State spending millions on Chinese cement that's available here
SEATTLE -- The KOMO 4 Problem Solvers are uncovering new questions about the construction of the 520 floating bridge.
Specifically, why millions of your tax dollars are being spent to import the cement from China when it's available right here in Washington. It certainly begs the question whether all of the cracks and leaks we've exposed in our on-going investigation of the 520 pontoons can be traced to that imported cement.
The Aberdeen construction site where those pontoons are built buzzes. Workers pour concrete to form the second set of six massive concrete pontoons. And already those pontoons, like the first set now out on Lake Washington, have extensive cracks.
"It's disappointing, it's disgusting. I'm really really disgusted," said Union Activist Carl Krull.
Krull is upset at the on-going problems with the pontoons, but he first started looking into the project when he found out the cement comes from -- China.
"Why are we shipping it 5000 miles when we have a cement factory two miles from the bridge?" he said.
Krull points to Ash Grove Cement, a 131 year fixture in Seattle. Ash Grove tells me they are able to supply all the cement for the pontoons, but they lost the bid. Krull wonders why a state and federal project is sending those millions overseas.
"What's the matter with keeping your money at home? What's the matter with creating local jobs?" he said.
Krull doesn't know if the Chinese cement is a factor in the pontoon cracks, but it is different than the cement used in a test pontoon WSDOT built before the 520 was even put up for bid. That project -- called ACME -- tested different recipes of concrete, using specific cement, aggregate or rock and amounts of water to get the best water-tight pontoon possible.
Though the ACME pontoon was built as the guide for Contractor Kiewit in building the pontoons, Kiewit used different components, prompting questions when WSDOT's expert review panel looked into the cause of the cracking last year.
"There's also the cement itself, it's a different cement," WSDOT's Expert John Reilly said. "So is that a factor in this? Probably."
And according to documents recently obtained by the Problem Solvers, Kiewit is still using different concrete components, including the Chinese cement. Consultant firm CTL, hired by Kiewit, notes in a November report that "virtually all of the materials ... are different than those used in the ACME mockup."
The report concludes, " this is a likely cause of the non-structural cracking ..." occuring the second set of pontoons.
The Problem Solvers found that cracking in Pontoon R, from the second cycle of pontoons, is so extensive that nearly all of the exterior walls that have been examined have cracks. We're still waiting for examinations of the other five pontoons in Cycle two.
Kiewit tells us, "these pontoons are made of the highest quality concrete ..." and that all the materials and concrete processes are, "... measured, tested and re-tested to ensure they are within ... the rigorous specifications spelled out in the contract."
Activist Krull doesn't buy it.
"It's larcenous incompetence in my opinion," he said.
WSDOT says that all the cracks found to date in the second set of pontoons are 'non-structural' meaning they're thinner than a sheet of paper. Kiewit says this is normal. But experts we've talked to tell us the extensive level of this cracking is a serious issue.
Specifically, why millions of your tax dollars are being spent to import the cement from China when it's available right here in Washington. It certainly begs the question whether all of the cracks and leaks we've exposed in our on-going investigation of the 520 pontoons can be traced to that imported cement.
The Aberdeen construction site where those pontoons are built buzzes. Workers pour concrete to form the second set of six massive concrete pontoons. And already those pontoons, like the first set now out on Lake Washington, have extensive cracks.
"It's disappointing, it's disgusting. I'm really really disgusted," said Union Activist Carl Krull.
Krull is upset at the on-going problems with the pontoons, but he first started looking into the project when he found out the cement comes from -- China.
"Why are we shipping it 5000 miles when we have a cement factory two miles from the bridge?" he said.
Krull points to Ash Grove Cement, a 131 year fixture in Seattle. Ash Grove tells me they are able to supply all the cement for the pontoons, but they lost the bid. Krull wonders why a state and federal project is sending those millions overseas.
"What's the matter with keeping your money at home? What's the matter with creating local jobs?" he said.
Krull doesn't know if the Chinese cement is a factor in the pontoon cracks, but it is different than the cement used in a test pontoon WSDOT built before the 520 was even put up for bid. That project -- called ACME -- tested different recipes of concrete, using specific cement, aggregate or rock and amounts of water to get the best water-tight pontoon possible.
