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December 8, 1978:  U.S. Treasury issued antidumping findings on PC strand imports from Japan.

February 3, 1999:  After its first review, U.S. Department of Commerce (USDOC) issued a continuation of the antidumping duty findings on PC strand imports from Japan.

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January 31, 2003:  A coalition of three U.S. domestic strand suppliers filed an anti-dumping complaint against Brazil, India, Mexico, South Korea and Thailand with U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC).

March 17, 2003:  USITC preliminary determined that imports from five countries materially injured domestic PC strand producers.

July 11, 2003:  USDOC announced preliminary determinations for antidumping compliant and levied countervailing duties against five countries.

December 2, 2003:  USDOC and USITC announced issued anti-dumping order on prestressed concrete steel wire strand (PC strand) from Brazil, India, Mexico, South Korea and Thailand.

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Early/Mid 2004:  Strand shipments from China entered U.S. strand market through third-party brokers.

June 25, 2004:  USITC conducted second five-year review of PC steel wire strand from Japan and continues duties.

December 2008 to March 2009:  USITC conducted full five-year review of countervailing duty on PC strand from Brazil, India, Japan (3rd review), Korea, Mexico and Thailand.

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May 27, 2009:  A coalition of the same three U.S. domestic strand suppliers filed an anti-dumping complaint against Chinese strand suppliers.

July 10, 2009:  All six USITC commissioners voted in favor that there is a case for dumping.

October 26, 2009:  USDOC and USITC announced in affirmative preliminary determination with countervailing duty on strand from China.

December 18, 2009:  USDOC announced its preliminary determination of dumping rate of 37.72% to 193.55% (depending on the Chinese steel mill).

January 2010:  By-in-large, Chinese strand suppliers exited US market.

May 17, 2010:  USDOC announced its final determination in AD and CVD investigations.

June 10, 2010:  USITC determined US industry is materially injured by Chinese imports.  USDOC determined imports were subsidized and sold in the U.S. at less than fair value.

June 29, 2010:  USDOC and USITC announced issued anti-dumping duty order on prestressed concrete steel wire strand (PC strand) from China.

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- Rattan Khosa, AMSYSCO
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COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION (2008-2009)

2009 was a year that most in the construction industry would like to forget.  Everyone is aware of the “Great Recession” which started in 2008 and deepened in 2009.  For Commercial Construction, with or without post-tensioned concrete, there has been a Depression with no turnaround in sight.  The intensity of the downturn is best illustrated by a 4th Quarter (2009) drop of 88% in the construction starts for investment-type office buildings in 63 core markets (data provided by analytics firm CoStar Group, Inc., Wall Street Journal, January 20, 2010).

COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION (2010)

With the backdrop of tight credit markets, high levels of unemployment/underemployment and excessive inventory of office/residential space, the Commercial Construction industry in 2010 could be worse than in 2009.  Unfortunately, any recovery may be deferred until 2012.  In the meantime, the combination of a steep drop in business volume, an increased commodity prices and the downward pressure on margins has created a challenging environment for all construction-related companies.

AMSYSCO, Inc.

As a past, current or future customer of supplier of AMSYSCO, Inc., you may wonder how our company has done.  In AMSYSCO’s 29 years in business, 2008 and 2009 were the second and third most profitable years respectively.

There are many factors which contributed to the positive performance.  One key factor is that, in October 2006, our management predicted the potential for an industry downturn starting in 2007.  (In October 2007, a major slowdown in the U.S. market and commercial construction started).  In mid-2008, we also projected that the Dow Jones Industrial would go below 7000 (it hit 6500 in March 2009).  Accordingly, we took some necessary steps to combat the Great Recession.

At the same time, we stayed the course by relocating our headquarter and purchasing a 55,000 sq.ft. industrial building.  This move enabled AMSYSCO, Inc. to serve our customers better, increase our plant production capacity and provide an excellent environment for our employees.

AMSYSCO, Inc. will continue to strive to provide the best value to our construction clients in partnership with our suppliers and employees.  Together we have already set a solid foundation for 2010.

- Rattan L. Khosa, President

Another important element that has an environmental influence is the speed of the construction schedule.  Ideally, structures can be built faster with unbonded post-tensioning at no additional cost.   Accordingly, the impact of construction on the surrounding environment would be less.  The environment could be an urban jungle or the natural wildlife.

