Claim of GI sheets group misleading — DTI, BPS

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Bureau of Product Standards (BPS) said the group of local galvanizers invoking the International Standards Organization (ISO) to justify their manufacture and selling of GI roofing sheets that do not comply with PNS 67:86 as amended have been making misleading claims.

The two government agencies criticized the group for claiming that their products comply with World Trade Organization (WTO) standards when in fact their all-zinc roofing products are still being produced using the old and outdated technology known in the roofing industry as the "batch type and wet flux type" which are not acceptable to ISO/WTO standards.

The products of this group are said to have a service life of only two years while that of the PNS 67 as amended could, at the least, last up to five years.

The BPS said there are only three legal standards that have been adopted as Philippine national standard for all-zinc GI sheets roofing, namely, the PNS 67 as amended, the ISO 14788 and the ISO 9364.

The BPS said that GI sheets that are being sold in the market that don’t comply with the three above-cited legal standards are considered "sub-standard."

DTI-BPS explained that before an ISO standard is adopted as a Philippine standard for roofing and given "legal efficacy," it has first to undergo technical study by a technical committee created for this purpose.

In the case of the ISO standard cited by the group, the BPS said it has not approved said ISO standard, hence it cannot be cited as a compliance with Philippine standards equivalent to PNS 67 as amended.

PNS 67 as amended is the Philippine standard for GI sheet roofing. It is the result of a thorough study by the BPS to determine the ideal GI sheet roofing for a tropical country like the Philippines with its unique atmospheric condition, especially for urban industrial centers.

It specifies a minimum base metal thickness of 0.35 mm and zinc coating of 215 grams per square meter.

The two government agencies emphasized that they will resume to exercise their mandate and power to monitor and supervise the roofing industry, especially the implementation of PNS 67, which covers roofing materials generally used by Filipino consumers.