Thompson real stone veneer showcases the interior part of natural Wisconsin trap rock.  The stone is not quarried in the traditional sense as the stone is pulled from the cliffs in large vertical columns.  The columns have layers created by successive lava flow; the individual layers are peeled off with an excavator.  These smaller and more manageable sheets of stone are fed into a hydraulic press which applies 300 tons of pressure. The stone splits under the force and immense pressure which exposes its interior.  This process is also called machine cutting. The interior of the stone typically has more consistent colors due to the lack of outside mineral staining.