Overheard a spec call about rebar coating and it bugged me all day

Sitting at the supply house in Tulsa and two guys were talking about a commercial slab where the engineer called out epoxy-coated rebar but the GC was pushing to skip it to save about $2,800. They were talking like it was no big deal, just a tweak to the submittal. That stuff protects against corrosion for decades, not just the first few pours. Has anyone else had a GC try to quietly swap out specs on a job to cut costs?

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michael_jones5d ago

Is anyone else wondering what the insurance adjuster would say if that slab cracks and the corrosion shows up in 10 years? You can't exactly un-epoxy the rebar after the fact, and that $2,800 savings turns into a six figure repair real quick. The GC might save his boss money today, but that paper trail lands right back on him when the owner files a claim.