STEEL manufacturers are encouraged by the government’s crackdown efforts on substandard steel and other construction materials, according to Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI).
PISI, an iron and steel industry group, said this in a statement over the weekend, after PISI president Ronald Magsajo received a letter from the Department of Trade and Industry-Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (DTI-FTEB) acting director Marimel Porciuncula saying the bureau would file cases against Flores Commercial and Wan Chiong Steel, which were found to have sold non-compliant deformed bars based on FTEB testing.
‘We continue to support the government’s drive to ensure public safety by removing substandard steel from the market and penalize retailers and manufacturers found to be non-compliant with Fair Trade Laws,’ Magsajo said.
The copy of the letter, which was obtained by the BusinessMirror from Magsajo, divulged the evaluation of results of ‘alleged erring retailers’ of deformed steel bars.
The findings showed that Wan Chiong Steel Corporation’s steel bars went through confirmatory testing at the Bureau of Philippine Standards’ (BPS) Testing Laboratory in Cavite.
‘Sample Nos. 1, 4 and 5 did not conform with the requirements of Clause 6.2 (Mass variation),’ the remarks of the Test Report for Wan Chiong Steel Corporation noted.
With this, the DTI-FTEB, the Philippine government’s arm that enforces fair trade and consumer protection laws, said it ‘will be proceeding with the available legal action to ensure compliance with related Fair Trade laws and issuances.’
In its letter to Magsajo, DTI said: ‘Periodic updates will be sent to you as regards the remaining firms in your report.’
In its statement, PISI said the government has confiscated over P3.5 million worth of substandard steel products since the start of the year.
This can be translated to over 23,000 pieces of deformed rebars which were seized in Central Luzon and Calabarzon, based on the separate reports shared by FTED with the PISI.
‘These products-sold by over 200 firms-were discovered in inspections the FTEB conducted in Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Bataan, Pampanga, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, and Rizal,’ PISI noted.
The iron and steel industry group said many of the confiscated rebars failed to meet minimum mechanical and dimensional requirements, including tensile strength, elongation and proper manufacturer markings.
‘Substandard steel can deform or break under load, increasing the risk of structural failure in homes, high-rise buildings, bridges and other infrastructure, especially during earthquakes, strong winds or heavy usage,’ PISI emphasized.