Living in downtown Chicago, I am accustomed to traffic jams due to construction projects.  The daily gridlock of automobiles and trucks create pollution and smog in the local vicinity.  AMSYSCO, Inc. worked on 340 E. Randolph Condominiums, a 62-story unbonded post-tensioned building that was built at a rate of one floor every 3 days.  (It became the first residential tower in the Mid-West America to achieve Silver LEED certification for its “green” design.)  The construction team shaved off more than two months from their schedule using a combination of post-tensioning, specialized forming and stronger concrete.  Ultimately, it reduced vehicular carbon emissions and the strain on local infrastructure.

Additionally, a quicker construction schedule will reduce the number of days with noisy construction (noise emission).  Residents and animal-wildlife in the surrounding ecosystem will benefit from the reduced human activity.  While there is the obvious political, social and economic pressure for constructing structures, we can attempt to protect the ecosystem and reduce the impact of the construction industry.

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 1)

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 2)

- Neel Khosa, AMSYSCO

Copyright © 2009 by AMSYSCO, Inc. All rights reserved.

As described in a previous blog, unbonded post-tensioned concrete can reduce vertical construction elements.  Simply put, the less material used means less building weight (dead load).  The reduced weight can allow for smaller foundations and shear walls.  This can minimize excavation requirements, the need for caissons and possibility of affecting the water table.

With a reduced building weight due to unbonded post-tensioned concrete, there is potential savings for the following:

Construction

1. Concrete Footings/Foundations/Caissons
2. Concrete Shear walls
3. Excavation
4. Retaining Walls
5. Pumping of water for underground work

Operational Life-Cycle Savings

1. The impact (erosion) of building weight will be less the on surrounding land.
2. The cost of pumping of water to control sub-terrain flooding can be reduced.
3. Improved Seismic behavior.
4. Reduced deflection and vibration.

(On an aside, I found two interesting blogs that discuss the LEED program at http://www.reallifeleed.com/ and http://leedblogger.com/)

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 1)

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 3)

- Neel Khosa, AMSYSCO

Copyright © 2009 by AMSYSCO, Inc. All rights reserved.

While I don’t claim to be a LEED expert, I have done some basic research on the subject and how my industry, unbonded post-tensioned concrete, factors in.  I believe that unbonded post-tensioned concrete can help some mid-rise and high-rise office/residential buildings received a higher LEED rating.

BUILDING HEIGHT

The potential for a reduction in the building height (and floor-to-floor height) is one key benefit that Unbonded Post-Tensioning has over Structural Steel.  The Post-Tensioning Institute issued a technical bulletin which compares the savings in building height:  a typical 10-story structural steel building has a height of 125’ whereas a typical 10-story post-tensioning building has a height of only 108’.  The impact of the 13.6% reduction in vertical height is obvious – the quantities of all vertical elements will be reduced.

When compared to a Conventional Rebar slab, an Unbonded Post-Tensioning structure can function with thinner slabs and smaller columns.  The Post-Tensioning Institute issued a technical bulletin which showed a 16% reduction in concrete with a post-tensioned residential building (excludes foundation).  Also, the weight of the steel (post-tensioning tendon and rebar) inside the slabs/beams was 20% less in the post-tensioned structure versus a conventional rebar structure.  Finally, the vertical height was reduced by 2% in the post-tensioned building.

With a reduced building height due to unbonded post-tensioned concrete, there are potential savings for the following:

Construction

1. Piping for Mechanical, Electrical/ Telecom/Security, Plumbing, Fire Protection, etc.
2. Facades with Curtainwall, Precast, Masonry, etc.
3. Concrete Columns and Shear Walls
4. Elevators, Metal Stairs, Construction Hoists/Cranes
5. Reduced floor-to-floor height can reduce material for interior finishes (drywall, etc.)
6. Reduced freight, CO2, pollution, labor, manufacturing, etc.

Operational Life-Cycle Savings

1. The building will cast less of a shadow on the ground.  This can allow grade-level vegetation to receive more sunlight.  Therefore, landscaping costs and water usage for irrigation can be reduced.
2. There will be a reduction in the energy required to vertically transport liquids (water), gases, cooled air, people, etc.  Ultimately, this should reduce the energy bill for the owner(s).
3. Quicker evacuation times in case of emergencies for tenants on the upper levels.
4. Reduced floor-to-floor height and volume can reduce HVAC costs within units.

In future posts, I will talk about Building Weight, Quicker Construction and other LEED items.

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 2)

Post Tensioned Concrete and LEED (part 3)

- Neel Khosa, AMSYSCO Inc.

Copyright © 2009 by AMSYSCO, Inc. All rights reserved.