Though the ACME pontoon was built as the guide for Contractor Kiewit in building the pontoons, Kiewit used different components, prompting questions when WSDOT's expert review panel looked into the cause of the cracking last year.
"There's also the cement itself, it's a different cement," WSDOT's Expert John Reilly said. "So is that a factor in this? Probably."
And according to documents recently obtained by the Problem Solvers, Kiewit is still using different concrete components, including the Chinese cement. Consultant firm CTL, hired by Kiewit, notes in a November report that "virtually all of the materials ... are different than those used in the ACME mockup."
The report concludes, " this is a likely cause of the non-structural cracking ..." occuring the second set of pontoons.
The Problem Solvers found that cracking in Pontoon R, from the second cycle of pontoons, is so extensive that nearly all of the exterior walls that have been examined have cracks. We're still waiting for examinations of the other five pontoons in Cycle two.
Kiewit tells us, "these pontoons are made of the highest quality concrete ..." and that all the materials and concrete processes are, "... measured, tested and re-tested to ensure they are within ... the rigorous specifications spelled out in the contract."
Activist Krull doesn't buy it.
"It's larcenous incompetence in my opinion," he said.
WSDOT says that all the cracks found to date in the second set of pontoons are 'non-structural' meaning they're thinner than a sheet of paper. Kiewit says this is normal. But experts we've talked to tell us the extensive level of this cracking is a serious issue.
http://www.newschinamag.com/magazine/houses-built-on-sand
Here is an article about the use of Chinese sand in cement for construction and how it is corrosive and unstable due to high salt content. Sure hope that the low cost cement from China didn't contain this sand....lol
@Joslyn_Clark http://t.co/c6qireULi4
The GC "Kiewit" is out of control! WSDOT should reject the cement because of the "buy America" clause, bottom line!. This hasn't happen because WSDOT staff is on the take from Kiewit! Yes! perks on the side from the Prime Contractor! This is a Design Build job and the GC is on the hook for pis poor specs and designs. Secretary of Transportation of WSDOT "DO YOUR JOB AND HAVE KIEWIT PRODUCE PONTOONS WITHOUT CRACKS" AND IF KIEWIT CAN'T PERFORM, PULL THEIR BOND AND HIRE A PRIME THAT WILL GIVE THE TAXPAYERS A TOP QUALITY BRIDGE!!!
BTW KIEWIT, have a beer on me!
Ghost of Chris Gregoire's view that "leadership" consists of screaming, "git'r dun" at her deputies, and not giving a rat's a** about details.
KOMO which way do you want the state to go save money by going over seas or spend more and keep the money local http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Audit-state-spends-millions-more-for-locally-built-ferries-188292681.htmlÂ
Typical two faced KOMO just trying to bach on 520 again
So here we go again with this lowest bidder crap without looking at the whole picture.It may be that the cement is of an acceptable quality, although I really doubt it.The bottom line is that Washington State taxpayers are paying for labor in China.That labor does not buy homes, pay rent, buy food-clothing-gasoline or pay any tax in Washington.Every person put back to work reduces the load on the social services costs as well. Much more effort needs to be put into puting our tax dollars back into the state economy.
@oldster70Â Thanks for a great comment, I can not believe how many people just don't get it. If this bridge project does not sink Seattle and the state into a financial crisis just wait for the tunnel project.
So what makes the chinese concrete different?? Do they mix it with egg rolls?
@blobux Fly ash is a major component in cement. The cement produced at Ash Grove is manufactured under strict guidelines and the correct ratio is monitored constantly. I worked there for 6 years. The lab on site is pretty impressive.
@blobuxÂ
The contractor isn't using Chinese Concrete, they're using Chinese Cement. They are making concrete with Chinese Cement. You might say, yeah that's what I meant, or, what's the difference, but there might be curing differences between Chinese Cement and the best-in-the-world Portland Cement, available here in the PNW, when used to make a batch of concrete.
