AGS Laboratories recently introduced the Diamond Quality Document (DQD) in a three-stone format and has plans to offer other multistone documents in the near future. The three-stone version is slightly larger than the original DQD, and is able to accommodate plots for three diamonds. All the other features of the three-stone DQD are the same as the original.
The Tanzanite Foundation has aligned itself with the International Gemological Institute (IGI) in an effort to boost the profile, market awareness and adoption of the foundation’s pioneering tanzanite-grading system. The IGI will be the first North American laboratory to provide tanzanite-grading services in accordance with the Tanzanite Quality Scale™ created by the Tanzanite Foundation.
OGI Systems Limited, a diamond industry systems development and manufacturing firm, has teamed up with the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) to manufacture the new GIA FacetScan™ Optical Scanner for distribution through the institute. The FacetScan Optical Scanner is a high-resolution, non-contact optical measuring device for diamonds, designed specifically for the jewelry retailer. It is a portable, plug-and-play device fully compatible with Windows XP that does not require a separate computer or special video adapter. FacetScan’s software includes the GIA Facetware™ Cut Estimator Database, enabling users to scan a diamond, capture proportion measurements, and return an estimated GIA Cut Grade in a matter of seconds.
In other developments, the GIA opened the first of its new GIA Laboratory Service Centers in Hong Kong last month. Tom Moses, senior vice president of GIA Research and Laboratory, hosted the grand opening ribbon-cutting event. The Laboratory Service Center is located at Queen’s Road, central Hong Kong, in the same building as the GIA Hong Kong international school, which opened in 1994.
The Simmons Jewelry Company has produced the first line of jewelry in its new Green Initiative collection. The Green Bracelet, which hit retail stores in late March, is made from green malachite beads and a rough African conflict-free diamond. Each Green Bracelet will come with a GCAL certificate and will retail for about $125. Fifty percent of the net profits will be used to support educational programs in African nations where diamonds are a natural resource.
After three months of trials, the United Kingdom Parliament’s Birmingham Assay Office has launched the new and inexpensive Quick Nickel Test, which enables suppliers to confirm whether or not their specified product complies with European and UK nickel regulations.
Sterling Jewelers Inc. has promoted Stephen Martz to the position of vice president of regional operations; Michael Molanare to vice president of regional operations; David Bouffard to vice president, public relations; Denise Olivieri Shaffer to vice president of corporate treasury; and Jason Shaffer to vice president, supply chain management. Ohio-based Sterling, a subsidiary of Signet Group of the United Kingdom, operates 1,307 stores in 50 states.
Solomon Gad, president and founder of Amerind Inc., has passed away at 83. Gad was a diamond dealer for over 50 years and a member of the Diamond Dealers Club (DDC). He was born in Afghanistan and relocated several times before settling in New York in the 1950s. He soon formed Amerind, one of the first companies to import Colombian emeralds, as well as precious gems from Burma, India and Ceylon.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - April 2007. To subscribe click here.