No. Under Build America, Buy America (BABA), fiberglass grating counts as a plastic and polymer-based construction material, so every manufacturing process must take place in the US. Strongrate grating is made in Nantong, China, so it does not qualify for BABA-covered infrastructure projects that receive federal funding. Privately funded industrial, commercial and marine projects are not subject to BABA.
We do not quote BABA-covered projects
If your project uses federal financial assistance for infrastructure, do not specify or bid Strongrate grating for it. Our FRP grating quote form asks how each project is funded; federally funded requests are kept on file but not quoted.
What does Buy America require of fiberglass grating?
The Build America, Buy America Act is part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA §70914). It sets domestic-content preferences for infrastructure projects that receive federal financial assistance. OMB’s implementing guidance, 2 CFR part 184, took effect on Oct 23, 2023.
Buy America treats fiberglass grating as a construction material: 2 CFR 184 lists plastic and polymer-based products, including plastic and polymer-based composite building materials, in that category, and every manufacturing process for them must take place in the United States. A grating made in China fails that test at the first step, whatever its resin, size or price.
| BABA category | Buy America rule for fiberglass grating | Grating made in China |
|---|---|---|
| Construction material: plastic and polymer-based products, including composite building materials | All manufacturing processes in the United States | Does not qualify |
| Manufactured product: an item that combines several listed materials, such as grating with metal hardware | Manufactured in the US, with more than 55% of its components domestic | Does not qualify: manufactured in Nantong, China |
| Iron and steel (EPA State Revolving Fund American Iron and Steel requirement) | Covers iron and steel products only; FRP grating falls outside it | BABA still applies to the grating itself |
Which projects are covered by Buy America, and which are not?
Buy America follows the money, not the product type alone. The same grating can be barred from a federally funded treatment plant and still be a normal choice for a privately funded chemical plant.
| Project or funding | Domestic-content rule | Can China-made FRP grating be used? |
|---|---|---|
| Water and wastewater projects funded through EPA programs: Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds, WIFIA and others | BABA applies to more than 70 EPA programs | No |
| Other infrastructure projects that receive federal financial assistance | BABA under 2 CFR part 184 | No |
| Federal-aid highway and bridge projects (FHWA) | FHWA Buy America; manufactured-products waiver rescinded; from Oct 1, 2026, manufactured products need 55% domestic components | No |
| Direct federal purchases (Buy American Act, FAR Part 25) | Domestic-content threshold of 65% in 2024, rising to 75% in 2029 | Not as a domestic product; the solicitation’s Buy American clause decides |
| Privately funded plants, car washes, marinas and commercial buildings | Not subject to BABA1 | Yes, unless your specification or other funding conditions require US manufacture |
| State or local projects with no federal funds | Not subject to BABA1 | Check your bid documents for state and local buy-domestic rules |
Notes
- 1Project specifications or other funding conditions can still require US manufacture; check your bid documents.
Can a waiver allow imported grating on a BABA project?
Waivers exist, but they belong to the funding recipient, not to the supplier. EPA’s de minimis waiver allows non-compliant products totaling up to 5% of total project cost, and the recipient applies it. Project-specific waivers for nonavailability, a cost increase over 25% or the public interest can be sought only by the recipient, through the federal agency.
A manufacturer cannot obtain a BABA waiver, and we do not quote BABA-covered projects on the expectation that one will be granted. If your project is federally funded, plan on grating that is manufactured in the United States.
Can a project specification require US-made grating on private work?
Yes. Some US guide specifications state that gratings shall be manufactured in the USA, and China-made grating does not meet a clause like that. If your specification (usually Section 06 74 13) contains one, or your funding conditions require US manufacture, Strongrate grating is not the right product for that project. See fiberglass grating specifications for what US guide specs ask for.
How does our quote form screen for Buy America?
Every FRP grating quote request asks how the project is funded before anything is quoted. Private and industrial requests are routed by size and timing: a factory quote for full containers and project quantities, or a US stocking importer for orders under about 500 sq ft or needed in under 3 weeks. Federally funded public works are not quoted.
What should you specify for a federally funded project?
- Specify fiberglass grating whose manufacturer can document that all manufacturing processes took place in the United States, which 2 CFR 184 requires for plastic and polymer-based construction materials.
- Ask the funding recipient or your agency contact how it wants BABA compliance documented for construction materials before bid day, not after award.
- Remember that grating delivered with clips or other hardware may be assessed as a manufactured product, with its own domestic-content test.
- For the privately funded projects you also run, request a quote or read how buying direct works.
Frequently asked questions
Does cutting or fabricating imported grating in the US make it BABA compliant?
No. 2 CFR 184 requires every manufacturing process for plastic and polymer-based construction materials to take place in the US. Grating molded or pultruded in China fails that test at the first step, so cutting, fabricating or assembling it in the US does not change the result.
Does BABA still apply when a contractor, not the agency, buys the grating?
Yes. BABA’s domestic-content preference attaches to the federally assisted infrastructure project, not to who places the order, so grating a contractor or subcontractor supplies for a covered project is held to the same rule.
Does Buy America apply to grating projects in Canada?
BABA is a US requirement tied to US federal financial assistance, so it does not set the rules for Canadian public projects; check your tender documents for Canadian procurement rules.
Request a quote
Private or industrial project? Send your product, quantity, ZIP code and need-by date; we reply within 1 business day (US Central time) with the route and next steps.
Sources
- Federal Register 2023-17724, 2 CFR parts 184 and 200: OMB guidance for grants and agreements (Buy America preferences) (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- EPA, Build America, Buy America FAQs for manufacturers (Jun 2025) (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- EPA, Build America, Buy America (Clean Water State Revolving Fund page) (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- EPA, BABA De Minimis Waiver (Oct 2022) (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- Crowell & Moring, End of the road: FHWA rescinds longstanding Buy America waiver for manufactured products (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- Thompson Hine, Final rule amends FAR Part 25 domestic content threshold under the Buy American Act (accessed Oct 15, 2026)
- Strongwell Section 06 74 13, FRP molded grating and stair treads specification (US manufacture clause) (accessed Oct 15, 2026)