KOMO news is the biggest joke of a news agency. Its not uncommon for construction projects to use materials from all around the news. You have a news station reporting on a industry they know nothing about. This project is being built by one of the nations top contractors and all KOMO can do is point fingers....hey KOMO News next time your eating sushi at the local market make sure it wasnt imported from China...talk about a news agency thats two faced!
@NoMoKOMO
Slow down and breathe!We are all impressed with the size of the contractor.What we are not impressed with is the quality of their work on the new concrete pontoons.
As long as the cement from China meets the requirements for the contract we should be glad that we're getting it at a cheaper price than from the factory down the road. Â Our tax dollars are being used to pay for the project so why should we pay more just to purchase cement from a Seattle firm? Â Why should the government take money from me to give to a U.S. cement company? Â Is it so my tax dollars can pay the inflated wages of "Union Activist Carl Krull"? Â If China wants to give me money in the form of subsidized cement then great!Â
The quality control is a separate issue and it's up to WSDOT to ensure the contractor is building to the required specifications. Â
@Tony Tiger I wonder if Tony might change his mind after he saw how China destroys their rivers by dredging them for sand and leaving everything piled up on the side of the river to stay. I have been there and see it, it is sickening.
@Tony TigerÂ
Based upon the state of the pontoon concrete, KOMOâs reporting of the same, and the state of the second set of pontoons, our confidence in WSDOTâs quality control is central to this issue.They need to go on record with a detailed report on the pontoon design, any contractor proposed and accepted changes to the design, the construction reports, deficiency reports, proposed corrective actions, root cause analyses, contractor proposed repairs, and change order documentation.The only thing that is at stake is the confidence of the taxpaying public.Once you lose their confidence, then the investigations will begin.
@Tony Tiger
Iâd rather see the project âBuy Americanâ stipulations enforced.There are many hidden costs of that âcheap foreign materialâ such as the many unemployed here, the financial and social cost of those unemployed, the downstream tax and economic revenue lost through depressed economic conditions that spending dollars here would avoid. Then there are the social and environmental costs of the largely unregulated manufacturing climate in foreign lands, not to mention that we here in Washington eventually breathe the massive pollution being produced across the pacific ocean.But, most importantly, we violate our social contract with each other here by sttimulating economic conditions else ware instead of our own back yard.I doubt if any savings associated with buying foreign sourced cement for this massive public project here in Washington will be seen locally.
@Transpopro The "Buy America" provisions for government contracts are just political pork.  It's politicians deciding which American jobs are more important than others - and it's usually the union manufacturing ones.  If I have to pay more in taxes to "Buy American" then I have less disposable income to spend at the coffee shop down the road or at the restaurant and movies on date night. Â
Multiply that by the millions of dollars we pay on inflated contracts. Â Those extra millions go to a few select companies to pay bonuses and union wages to "Union Activist Carl Krull" and his friends. Â So Carl Krull makes out but the poor barista or waitress loses out. Â Why? Â Why is Carl Krull's "American" job more important than Sally Barista's? Â
FWIW, I have to jump in and say that at the end of the day you do not have more disposable income to tip coffee baristas by your tax dollars going towards buying cheap Chinese crap. 1: your money is taken, then spent, period. There is no final accounting such that the gov't says, "we saved $xxx. by buying Chinese - let's give Tony a refund!". 2: you get what you pay for - in this case poor materials + poor management have created a synergy of incompetence that will likely cost more than had American materials been used.
@Tony Tiger @Transpopro
Iâll see your forty economists and raise you 300 million Americans that would benefit from a lower unemployment rate and a healthier economy with workers that produce locally those goods and services that are produced locally.Who knows the motivation behind the Buy American provisions for Federally funded contracts in an era of NAFTA?I only know that we are underemployed here in the United States and we must comply with Federal law for Federally funded contracts.
@Transpopro The forty economists from every top U.S. university surveyed here would disagree.  They all conclude that, although some people lose out (manufacturers), Americans as a whole are much better off if we trade for cheaper products with China.
http://www.igmchicago.org/igm-economic-experts-panel/poll-results?SurveyID=SV_003w6LBGnkOfDuI
@Tony Tiger @Transpopro
I would postulate to you that we all throughout our position in the social stratum make out better sourcing our materials on public projects within the United States of America from the CEO to the barista.You just canât see the true cost to our society of outsourcing our supply and expertise.
