The Korea Iron and Steel Association Structural Steel Center has announced that KS (Korea Standards) Korean Standards have been incorporated into the Singapore Grade I Building and Construction Guidelines (BC1). KS Korea standard covers 33 types of construction steel products, including hot-rolled plates for welding structures, hot-rolled section steel for building structures, carbon steel tubes for building structures, cold-rolled sheets, hot-galvanized sheets and hot-rolled steel bars for building structures.
As a result, the association expects South Korea’s steel exports to Singapore to increase by about 20,000 tons per year, or about 20 percent per year. Relevant data show that in 2022, South Korea exported 118,000 tons of steel to Singapore. Previously, only standards from the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United States, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and China were included in Singapore’s Grade I building and construction guidelines. Since the KS Korean standard has not been recognized by Singapore, it is difficult for Korean construction steel to enter the Singapore construction market, and a series of tests are required for each delivery. In order to meet the relevant requirements of Singapore, South Korean construction steel also needs to reduce the strength of 20%.
The Korea Iron and Steel Association said that with the inclusion of KS Korea standard in Singapore’s Grade 1 building and construction guidelines, the Singapore construction market is now free to design and apply construction steel that meets KS Korea standard, which is expected to expand South Korea’s steel exports to Singapore.