Questioning Chinese Made Steel

The Minneapolis bridge collapse of in August of 2007 certainly sparked a lot of scrutiny on the infrastructure of the state as well as the construction methods that were used in these projects. But did anyone know that China would come into question during the investigation?

Sept 10 2007 Rep. Gene Green of Texas, called for a federal hearing on the importation of low quality hollow structure steel sections from China. He asked that the U.S. officials examine the quality of the Chinese steel before it ever enters this country and is transported to infrastructure projects. 

China has had problems their steel quality, Green said during a Steel Business Briefing. They have long had problems their steel standards. This is something that our country needs to very cognizant of. If their products don’t meet the set U.S. standards, then it’s going to fail.   

Gary Stein, the president of Triple-S Steel Supply Co. of Houston was quoted as saying that his company refuses  to ship any more Chinese made steel. He said that they will even leave some of it at the Port of Houston to be shipped back to China.

An importer of Chinese made cast iron soil pipe and fittings in Michigan has been barred from supplying state construction projects. The Michigan Construction Code Commission unanimously backed the decision made by the Michigan Plumbing Board who denied MWI Import Products from participation in any more state jobs. MWI was not able to produce documentation that it’s pipes and fittings met Michigan plumbing codes. 

These are two small strikes against Chinese sourced steel. Will the next strike lead to series of any more strikes? It’s hard to say but the Chinese certainly don’t want any more negativity or publicity.