@Transpopro So lets take your argument to it's logical conclusion.  All vehicles, heavy equipment  used on the project must come from the U.S.  All telecom equipment used by the contractors must come from the U.S.  The fuel for the vehicles must be drilled, pumped and refined in the U.S.  And all the steel, graphite, aggregate, adhesives, epoxies must be mined, milled and manufactured in the U.S. Â
One problem. Â We don't have all the natural resources to produce half of what the project would need. Â We're going to have to get those materials from, gasp!, other countries. Â It's called TRADE.
@NoMoKOMO
That plant, if they won the bid, would be bound by the same contract provisions as the winning bidder.We probably would be having the same conversation about them if it was determined that they were sourcing materials outside the âBuy Americaâ provisions.
I was talking about the plant that lost the bid.Â
@NoMoKOMOÂ If you have evidence that a contractor on a major Federally funded contract is violating the contract provisions, I urge you to submit that evidence to the authorities without delay
You dont think that the batch plant down the road is not procuring their cement from China? If Kiewit is I am sure they are too so it wouldnt matter.Â
@NoMoKOMO
Except those contracts that get Federal funding where âBuy Americaâ provisions are required by law to be attached to the contract to obtain Federal funds.
this is common in the industry, hardly ever is their a specification that states cement must be produced domestically.
@Tony Tiger @Transpopro
No, per contract, only those items that will be permanently attached to the project once the contract is finished is considered under the âBuy Americaâ provisions.
@Tony Tiger So you'd rather see China prosper while there are thousands of our own struggling to get by?Â
Thats un American. Â I'd rather pay more and have our own prosper.Â
@MotoMudder China sends us over $100 billion dollar in free foreign aid every year (subsidized goods).  Why do you want the Chinese to stop sending us hundreds of billions of dollars?  Do you hate America?
If I'm not forced to give my money to a Seattle cement factory I can use that money to buy something I actually want, like maybe a new Toyota from a factory in the U.S. Â See, I'd rather decide where I spend MY money, I don't need some government bureaucrat to decide which of his cronies should get MY money. Â Â
@nodozr @Tony Tiger @MotoMudder Been finding lots of problems with the Made In China products I buy at Home Depot. Their space heaters last about a month before they short out and the cheap celluloid patio glass shades are continually breaking after approx 90 days use. Their toilets are flawed and the seats are made of the type of plastic that's been traditionally used as coffee can lids, really thin and flimsy.
@nodozr @Tony Tiger @MotoMudder Ha!  That was good!
@Tony Tiger @MotoMudder If the deliberate undermining of the U.S. economy through currency manipulation amounts to "free foreign aid", then China's cyberwarfare campaign against our companies and infrastructure must be a "free security scan" and Chinese-made cadmium-laced children's jewelry and tainted drywall must be "free strength training for our immune systems".
I am sure you dont own anything made in China, right?
...That is it... this project needs to be shutdown here and NOW... China Cement... I am sorry but I fail to see any COST savings over shipping this across the ocean to be used here... that is just plain STUPID!
Ironic that the rationale for replacing the Evergreen Point bridge is because it's (supposedly) old and failing - so we now get a structure that is also compromised and failing (and possibly in worse shape) from day zero. And whatever economic stimulus to be gained from such a large piece of infrastructure is minimized by government back-room dealings with China (!) of all places. (we won't even discuss the war we will likely have to fight with China in this century.) Don't forget that for every penny saved on the front end by using cheaper overseas materials/services, it usually winds up costing taxpayers many times that.
