First pet food. Then cough syrup and toothpaste and toys. Now steel?

A specialized news report out of Washington is suggesting that shoddy steel may be coming out of China. It may not sound that important. But then imagine skyscrapers and bridges collapsing.

I picked this up from the Kiplinger Letter, a news report that is behind a pay wall. Here’s an excerpt:

Steel imports from China that fall apart easily are making U.S. manufacturers and constructions firms more than a little nervous. Reports of failures during initial fabrication and questions about certification documents will mean closer scrutiny. The American and Canadian institutes of steel construction have already advised member companies to be vigilant and report any problems.

The biggest concern is hollow structural sections widely used in construction of skyscrapers, bridges, pipelines, office, commercial and school buildings. This high-strength steel is also commonly used in power lifts, cranes, farm equipment, furniture and car trailer hitches.

Chinese high-strength steel tubes and pipes are also a potential problem. They’re used extensively in power plants and in large industrial boilers, and must withstand enormous pressures and hellish heat around the clock for weeks or months on end. This kind of steel also is used extensively in scaffolding that's erected on building exteriors during construction or renovation, as well as for interior work.

Inferior high-strength steel could cause catastrophic failures of buildings, pipelines or in power plants' boiler tubing. This is a large worry for structural engineers who will be working overtime as states embark on what amounts to a crash program to shore up bridges, following the collapse of the Minnesota span over the Mississippi River. China is already seeing problems. A Chinese power plant exploded recently when high-strength steel tubing blew out, says Roger Schagrin, general counsel for the Committee on Pipe and Tube Imports, which represents U.S. manufacturers of these products.

The report notes that steel pipe and tubing exports from China to North America have skyrocketed from almost nothing two years ago to 102,000 metric tons in the first six months of this year. So some U.S. companies are conducting tests on the imported steel.

Could this be a ploy by U.S. and Canadian manufacturers to protect their markets? Sure.

A trade group, the American Institute of Steel Construction, came out with a statement saying it is “premature to draw any conclusions from any of the tests…”