There is a lot of pleasure – and perhaps some relief – across the UK steel industry at the news that the future of primary steelmaking at British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant has been secured, at least for the forseeable future. The long-term future for UK blast furnace steel manufacturing may not be fully settled yet, but news that essential raw materials started arriving at Scunthorpe at the end of April means that production will continue.
Steelwork contractors have stressed that they have robust supply chains that include access to alternative steel sources, and are confident that they can supply the UK’s market needs regardless of where the steel is manufactured. There are obviously national security and other advantages to having at least some domestic production of strategically important materials of proven quality, and Scunthorpe’s usefulness on that score at least cannot be doubted.
Steel construction is embedded in the provision of the UK’s infrastructure, and news that increases confidence in the future availability of any strategic material will always be welcomed by project funders, developers and public sector clients. In the case of steel, the benefits and value it delivers across UK industries to end users of all types can be clearly seen in this issue of NSC.
One industry that benefits hugely from constructional steelwork is logistics. Speed of construction, flexibility to cater for changing use, and of course cost effectiveness, are key reasons for the success of steel in this market.
One major developer of logistics facilities is Panattoni. In this month’s magazine, we feature their latest project; a regional distribution centre for Tesco, where steel allowed for the easy provision of freezer, chiller and ambient temperature controlled zones. Existing occupiers of steel-framed facilities on this site include Amazon, Marley Tiles and DHL.
City centre refurbishment schemes involving the retention, reuse and extension of existing structures are on the rise, contributing to the Government’s net zero target. We see a good example in our article on One Exchange Square, a multi-storey office development in the City of London that’s aiming for a BREEAM Excellent rating. Steel’s lightweight features mean extra storeys can be easily added to existing buildings.
We see a rather different market being served in another of this month’s articles, a Search and Rescue Training Centre on the Solent. Steel’s offsite fabrication advantages allowed a long span to be created in two sections that could be joined together on site. The large column sections support 50 tonnes of crane and helicopter suspended for rescue crew training.
Steel provides ideal frames for Energy-from-Waste plants, as we see in a West Midlands project. Steel was chosen for a number of reasons, including its ability to efficiently form the column-free spans needed to house a variety of process and equipment areas. No other framing solution would have suited the customised design, or the plant’s complex geometry.
As is frequently the case, it’s hard to envisage this project being constructed of anything other than steel. Having steel manufactured within easy reach of a project isn’t essential; but it certainly does no harm.
Steel the strategic solution
There is a lot of pleasure – and perhaps some relief – across the UK steel industry at the news that the future of primary steelmaking at British Steel’s Scunthorpe plant has been secured, at least for the forseeable future. The long-term future for UK blast furnace steel manufacturing may not be fully settled yet, but news that essential raw materials started arriving at Scunthorpe at the end of April means that production will continue.
Steelwork contractors have stressed that they have robust supply chains that include access to alternative steel sources, and are confident that they can supply the UK’s market needs regardless of where the steel is manufactured. There are obviously national security and other advantages to having at least some domestic production of strategically important materials of proven quality, and Scunthorpe’s usefulness on that score at least cannot be doubted.
Steel construction is embedded in the provision of the UK’s infrastructure, and news that increases confidence in the future availability of any strategic material will always be welcomed by project funders, developers and public sector clients. In the case of steel, the benefits and value it delivers across UK industries to end users of all types can be clearly seen in this issue of NSC.
One industry that benefits hugely from constructional steelwork is logistics. Speed of construction, flexibility to cater for changing use, and of course cost effectiveness, are key reasons for the success of steel in this market.
One major developer of logistics facilities is Panattoni. In this month’s magazine, we feature their latest project; a regional distribution centre for Tesco, where steel allowed for the easy provision of freezer, chiller and ambient temperature controlled zones. Existing occupiers of steel-framed facilities on this site include Amazon, Marley Tiles and DHL.
City centre refurbishment schemes involving the retention, reuse and extension of existing structures are on the rise, contributing to the Government’s net zero target. We see a good example in our article on One Exchange Square, a multi-storey office development in the City of London that’s aiming for a BREEAM Excellent rating. Steel’s lightweight features mean extra storeys can be easily added to existing buildings.
We see a rather different market being served in another of this month’s articles, a Search and Rescue Training Centre on the Solent. Steel’s offsite fabrication advantages allowed a long span to be created in two sections that could be joined together on site. The large column sections support 50 tonnes of crane and helicopter suspended for rescue crew training.
Steel provides ideal frames for Energy-from-Waste plants, as we see in a West Midlands project. Steel was chosen for a number of reasons, including its ability to efficiently form the column-free spans needed to house a variety of process and equipment areas. No other framing solution would have suited the customised design, or the plant’s complex geometry.
As is frequently the case, it’s hard to envisage this project being constructed of anything other than steel. Having steel manufactured within easy reach of a project isn’t essential; but it certainly does no harm.