Note that California went thru the same shenanigans using Chinese steel during rebuilding of the bay bridge. American steel manufacturers were left out in the cold. Large sections of that bridge were also manufactured in communist China, but no worries, like WSDOT personnel in Aberdeen, California had 'staff' there to oversee and maintain the 'quality' of the construction. I'm sure they encountered no difficulties there at all, like language barriers for example, much less engineering problems. The poor quality of the steel was also an issue - so CalTrans changed the audit and testing parameters.Â
@Astro_Sailor And we had the same problem with the steel cable that was used in the Narrows Bridge. Came form China and was poor quality. Its a bit too late now. With all these unconstitutional free trade agreements that were made our leaders have pretty much killed the smelters in this country. There use to a be a lot of hard decent paying jobs in that industry and its been killed by corrupt politicians.
Howard Beale: Bravo!
Historymjr: you might find the tolling history of the first 520 bridge interesting. Short story is they knowingly kept the toll going way beyond the point at which the bridge had been paid for. It took legal action by a Bellevue citizen's group to bring and end to the tolling.
It's an open question what we can expect in the future from WSDOT and the howling primates in the legislature. The same ones who propose tolls on I90 to fund mismanagement and shortfalls on 520. WSDOT "managers" and engineers who have screwed the pooch so badly on the new floating bridge. (Not all WSDOT engineers mind you - kudos to those who have the professionalism and sense of civic duty to 'out' the incompetence.) It does not portend well...
Why don't the legislators pass a bill that says all government-funded construction projects must use materials purchased here in the US instead of wasting their time on raising taxes on an already-high product such as gasoline?
@Carol BÂ Why should I have to give part of my paycheck to a guy at the Seattle cement plant? Â If you're asking me to pay more in taxes to pay for higher priced goods just because it's an American company then you're taking money out of my pocket to pay for some other guy. Â If China wants to subsidize their cement then great! Â Chinese workers will pay more in taxes to ship that cement over here at cost and I'll pay less for it. Â
China gives the U.S. billions of dollars in foreign aid (subsidized goods) every year. Â Why do you want China to stop sending us billions of dollars? Â Do you hate America? Â
@Carol BÂ Or to level the playing field just go back to taxing imports to make Amerikan made products more sustainable. Keep the money here at home.
Someones is going to go to prison over this project , one of them resigned the other day , but if this is what taxpayers get for their money , someone is guilty of WASTE , FRAUD , and ABUSE.Â
what is there to go over prison about? your judging the construction company over how KOMO feels a construction project should be built? get all the facts first.
@NoMoKOMO
No, KOMO is reporting the curious state of the cracked concrete in the âNewâ pontoons.Unfortunately, it doesnât take an industry expert to discern that there is something wrong with the pontoon concrete work.
@Reggie @Transpopro
Dissing technical people does not alter the fact that KOMO is following an important local story that all other news outlets are ignoring to maintain their access to the rich and powerful in this State.Your comment here makes no sense given the previous comments in this thread and shows great effort on your part on behalf of either WSDOT or Kiewit to engage in disinformation rather than a command of the facts and experience of projects of this magnitude.Keep trolling and know that your drivel is recognized for what it is.Pathetic!
@Transpopro if you're agreeing with KOMO then no wonder you've dealt withso many agencies because you have no idea what you're talking about or doing. NoMoKOMO is more acurate than you're by far. Let me guess you're an engineer who can design many things on paper like most but can't hold up a stick in the field typical engineer.
@NoMoKOMO
That is funny!Cracking like that shown in these articles are quite unusual.Pouring the concrete is one thing.Designing the mix, selecting the mix components per spec, mixing, placing, and consolidating the concrete properly in tight forms with proper technique with adequate but not too excessive vibration, keeping the forms in place long enough not only for the first set but to maintain the forms long enough to inhibit cracking if there is a bulk pour, curing the concrete in the proper temperature range, then not post tensioning the structure until adequate strength is achieved, as well as paying attention to the sequence and strength of the tensioning sequence.(How am I doing so far?)Yes, I have had massive concrete structure design and construction experience both here and abroad.I have also had experience with this contractor as well as WSDOT.What KOMO is reporting should be considered for some kind of award for their public service!
IF you have ever poured an ounce of concrete in your life you would know it cracks and cracking is not uncommon and often does require fixes in accordance with industry standards.
This must be part of the put Washington back to work program!