TPT January 2013

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Global Marketplace
January 2013 73
three-quarters American made, unless no part is domestically
available. A lawsuit filed in August in Commonwealth Court of
Pennsylvania by the state’s attorney general accuses Ryco
Inc, a McKeesport company whose subsidiaries perform
plumbing and sprinkler installation, of ignoring the domestic-
sourcing requirement in two instances.
In 2008, Ryco was engaged to design and build fire
suppression systems for Indiana University of Pennsylvania
dormitories. Its fee was $670,000. Ryco executives including
its vice-president submitted forms pledging to use domestic
steel. The complaint against Ryco alleges that the company
in fact used imported fittings, “some stamped with a China
marking, while others were marked Poland.”
Mr Lord also reported that, in 2009, Ryco was hired to provide
sprinklers for a middle and high school renovation project, for
$139,500. Again, company officials pledged to use American
steel but, according to the attorney general’s office, instead
used metal from overseas.
It would appear that the facts are not in dispute, and that
the outcome of the case will likely turn on such technicalities
as whether or not the two projects properly come under the
provisions of the Steel Products Procurement Act.
Introducing questions of outsourcing, Ryco has argued for an
exemption on the dorms project on grounds that its work there
was commissioned by a private foundation for the university,
rather than by the school itself.
In the meantime, the case invites attention to the unhappy
situation of Pennsylvania contractors preparing competitive
bids. Mr Lord noted that, in the US, domestic and foreign pipe
are comparable in price. But, he wrote, the attorney general’s
complaint “said that a coupling that cost $35 from a domestic
source was listed for $7.67 from a foreign supplier. A larger
domestic coupling went for $189.50 versus $45.63 for the
import.”
› Another noteworthy aspect of the Ryco case is the zeal
with which Pennsylvania’s chief legal officer is pursuing
it. Attorney General Linda Kelly wants the company to return
the money it received for both projects, plus pay $1,000 per
violation and reimburse the costs of prosecution.
Her office also wants a court order banning Ryco from public
contracting for five years and is demanding that its vice-
president sell any stake he holds in the company.
Ryco’s attorney called that “very draconian,” according to
Mr Lord, who also noted that actions under the Steel Act are
rare. The previous such case dates to 2009, when a Kansas-
based waste treatment company agreed to pay $85,000 to
settle a complaint that it used foreign steel in a new municipal
pumping station and as many as 21 previous public projects
in Pennsylvania.
› Organised labour has lent a hand in these matters, with
the Sprinklerfitters Union tipping off law enforcement to
alleged violations of the act.
“We’ve caught quite a few contractors to varying degrees,”
Gary Bittner, a business agent with Sprinklerfitters Local 669
(Columbia, Maryland) told the Post-Gazette . “We focused on
the most serious one.”
That would be Ryco, said Mr Bittner.
Steel plants coming on
› Quebec-based ADF Group Inc has announced plans to
build a structural steel manufacturing plant near Great
Falls, in north-central Montana, to make oil production
modules for companies working in the oil sands of Alberta.
As reported by the Great Falls Tribune (5 November), the
Canadian company said it is buying 100 acres of land on
which it will erect a 100,000ft2 facility over the course of the
coming year. ADF Group fabricates complex steel structures
for such large-scale projects as airports, bridges and sports
arenas.
The company provided steel for the World Trade Center
Freedom Tower under construction in New York.
The Tribune also reported that Texas-based Bay Ltd already
operates – in Billings, Montana – a similar fabrication facility to
that projected by ADF Group. In addition to building equipment
for oil sands work in Alberta, Bay Ltd is seeking business
related to the Bakken oil boom that has spurred a surge of
prosperity in North Dakota.
› As reported by Paul J Gough in the Pittsburgh Business
Times (12 October), the distributor Esmark Inc
(Sewickley, Ohio) said it was close to finalising its acquisition
of a Yorkville, Ohio, cold-rolled finishing mill from Wheeling
Pittsburgh Steel Corporation. The Esmark Steel Group
planned a $15mn investment to restart the Yorkville plant
in January as Ohio Cold Rolling Co, with 160 employees.
Additionally, in a joint venture with TCC Steel of South
Korea, Esmark is taking a 50 per cent stake in Ohio Coatings
Co – a tin plate production operation previously owned by
RG Steel.
Elsewhere in steel . . .
› China has levied anti-dumping duties on some high-
performance stainless steel seamless tubes from
manufacturers in the European Union and Japan.
The Ministry of Commerce on 8 November said on its website
that the duties, ranging from 9.2 per cent to 14.4 per cent,
would take effect the following day and remain in place for five
years. The tubes in question are used mainly in overheaters
and superheaters at power-station boilers.
According to the ministry, investigators made a final judgment
that domestic manufacturers of similar products had “suffered
materially” from European and Japanese imports sold below
fair value on the Chinese market. The ruling affirmed an
initial finding, announced in May 2012, in a probe begun in
September 2011.
Dorothy Fabian, Features Editor (USA)