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Warning sounded on cheap Chinese import
Article from: Herald Sun

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Mike Edmonds

November 03, 2007 12:00am

SHODDY Chinese steel may be putting the lives of Victorian road users at risk.

Questions about the quality of imported steel made from Australian iron ore have been raised by industry group the Australian Steel Institute.

The institute has done tests showing 30 per cent of the imported Chinese steel posts, which support roadside guard rails on the EastLink project and along the Great Ocean Road, are substandard.

The institute also confirmed Thiess John Holland had major problems with Chinese steel used to build the towering gantries that hold huge information boards over the traffic lanes of the EastLink project.

"We are absolutely getting poor quality steel out of China," said Steel Institute manager Ian Cairns. "Certainly there's some major problems in the sign gantries.

"The steel that has been scrapped was to be used as the gantries to hold those huge freeway destination boards. Without doubt the safety of the structure is definitely compromised."

The first 250 tonnes of gantry steel, from an 800 tonne order, arrived in Melbourne about three weeks ago.

Visual inspections by a welding specialist and ultrasonic weld tests by the Australian Institute for Non-Destructive Testing discovered the steel was not up to standard.

It is believed to have been sent off for scrap.

Local company AMS Fabrications, which quoted unsuccessfully for the EastLink gantries, said the whole tender process was slanted in favour of cheap Chinese imports.

"We don't mind a level playing field, but this is not on," said AMS project manager, Michael Harris.

"We dig the ore out of the ground, sell it to them and it comes back as second-rate material.

"We've got to jump so many hoops in the tender process to prove that everything's Australian made, and say what was made in Victoria, who benefits, what the job creation is and all the quality assurance and testing procedures. Then they throw it all out the door just to save a few dollars."

The owner, operator and tolls collector of EastLink when it is opened, ConnectEast, would not comment on the claims.

"You'll need to talk to Thiess John Holland on that one," said spokesman James Tonkin.

However Thiess John Holland refused to comment.

"I work for Thiess John Holland on the EastLink project ... I'd be speaking out of turn," project manager Ron Keen said.

Official spokeswoman for the consortium, Megan Cusak, also refused to comment.

"We've got nothing to say. We've got no comment to make," she said.

VicRoads said yesterday it was investigating reports 30 per cent of Victoria's roadside guard rails were supported by sub-standard posts.

"We've got damning proof, and have talked to Vicroads about the posts that hold roadside guard rails in place," the Steel Institute's Mr Cairns said