By Franklin Alli & Okechukwu Onunze
STANDARDS Organisation of Nigeria, disclosed, Tuesday, it has acquired seventeen (17) digital cameras to capture the faces of people behind the business of importing and manufacturing of bad products.

The Director General, Dr. Joseph Odumodu, made this disclosure in Lagos, when he launched a new Nigerian Industrial Standards for aluminum roofing sheets, cladding and flashing, coded NIS 488:2010.

Addressing manufacturers, importers, distributors, and other stakeholders in the sector, Odumodu said that beyond seizure and burning of bad products, we are going to the next level by unmasking the people behind the business, show them on television channels, and advertise them and their products in the newspapers.”

He appealed to operators in the sector to apply the agency’s “zero tolerance to substandard products” strategy to aluminum roofing sheets production, importation and distribution in Nigeria.

He said the specification is .400mm thickness for aluminum, stressing, “stick to what is in the standard, anything less than that will be seized.  If you don’t do the right thing, if our taskforce goes out tomorrow and discovered you have lower standards, we will seal-up your company and unmask you to the public.

He decried a situation whereby houses built with roofing sheets were reported to be leakimng while their colours faded within three months after fixing.   We have watched your performance of the years with great concern but let us be “born again” for the betterment of the economy.”

However, some of the stakeholders who reacted said: “We welcome the policy of “Zero Tolerance to substandard Products.”  Our company is known for manufacturing quality aluminum in Africa.  We are interested in conforming to standards,” said Mr. Abolaji Emmanuel, who represented Aluminum Rolling Mills Plc.

He urged SON to include AO11, 3105 in the new standard.  Another stakeholders further urged SON to go after the unidentified 40 companies who are bringing in lower quality aluminum and are ruining the industry.