DTI cracks down on LPG tank maker

Pilipinas Daechang Steel Inc. (PDSI) may soon lose the license to manufacture liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanks, according to Trade Undersecretary Adrian Cristobal Jr. who said the DTI has filed formal charges in court against PDSI.

The DTI is also seeking the cancellation of PDSI’s license to manufacture LPG tanks following last month’s recall of about 44,000 substandard LPG tanks manufactured between the period December 2000 and April 2001.

However, consumers are not heeding the DTI’s recall order. As of Dec. 12, the DTI has been able to recover only five percent or 2,100 defective LPG tanks.

Most of the LPG tanks returned came from Tarlac, Isabela, Rizal, Albay, Sorsogon, Batangas and Iloilo.

The returned LPG cylinders carry the brands M-Gas, Angel Gas, Liquigaz, Bicol Savers Gas, Total Gas, Island Gas, Right Gas, Sam Gas and Brent Gas.

Trade and Industry Secretary Manuel Roxas II has issued the recall of 11 kilogram LPG tanks manufactured by PDSI after they were found to be below the standards set by the Bureau of Product Standards (BPS).

The DTI, however, had assured that the tanks being recalled comprise less than one percent of the 12 million cylinders circulating in the country.

Roxas said that the recall order is precautionary and is allowed under Republic Act 4109 or the Product Standards Law and under Republic Act 7349 or the Consumer Act of 1992.

The DTI revealed that a random sampling of the PDSI cylinders by the BPS showed that the tanks were substandard.

Several tests such as the mechanical and hydraulic burst test to gauge the quality of the tank material resulted in failures. Likewise, radiographic tests for the welding showed that the LPG cylinders were prone to leakage. Elongation tests for malleability of the steel material also showed the tanks to be brittle.

The BPS visited the PDSI plant and discovered several manufacturing steps were not being followed.

The BPS further found out that the welders of PDSI are not qualified and have not been properly accredited.

Because the LPG tanks being produced by PDSI are substandard, Roxas warned these could cause explosions.