ThyssenKrupp Steel – Calvert, Alabama
In the late 2000’s, ThyssenKrupp (TK) began construction on 2.8 million square feet of production facilities on 1,500 acres of land in Calvert, Alabama. It included a Hot Strip Mill, Cold Rolling Mill, Hot Dip Galvanizing Facility, Stainless Steel Plant, Water Treatment Plant, and a River Terminal. The $4 billion project was the largest privately funded construction project in the world.
TK secured a Quality Assurance Services team that I was proud to oversee. We were responsible for verifying the compliance of five separate testing/inspection firms involved in the project. Prior to our arrival, quality control for the project was deplorable. Unethical practices included forged testing results, code ignorance, unsafe construction practices, and uncertified inspectors, testers, and welders. Within the first week of our presence, we recorded over 150 deficiencies.
Throughout the project, we shared our knowledge and informed the contractors and inspectors of their wrong-doings. This alone improved the quality of work being performed. By the end of the project, contractors performed ethically and in accordance with specifications and applicable codes. Most, if not all, the deficiencies had been cleared and deficiencies found were easily corrected. This project remains one of the top highlights of my career.