The Enquirer reported last month that major contractors are refusing to use Chinese rebar on sites after some batches were found not to be compliant with British standards.

Now SIG Distribution has introduced SIG Assured to show buyers that products comply with all local standards.

Vaughan Taylor, Business Development Director of SIG Construction Accessories, said: “The industry is quite rightly disturbed, waking up to the realisation that cheaper imports may not meet standards and that the safety of professionals and customers could be so easily compromised through the use of materials that aren’t compliant with European regulations.

“We launched SIG Assured to reassure our customers that every product we stock meets all legal requirements.

“Of course, we mustn’t tar all imports from China with the same brush; this is why we encourage the industry to make use of schemes such as SIG Assured.

“We independently verify all of our suppliers and ensure that we can trace the provenance of every product we stock.”

SIG Assured covers industry compliance standards such as safety data sheets, Reach, CE marking and EUTR.