The Advantages of Using Steel in Construction

The Advantages of Using Steel in Construction

Material choice is a major factor in the construction industry, as this can significantly impact the sustainability, longevity, and success of your project. Two commonly used materials in modern building construction and infrastructure work are structural steel and reinforced concrete, which provide reliable strength in various settings. However, if you’re looking to build the strongest, safest, and most sustainable structure, consider working with structural steel, which offers unmatched durability and longevity. Keep reading to learn about a few of the advantages of using structural steel in construction work. 

Strength and Load-Bearing Capacity

Perhaps the biggest advantage of structural steel is its strength. This material can support extremely heavy loads, with a yield stress of 50,000 pounds per square inch in both tension and compression. Additionally, while 36,000-50,000 psi is considered ordinary tensile strength for structural steel, it can reach up to 58,000-70,000 psi. This makes it ideal for large-scale construction projects like:

In fact, structural steel’s high strength-to-weight ratio has made it a top material in building construction and infrastructure work. 

Durability and Longevity

Structural steel is also known for its longevity. Unlike other construction materials, structural steel won’t shrink, rot, or succumb to damage from pests. This makes it a superior option for various building projects.

Structural steel is also an extremely durable material. It can maintain its strength in heavy rains and harsh winds without cracking, shrinking, or warping. Thanks to its excellent ductility, structural steel can even withstand extreme weather events such as earthquakes, fires, and other natural disasters, ensuring structures remain secure and stable.
  

Cost-Effectiveness

While numerous factors can influence the overall cost of building or infrastructure projects, material costs are critical to consider. Structural steel is often built to exact specifications, which can save you money while minimizing material loss. Larger projects can often also realize economies of scale to lower the per-square-foot cost of materials.

In many cases, using structural steel can streamline construction projects. Components using this material allow for quick onsite assembly, which can help reduce labor requirements and associated costs.

Sustainability and Environmental Benefits

Structural steel buildings can meet energy efficiency and sustainability goals. With appropriate insulation, they can drastically lower heating and cooling expenses for a lower carbon footprint. Structural steel’s inherent durability and recyclability further its eco-friendly appeal. Nearly all steel can be recycled and reused in new steel materials and components, which helps minimize emissions and overall environmental impact. 

For maximum benefit, you can incorporate 100% recycled structural steel into your project, reducing waste while lowering maintenance and operational costs.

Structural Steel at Delta Steel

Structural steel is a dependable option for commercial and residential structures due to the enhanced strength, durability, and sustainability it provides. If you’re starting a commercial building project and are considering making structural steel your building material of choice, consider partnering with Delta Steel. As a premier structural steel provider, we can provide all of the steel products you need for your project, including structural steel plates, channels, I-beams, and more. We are committed to delivering quality materials that meet your unique needs at a price you can afford. 

Feel free to contact us today for more information about our structural steel capabilities as well as to request a quote for your project.  

Steel Fabrication: A Guide to the Process

Steel is vital to modern construction, from multi-story buildings to public transportation infrastructure. The material can be 100% recycled repeatedly without losing its beneficial properties, contributing to resource conservation and global sustainability. Structural steel fabricators are responsible for transforming various structural steel profiles, each of which has unique applications.

Learn more about the main stages of the structural steel fabrication process, the different fabrication techniques, and their common applications.

Key Stages of Steel Fabrication

A structural steel fabricator is a company that specializes in turning raw steel into finished structural steel parts. Starting with raw steel beams, plates, or columns, fabricators transform them into specific sizes and shapes using various processing methods, such as welding, bending, cutting, and assembling. The required processing techniques depend on the construction project’s engineering specifications and drawings. Fabricators also ensure that all steel components meet strict safety and quality standards.

Here is an overview of the six key steps to structural steel fabrication:

1. Design and planning. The first stage is to develop engineering specifications and drawings outlining the exact dimensions and requirements of the structural steel parts. A bill of materials (BOM) is also created, listing all the steel components needed to complete the project. At the same time, the project plan budgets, schedules, and determines the required resources and equipment.
2. Material acquisition. Fabricators procure the necessary steel plates, columns, beams, and other raw materials from various suppliers.
3. Fabrication. Fabrication most commonly comprises cutting, drilling, bending, and welding. Using plasma cutters, circular saws, or other cutting equipment, structural steel fabricators cut the steel to specific sizes and shapes. Holes are drilled if the drawings call for bolts or other fasteners. Fabricators use plate bending and roll bending to bend steel to design specifications. Joining components together to create the final assembly, fabricators utilize robotic welding and assembly machinery.
4. Quality control. Verifying that the steel components meet the necessary specifications, fabricators perform visual inspections, dimensional inspections, and non-destructive testing (NDT) to identify hidden defects.
5. Finishing. The steel components are sandblasted to remove any surface impurities and prepare the parts for future processing. These finishing processes include painting or corrosion-resistant coating application.
6. Delivery and installation. Structural steel fabricators transport finished steel products for customers to use on various construction sites. There, the components are typically assembled using rivets or bolts.

The main factors that contribute to a successful fabrication project include:

• Experienced, certified fabricators
• Using advanced technology and equipment
• Accurately interpreting engineering drawings
• Strictly complying with quality standards

Advanced Steel Fabrication Techniques

Structural steel fabrication consists of many different forming techniques to create intricate three-dimensional products for virtually any application. These advanced techniques can add more value and long-term performance to structural steel components.

Cutting

Cutting tools cut steel sections, plates, and channels based on the thickness of the metal. Cutters can cut raw metal stock into the right dimensions for different projects. Some common types of cutting equipment are band saws, plasma cutters, and oxy-fuel cutters.

Welding

Welding processes—such as MIG, TIG, and tungsten arc welding—can permanently join multiple steel pieces into a single unit.

Bending

Fabricators bend flat structural steel stock via roll bending, plate bending, section bending, or tube bending. These processes create angles or curves according to the component’s design specifications.

Forming

Similar to bending, forming uses press brakes and other machinery to change two-dimensional pieces of metal into three-dimensional forms without removing or adding material. Structural steel fabricators can use forming and welding together to create oversized steel sheets.

Machining

Machining processes are subtractive—they cut away or remove excess material to create a new shape. Examples of machining processes include drilling and grinding, which can be done with portable tools or at stationary CNC machining centers.

Coating

Structural steel fabrications benefit from protective coatings like primers or zinc galvanization to prevent corrosion. Fabricators can also apply specialty paints for aesthetics and protection from moisture.

Quality Check

This final process includes thorough inspections to guarantee product quality before the components go out to customers.

Applications of Steel Fabrication

Structural steel fabricators play a vital role in construction, supplying the frameworks and foundations for a variety of applications:

• Infrastructure and road construction, including bridges and overpasses
• Architectural facades
• Energy and mining applications
• Transportation, including trains and vehicles
• Industrial and civil projects
• Utilities
• Distribution warehouses

Learn More About Steel Fabrication From Delta Steel

Structural steel fabrication is essential for everything from breaking ground on new infrastructure projects to creating structural components for cars and appliances. Partnering with a high-quality structural steel fabricator can make all the difference in your next industrial or construction project.

At Delta Steel, we’re committed to providing comprehensive structural steel fabrication products and services across the United States through our network of distribution centers. We have over 60 years of experience as a one-stop supplier, serving multiple major industries with innovative steel fabrication capabilities. Request a quote to get started on your project.