In my experience working as a general Contractor and Subcontractor, I have noticed a substantial increase in the use of PDF’s for transfer of 8.5”x11” documentation (in lieu of mailing and faxes).  However, I have only experienced a slight increase in shop drawing transfer via PDF.  Since I am part of the digital generation, I am a big supporter of paperless documentation for the following reasons:

1. QUICKER SUBMITTALS: Email > Mail.

 This one is fairly simple – email is much faster than mail.  An Auto CAD detailer will take several minutes to convert a DWG file into PDF and email it to the appropriate parties.  With a click of the button, the Contractor can forward the submittal to the Architect/Engineer.  Now that the software has the ability to digitally “mark up” drawings, I have noticed that some Structural Engineers and Contractors encourage digital drawing transfer.  The Engineer can return the reviewed submittal to the Contractor who forwards it to the Subcontractor in a matter of minutes.  Under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, passed by President Clinton, emails are equivalent to paper (i.e. transmittals) for legal matters.  One potential downside is the digital files can be large at times.  Hopefully with increased broadband/DSL/T1 speeds, this will be non-issue in a few years.

By contrast, traditional mail can involve many time-consuming steps.  1) Printing the drawings.  Assuming the Subcontractor has a plotter in house, this step will take several minutes.  Subcontractors without plotters will have to email files to a printing company which costs more money and takes more time.  2) Making several copies for all parties.  Assuming the Subcontractor has a fast large-scale copier in house, this step will take several more minutes.  Subcontractors without copiers will have to rely on the printing company.  3) Packaging and Mailing the drawings by car/truck/airplane.  This step may take 1-2 hours for local work or 1-5 days for out-of-town work.  Another issue is that mail can get lost, misplaced or remain unopened more easily than an email.  4) Review Process.  The contractor reviews the submittal and mails it to the Architect/Engineer (more time wasted).  After the review, the Architect/Engineer must mail it back to the Contractor (more time wasted).  Finally, the Contractor mails it to the Subcontractor (more time wasted).  This process gets aggravated for work done in foreign countries.

Construction schedules and deadlines are tighter than in the past.  The traditional mail process wastes money and time in transit whereas digital transfer is relatively free and instant.  The extra time can be used for other purposes:  coordination, management and incorporation of redesigns/RFIs.  With all that said, it is still a good idea to keep a paper copy of the drawings for your records.  Technology is great but not perfect.

2. SAVE THE TREES:  The PDF is environmentally friendly and cost-effective.       

The typical construction drawing (the Architect E1 size) is 30″x42″ in size.  The area of the E1 is equivalent to 13.5 sheets of 8.5″x11″ copy paper.  Estimates are that 1 tree will make 9000 sheets of copy paper (or 667 sheets of E1).

Many Subcontractors have probably experienced receiving a huge roll of 667 design drawings…only to end up using 30 structural sheets.  The reason that Contractors send EVERY drawing is to ensure that their Subcontractors do not miss any information (and CYA).  Contractors can reduce their paper costs by sending PDFs (either via CD or downloadable online) instead of hardcopies.

One potential downside is that printing costs will be shifted from Contractors towards Subcontractors.  This negative can be offset by having Subcontractors submit PDF versions of shop drawings to Contractors (in lieu of sending 3-10 copies of the submittal).  Another downside is that the Subcontractor will have to spend time sorting through PDFs to figure out which sheets are worth printing.  Time is money but the goal is to reduce the total sheets printed and save the environment.

On a disheartening side note, I find it ironic that we strive to get construction projects LEED certified but we neglect the forest of trees killed in the process.

3. MORE ORGANIZED FILING: Folders are our friends.

I won’t get into detail about the computer software, but I find it easier and quicker to retrieve digital documents off a computer rather than sort through paper file systems.  One caveat is that both systems take time to set up and discipline to maintain them.

When one of my customers calls, I can access the necessary digital drawings within a few seconds and (hopefully) answer their question(s) immediately.  There is nothing better than closing an issue quickly and reducing the phone bills.  Granted, basic questions can be answered over email but the complex questions require more communication.

Conversely, when a customer calls me in “non-digital-land,” I would have to put the customer on hold, go to the print room, pray that I find the drawings quickly, go back to my room, open the drawings up, and then address the customer.  If I couldn’t find the drawings, then I’d have to call the customer back.

While critics will find flaws with digital transfer of drawings versus mail, I strongly believe that digital is the way of the future.  Down the road, mobile phone technology will allow the field workers to project installation drawings onto surfaces.  An entire construction crew can be coordinated through their mobile phones rather carry outdated and dirty drawings in their Jobox.

- Neel Khosa, AMSYSCO Inc

Copyright © 2009 by AMSYSCO, Inc. All rights reserved.