Comprehensive Anti-Counterfeiting Solutions for High-Performance Construction Materials & Additives
Counterfeit materials used in the building industry can present a threat to public safety. The problem is that counterfeits are difficult to detect. High-performance materials and construction additives (waterproofing agents, plasticizers, retarding agents, etc.) are particularly prone to counterfeiting.
Fake Construction Materials Pose Life-Threatening Risks
The big concern of high-performance construction material manufacturers or regulators (who expect construction companies to use high-performance materials) is that they replace the expensive material with sub-standard, cheap material. Quite often, such non-compliance is difficult to detect when the construction project is handed over, as the ‘cracks’ in the bridge or building will only appear long after the construction is completed.
84%
of counterfeit products affect the construction
industry
53%
of suppliers faced with counterfeit steel products
$1 Trillion / year
cost of counterfeit goods in construction (Construction Industry Institute)
98%
of fake steel products pose a risk to the industry
Top ten most counterfeited materials in the construction industry (Construction Industry Institute): Steel, Fasteners, Valves, Pipe, Circuit breakers, Rotating equipment parts, Electric equipment, Pipe fittings, Pressure vessels, and Cement.
There are three main illicit practices in the construction industry:
- Fraudulent branding of non-certified products using the brand of well-known, certified suppliers
- The refurbishment of used construction products to appear and be sold as new.
- Falsified material test certificates.
As global markets expand and demand increases for specific construction materials, traceability and anti-counterfeiting become paramount. Counterfeit construction materials reduce operational reliability, increase maintenance costs, and endanger lives.
Counterfeit drywall manufactured from China was used in residential construction between 2001 and 2009 in an estimated 100,000 homes in more than 20 states in the US. Laboratory tests detected off-gassing of volatile chemicals including carbon disulfide, carbonyl sulfide, and hydrogen sulfide. The emissions worsen as temperature and humidity rise and give off a sulfuric (rotten egg) odor.
This caused health symptoms in homeowners including respiratory problems such as asthma attacks, chronic coughing, difficulty breathing, chronic headaches, and sinus issues.
Counterfeit bolts can cause death in workers or even total structural collapse. In February 2017, a multistory building in Kanpur, India, collapsed and killed three people. The building collapsed under its own weight caused by substandard construction materials.
Substandard metal roofing might not perform as weathertight and could jeopardize the entire structural and functional responsibility of the metal building system.
Counterfeit smart home components are also proliferating in the construction industry. The Internet of Things (IoT) is now an integrated part of the construction process, as homes and buildings become smarter, greener and more self-sufficient with more systems having electronics and internet-connected control mechanisms built right in. Counterfeiting in this sector could prove to be catastrophic.
MatriX-Mark™ Taggants: Unique Chemical Markers
- Taggants/particles are present in the construction material
- Construction material has been diluted with other material
These taggants are invisible marks that help companies fight against counterfeits. As these taggants are invisible to the human eye and cannot be detected by UV or IR, they are invaluable tools for anti-counterfeiting. It needs specialized sensors or detectors from NanoMatriX to recognize the presence of these taggants.
With MatriX-Mark™ security taggants, we can provide a price competitive method of verifying the use of high-performance construction material on the spot, during the construction, or even right after the construction is completed.
With these taggants, NanoMatriX is confident to provide evidence beyond any reasonable doubt, whether the right construction material has been used, save huge sums of potential liability claims, and perhaps even save lives.
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