How do we deal with steel products that pose risk?

WE have been experiencing a series of earthquakes in the country. Just weeks back, a supermarket in Porac, Pampanga, collapsed, which prompted the President to shut down the chain of Chuzon supermarkets.

Substandard steel products and inferior construction materials manufactured using substandard raw materials and aquestionable manufacturing process are, indeed, a danger to life in our earthquake-prone country.

In the event of a high-magnitude earthquake, mislabeled and substandard steel materials can cause the foundations of buildings to crumble. They can not withstand the pressure of a high-magnitude quake, and these steel materials are, obviously, not made for that type of building construction.

The Department of Trade and Industry should start reviewing manufacturing processes adopted by large local steelmakers, who, it seems, do not place the safety of the public first by ensuring that steel products of buildings are strong enough to withstand earthquakes.

I really hope they do not place profit ahead of safety. They, instead, should focus more on the future

growth of their operations.

Another nagging question is if the country has a questionable process to determine the tensile strength of steels. Testing steel for tensile strength is important to determine if they can withstand high magnitudes and violent shaking from earthquake and natural disasters.

Some industry insiders told this columnist the apparent failure of the industry to thoroughly test steels also reportedly led to mislabeling – a product that is made with grade 40 steel could pass as grade 60.

This is similar to an adulteration practice illicitly adopted by a dairy firm in China where it added Melamine, a nitro-rich compound, to the milk to increase the protein count falsely in their milk and dairy products. Melamine is harmful if swallowed, inhaled, or absorbed through the skin.

The issue has been ongoing on for so long, but nothing has been officially done to solve the problem. Two Senate hearings have been held to investigate the manufacture of substandard steel product and their effects in the construction of high-rise building.

Senator Nikki Coseteng, now a strong advocate of construction safety and steel products integrity, called for a more definitive testing process to ensure all steel products in the country are safe to use. She says the current standards of the Department of Trade and Industry, the agency responsible for approving and regulating standards of steel products, should be more stringent than normal, given the seismic condition of the Philippines.

Malpractice in construction occurs when substandard materials are allowed to be used and short cuts in construction methodology are allowed. It is for this reason government agencies with proven expertise in engineering and construction should conduct no-holds barred investigations on questionable manufacturing process of local steelmakers to ensure products they produce meet international standard and can withstand high-magnitude temblor.

Meanwhile, electricity consumers were in for a pleasant surprise when power utility Meralco announced lower power rates. Coupled with the drop in fuel prices, this is, indeed, good news. We expected electric bills to increase but the opposite happened.

I understand the strengthening of the peso and the lower fuel costs prompted power generators to lower their rates.

I will try to do more research on this in my next column but suffice it to say, let us enjoy this piece of good news from Meralco in this scorching summer month.