ACRS

So, you think you are getting the steel you specify?

(…and how you can be sure you do)

Australia used to be an easy place to buy steels to build with. Standards were enforced by engineers, local councils, and government departments, and domestic Australian or New Zealand steel producers manufactured worldclass product that supplied virtually the entire market. All any specifier had to do was state in their documentation “to Australian Standards” and all any builder had to ask his suppliers was “how much?” Site engineers and checking authorities did the rest. It was really that simple and by and large, it worked – but no longer. A Global Market

Today, Australia is part of a highly competitive world market for steel. Materials can and do come from a variety of sources around the globe: Asia, Africa, Europe, dictated by price and availability. This flexibility gives consumers the best price for their products, but it can trip up the unwary when it comes to getting the right “quality”. If we define “quality” as “performance characteristics” (surely our governing concern), then “quality” varies wildly between markets. So, just how does anyone know what they are getting when they place their order? With material coming from diverse sources and manufactured to many different specifications, specifying “to AS/NZS Standards” does not guarantee that what is supplied will perform as intended by the design, unless certain checks are made. Regular site checking of materials is very much a thing of the past. Reliance is almost exclusively on the documentation that arrives with the material supplied. What is “Adequate Documentation”?

Documentation is therefore of critical concern. What, in fact, constitutes “adequate documentation”? While this differs by Standard, there are basically four different means of satisfying this aspect (and one, or more, may be required): 1. Suppliers’ Quality Management

System (e.g. ISO 9001 certification); 2.Statistical sampling (e.g. long-term quality testing results) 3.Product Certification (e.g. independent 3rd-party audit by an accredited certification body competent in the products assessed) and; 4.“Other such means proposed by the manufacturer or supplier and acceptable to the customer” The intent is the consistent delivery of specified materials demonstrably conforming to the Standard, fit for the intended purpose and adequality managing contract risk. So, how does a designer, specifier, or builder know that all the steel delivered to their project meets the minimum requirements? Unfortunately, the simple answer is that it is not easy and all branches of the construction industry have greater responsibilities in this regard than in “the good old days”. Apples and Oranges

A quick look at the list above shows that the four options do not provide equal confidence or outcomes: • A supplier’s Quality Management system, such as ISO 9001 is a quality system that helps ensure consistent processes and methods are followed by the company. It does not, in and of itself, guarantee that any materials will be manufactured or supplied to the requirements of any particular

Standard. Further documentation and checks are necessary, even if there are “Factory Production

Control” (FPC) audits as well; • Long-term quality testing of each product provides a much greater level of certainty of quality, presuming that it is maintained consistently and completely.

However, the supplier’s own declaration is not sufficient. Samples should be drawn randomly, at a particular quality and timing from a source of “known history”. But, who checks this? And how can it be verified?

• “Other means” puts the entire onus on the customer to determine compliance from the results of testing coupled with the manufacturer’s guarantee of product conformance. Does the customer, or approval body (engineer or building surveyor) really wish to take full responsibility for determining that the supplier has met all the requirements of the Standard? • Lastly, we have independent, expert, 3rd-party product certification bodies that examine all of the above criteria. Being independent of the steel suppliers, they are able to provide comprehensive and effective auditing and certification of performance of certified products. Clearly, independent, expert, 3rdparty product certification is not only the most rigorous system, being independent, means that it also provides the highest level of confidence in the outcome for all parties. For further information, please contact ACRS on 02 9965 2216 or visit: www. steelcertification.com

Test Certificates

Test certificates alone are not suitable as proof of conformity without substantial additional review and verification by a suitably qualified and experienced auditor. This is because test certificates are produced for a particular batch of finished material. They are only a “snapshot” of that individual product at that particular time. So, you cannot rely on that certificate for a different batch of the same product, let alone for a different product altogether. Furthermore, one certificate does not demonstrate statistical compliance with Code requirements. Test certificates alone are not therefore adequate to demonstrate Code compliance.