Nikki Coseteng raises concern over new line of steel bar
Former Senator Nikki Coseteng has expressed concern over the use of quenched tempered (QT/TMT) steel in the country which she claimed poses a big risk when used in high-rise buildings and could be a failure in case the Big One hits the country. Coseteng made the reaction after she came across a study entitled "A Clear and Present Danger 2 - The Use of QT or TMT Bars in Seismic Zone 4" written by engineer Emilio Morales which has been uploaded on the internet 10 years ago. The paper, she said, showed that micro alloy (MA) steel has been replaced with QT/TMT rebars that have a brittle, outer skin, when tested, will pass for Grade 60 steel, but the inner core will only be Grade 40 after welding, bending, threading and galvanizing. Despite the warning, major steel manufacturers have taken it upon themselves without informing the contractors, engineers, architects, end-users and the public, to replace the MA steel bars with QT/TMT, she said. ...