WORLDNEWS
8
international
construction
april 2015
PANAMA
BoskalisWestminster has been awarded a
€
55million (US$ 58
million) contract to construct an artificial residential island off the coast of
Punta Pacifica, PanamaCity, Panama. It will create a 9 ha area of landwith
600,000m
3
of rock to form a perimeter. Thiswill be filledwith 1.3millionm
3
of sand. A bridgewill also be built connecting it to a neighbouring artificial
island. Work is due to start later in 2015 and is scheduled to last two years.
ASIA
ADB sees due
diligence results
Complaints and investigations down in 2014 as
development bank steps up pre-project studies.
T
he Asian Development Bank (ADB) says it increased the number of
pre-project due diligence reviews it carried out last year. The work
by its Office of Anticorruption and Integrity (OAI) is designed as a
preventive andproactive approach to corruption.
OAIheadClareWeesaid,“Detectingandpreventingcorruptionbeforehand
is preferable to dealing with it after the fact. However, investigations and
related remedial actions, debarments and cross debarments will remain a
mainstay and continue tobe an essential feature of ADB’s holistic approach
for fighting corruption.”
The OAI said requests for due diligence reviews were up +73% in 2014,
compared to 2013, adding that last year was the third year it has offered
this service. It said the increase was due to a rise in the ADB’s equity
investments, lending, and development initiatives involving the private
sector, and reflected an increasedneed for thebank to evaluate andminimise
reputational risks in dealings with other entities.
The ADB added it saw a slight dip in the number of new complaints for
integrity violations in 2014. It received 241 complaints, compared to the
record 250 in 2013.The bank added that total complaints converted into
investigations dropped to 84 in 2014, compared to 92 in 2013, which it
claimedwas partly due to itsmore robust screening process.
TheADB said this yearwill see it begin reportingon the value of contracts
implicated in OAI investigations as a tool for quantifying the costs of
integrity violations to the bank.
GLOBAL
Counterfeit
cranes
Terex Cranes has issued a new
warning about counterfeit versions
of Terex crawler crane models, this
time originating from the South
Korean region.
Terex said the 500 tonne capacity
CC 2500-1 lattice boom crawler
cranewas the “model of choice” for
counterfeiters to copy.
The company said counterfeit
products have been branded,
offered for sale and sold as used
Terex cranes for prices well under
market value.
They are either painted white
using the Terex brand or red using
the Demag brand, a company
spokesperson said.
The manufacturer added that
these fakes were often made using
technology and components that
are not designed to work together,
and frequently exhibit poor weld
quality, low grade steel structures,
improperly fitted crawler tracks
and are missing many safety
components.
Klaus Meissner, Terex Cranes’
director of product strategy,
expressed concern at the emergence
of fraudulent equipment.
Hesaid,“This isaserioussituation,
not only because this infringes on
our intellectual property but, more
importantly, it poses a serious safety
risk for our customers.
“The use of these inferior,
counterfeit cranes can result in
deadly consequences.
“Unfortunately, going by serial
number alone will not determine
with certainty that you are buying a
genuineTerex crane, as these plates
can be fake as well,” added Mr
Meissner.
“Many of the counterfeit cranes
were purchased either without
an on-site inspection or through
an inspection conducted by an
unqualified person,” he said.
Terex stressed the importance of
conducting a thorough inspection
of any used crane by a qualified
individual prior to purchasing the
machine.
The manufacturer also asked
customers should contact Terex if
they need assistance in verifying if
amodel is genuine.
US
Record
breaker
March’s World of Asphalt and
AGG1 exhibition inBaltimore, US
broke all records for the event.
More than450 exhibitors tookup
in excess of 135,000 ft
2
(12,500m
2
)
of exhibition space, and the event
was attended by more than 7,600
people. Organiser, the Association
of Equipment Manufacturers
(AEM) also said that some 10,000
tickets were sold for education
sessions taking place at the show.
“The enthusiasm and industry
support have been wonderful. It’s
really important for us to come
together to talkwith and learn from
each other, and that’s what these
shows delivered,” saidRickFeltes of
Lafarge North America and 2015
Chair of the National Stone, Sand
and Gravel Association (NSSGA)
AGG1Academy&Expo.
“The people and companies
who were here understand the
importance and the value of
education and networking; and
they’re the ones who will succeed,”
he added.
World of Asphalt show and
conference chair, Rick Moore of
Lehman-Roberts,
representing
the National Asphalt Pavement
Association (NAPA), added, “This
has been a tremendous event. The
interaction and energy on the show
floor as exhibitors connected with
customers has been great.”
