Section of high-speed railway line in China collapses

[RandomGuy]

FWIW.


SHANGHAI (AP) — Part of a high-speed railway line collapsed in central China following heavy rains, state media reported, jolting railroad shares and reviving worries over safety.

About 7 kilometers (4 1/2 miles) of track were being removed after it sank at points where the line runs across a floodplain, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday. Initially the agency reported that only 300 meters (984 feet) of track had been affected by the collapse Friday near Qianjiang city in Hubei province. The railway line is due to open in May.

"We discovered the problem during the evaluation phase, and invited experts to reinforce the rails," it quoted Wang Zujian, a director for Hubei's provincial railway construction bureau, as saying.

Reports of the collapse along the line between the Yangtze River cities of Wuhan and Yichang mentioned no casualties. Hundreds of workers were rushing to repair the line, residents and reports said.

The collapse, the latest high profile problem since a bullet-train crash last summer that killed 40 people, rattled share markets in Hong Kong and Shanghai, where major railway company stocks dropped on the news.

One might remember the collapses of schools that killed so many children, and the other recent, high-profile collapse.


Last data point:
This is the same country that is building 43 nuclear power plants. (not too sure about that number, but it seems to jibe with my other readings)

http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/China/China-to-resume-building-plants/Article1-825024.aspx

http://www.carnegieendowment.org/2012/03/11/china-s-nuclear-crossroads/a258

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ex-officials-battle-china-nuclear-plant-plan-2012-03-11?dist=beforebell


I have little doubt there will be a major Chinese disaster within the next 20 years.

I only hope it isn't too bad.

[coyotes_geek]

Chinese engineering/construction practices still leave a lot to be desired.

[DarkReign]

As you well know, China and Chinese culture do not value human life in the same way Westerners do.

If Katrina happened in China, it wouldnt even register to the government as a serious problem. The people may flip a bit, the internet would be hot with it, but the official response would be underwhelming to say the least.

Nation of choice, indeed.

[Wild Cobra]

Chinese engineering/construction practices still leave a lot to be desired.
They must have learned from USA Union workers.

[DarkReign]

They must have learned from USA Union workers.

Yuck yuck

*rimshot*

[TeyshaBlue]

They must have learned from USA Union workers.



:facepalm

[TeyshaBlue]

Chinese engineering/construction practices still leave a lot to be desired.

I've worked on a ton of buggies that have used Chinese knockoff aftermarket parts. It's as if they use anything that will take a weld to build frames out of.

Seriously, a stern look will bend one of their buggy axles.

[RandomGuy]

I've worked on a ton of buggies that have used Chinese knockoff aftermarket parts. It's as if they use anything that will take a weld to build frames out of.

Seriously, a stern look will bend one of their buggy axles.

Now imagine those welders working on cooling and venting systems for nucleear power plants.

:spless:

[boutons_deux]

China has LOTS of (excess) people.

The corrupt Chinese at the very top, aka "communists", don't GAF about their 99.99% (exactly the same situ in the USA).

[RandomGuy]

is this the maglev line?

(edit)

I think so, but am not sure. The news article didn't specify.

[coyotes_geek]

Engineers working on some projects have complained of problems with contractors using inferior concrete or inadequate steel support bars. A report last week by the state-run magazine Time Weekly reported allegations that builders on another section of the same Wuhan-Yichang line may have compromised safety by substituting soil for rocks in the railway bed.


In one case the Railways Ministry ordered almost all of a $260 million railway line in northeastern China redone after finding contractors had farmed the work out to unqualified construction companies that filled railway bridges' foundations with rocks and sand instead of concrete.

link (http://www.chron.com/business/article/Report-of-China-rail-section-collapse-jolts-shares-3398593.php)

[diego]

you get what you pay for. crap is made in china because people the world over want cheap shit. they also make BMWs and CPUs and space ships.

My brother works for a huge engineering firm, and was overseeing the construction of the ice rink for the utah winter olympics (was that 2000, I cant remember). The contractor used a lower gauge wire for the roofing than what was specced by my brother, and the entire roof fell; by miracle no one was injured. how is this any different? sub contractors cut corners to save money all the time.

the accident last year was extremely bad luck, how often is lightning going to strike a train? do you really want to compare per capita accidental deaths from one country to another? I dont think you'll see the catastrophe that some of you are implying at all.

[Slomo]

(edit)

I think so, but am not sure. The news article didn't specify.

It's not the maglev. It's for their version of the bullet train.

QA in china is a nightmare. I know of a case where Japanese specialist were hired to do the QA in a Chinese factory that had a great product and quite nice market projections. They gave up after 6 months and the company never made any real profit despite having a clear technological advantage over their competitors.

[RandomGuy]

you get what you pay for. crap is made in china because people the world over want cheap shit. they also make BMWs and CPUs and space ships.

My brother works for a huge engineering firm, and was overseeing the construction of the ice rink for the utah winter olympics (was that 2000, I cant remember). The contractor used a lower gauge wire for the roofing than what was specced by my brother, and the entire roof fell; by miracle no one was injured. how is this any different? sub contractors cut corners to save money all the time.

the accident last year was extremely bad luck, how often is lightning going to strike a train? do you really want to compare per capita accidental deaths from one country to another? I dont think you'll see the catastrophe that some of you are implying at all.

How many Chernobyls does it take to be too many?

It only takes one subcontractor pocketing a bit more money at the expense of safety.

It only takes one farmer putting cow piss into his milk to bump up the protein content in order to get a higher price to kill a few hundred babies that drink formula from that milk.

Engineering failures happen in every country, but corruption and greed invariably makes them worse.

[diego]

How many Chernobyls does it take to be too many?

It only takes one subcontractor pocketing a bit more money at the expense of safety.

It only takes one farmer putting cow piss into his milk to bump up the protein content in order to get a higher price to kill a few hundred babies that drink formula from that milk.

Engineering failures happen in every country, but corruption and greed invariably makes them worse.

How many three mile islands, or do only communist meltdowns register? How many bhopals?

I'm not excusing cost-cutting; I just dont get why you and others are treating it like some kind of Chinese invention. It happens everywhere and it happens because of greed.

In the OP you listed the train crash from last year (which IMO was just a freak accident, not an engineering failure, much like the amtrak derailments that have happened the past couple years) and this incident as if Chinese industry is rife with these problems. If that were the case, why is the entire worlds' manufacturing industry going there? Oh right, because people everywhere want cheap shit. How did the chinese force consumers to prefer cheap merchandise? How did they force american and european industry to move their plants?

And no matter how corrupt or greedy you might consider Chinese leadership to be, they would have to be monumentally stupid to willingly turn a blind eye to cost cutting on a nuclear reactor. How on earth is that going to make them richer and keep them in power longer?