The Construction Industry Federation (CIF) is warning its members to check steel products being used in construction after products of insufficient quality were possibly imported into Ireland.

The CIF issued their alert after the Department of Environment, Community and Local Government contacted them about the potential product failure.

The product failures arise in hot-formed longitudinally welded hollow profiles and cold-formed longitudinally welded hollow profiles of unalloyed construction steels of types S355J2H and S235JRH with different nominal dimensions (from 80 x 80 x 6mm to 500 x 300 x 12.5mm).

A number of hollow profiles were tested by a market surveillance authority in Germany and most of the hollow profiles tested appear to be been made of unkilled or killed steel rather than the fully killed steel. They were found not meet the essential requirements of construction works under EU directives.

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Due to an incorrect aluminum content these steel products are only suitable for welding in limited applications. There is a risk that these products may fail in welded structures (ie junction points). Failure of a weld which is being used for its intended purpose, as a component under pressure, could result in failure without warning. When these hollow points are used as components subject to stress such as girders, the failure of the weld could result in excessive bending stress with warning or without warning.

The German market surveillance authority has issued a RAPEX notification (EU rapid alert system for all dangerous consumer products with the exception of food, pharmaceutical and medical devices). On the back of that notice it was confirmed that the entry point of these products into the European Union appears to have been Italy. The country and company of manufacture is still unknown.

The CIF is urging its members to be vigilant when procuring or using steel hollow profiles in construction works and civil engineering projects.

(CD)