Comment
NSC 5
May 18
Steel’s winning ways
The construction industry’s clients have never been more cost conscious than they are today, always alert for ways of
keeping a lid on final project prices. Against a rapidly changing background of rising input costs, not helped by volatile
currency movements, who can blame them?
The steel sector’s latest contribution to managing costs better is being distributed with this issue of NSC and several
other key construction industry magazines. Our Cost supplement, based on a new series of quarterly updated studies
from AECOM, BCSA and Steel for Life, is part of a commitment to provide the essential guidance needed to provide
accurate costs for building frames.
Surveys have confirmed that cost is often the key driver in selecting framing materials, and the steel sector’s analysis
of decisions made in the real world has revealed that it is easy to fail to undertake a proper cost analysis, thereby
producing an inaccurate cost estimate. While the frame only accounts for 10% of a building’s cost, it can influence
other costs such as foundations and should always be properly estimated.
Steel is usually expected to provide the cost-effective option when all the relevant factors are properly considered,
which is why over 90% of single storey industrial buildings and around 70% of multi-storey buildings are framed
in steel. Some decision making processes however are not as robust as they should be. The outcome can be cost
estimates that are too high, creating disappointment when decisions on whether to proceed with a project are being
taken; or too low, guaranteeing a shocked client when tenders are returned.
It is obviously in everybody’s interests that cost analyses are properly undertaken, providing the basis for good
decision making. Comprehensive cost guidance is provided by this regularly updated series – that can be found on
www.steelconstruction.info - across five key sectors – offices, education, mixed-use, retail and industrial.
Key advantages of steel framing that affect project cost and profitability are discussed in the new Cost supplement
including column-free floorplates, adaptability, offsite manufacture, services integration, low self-weight and
construction programme benefits.
Involving the steelwork contractor at an early stage can sometimes mean initial cost estimates turn out to have been
unduly pessimistic, as we see in this issue of NSC where REIDsteel was able to refine the original design of a hospitality
suite at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire by replacing some large roof beams with cantilevering purlins instead.
Examples of that sort of cost advantage are everyday occurrences on steel construction projects, as we regularly see
reported in our project profiles.
Also in this issue we see an innovative design for a major distribution project, in a sector where cost can make or
break developments, said to be setting a new benchmark for the industry. The speed of steel construction is one of
those cost factors that can sometimes be overlooked, but it was a major plus on this project, where it took Severfield
just ten weeks to erect a frame for a building that could accommodate ten football pitches. If a building can be offered
faster and for less, everyone’s a winner.
Nick Barrett - Editor
BARRETT
STEEL LIMITED
Headline sponsors:
Gold sponsors: AJN Steelstock Ltd | Ficep UK Ltd | Kingspan Limited |
National Tube Stockholders and Cleveland Steel & Tubes |
Peddinghaus Corporation | voestalpine Metsec plc | Wedge Group Galvanizing Ltd
Silver sponsors: Hadley Group | Jack Tighe Ltd | Tata Steel | Trimble Solutions (UK) Ltd
Bronze sponsors: Barnshaw Section Benders Limited | Hempel | Joseph Ash Galvanizing | Jotun Paints |
Kaltenbach Limited | Kloeckner Metals UK | Sherwin-Williams | Tension Control Bolts Ltd |
Voortman Steel Machinery
For further information about steel construction and Steel for Life please visit
www.steelconstruction.info or www.steelforlife.org
Steel for Life is a wholly owned subsidiary of BCSA
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