The last two posts talked about steel “stucco-finish” panels, insulated wall panels and synthetic brick or stone panels. But for owners of American steel buildings who prefer the look of traditional stonework or masonry, they should opt for natural products, which now come in highly ingenious forms and supplemented by modern methods of application.

Natural facades for American steel buildings may cost more than their synthetic counterparts, but they are still cheaper when compared to traditional stonework or masonry. Besides, they come in panels, which can be easily shipped to your jobsite and conveniently and efficiently installed by any regular construction crew.

Most suppliers and manufacturers of American steel buildings also have these natural products in their list of offerings, so you don’t have to deal with another supplier.

Anyway, some of these products include brick veneers, stone veneers (natural or “faux”), and masonry.

What are brick veneers? A veneer is actually a thin covering applied to a surface of another object or material in order to hide its true appearance. Of course, the veneer is typically more attractive than the object itself, so basically, it enhances the appearance or improves the value of the object,

Brick veneers have seen an increasing acceptance in the commercial as well as residential markets. This product provides a timeless look and feel of a brick exterior for American steel buildings. Simply put, a brick veneer is a veneer with a thin brick surface on the front.

Modern methods of installing these products involve creating a free standing wall anchored to the building and not installed directly on the walls. The brick veneers are made from shale and/or clay and is then oven-fired. Usually, the installation is easy and less time consuming than laying whole bricks the traditional way. Brick veneer panels for American steel buildings are thin and light, about ½ to 1 inch thick and can be installed by any regular tradesmen.

The innermost element of this type of façade for American steel buildings is usually a structural metal framing. The brick veneer/steel stud wall system is the most popular for owners of American steel buildings with budget considerations.

The resulting brick façade looks exactly like a solid masonry building. Some of its many benefits are durability, low maintenance, high fire rating and variable design choices.

Still on the subject of facades for American steel buildings, for structures located in regions that experience weather extremes and insulation is necessary, insulated wall panels are the practical choice.

Aside from providing American steel buildings with beauty as well as functionality, insulated panels allow for a tighter building envelope, with walls having higher insulating properties. This means savings in operating costs since fewer drafts will be experienced.
Another cost-saving feature of insulated panels is their fast and easy installation.

Insulated wall panels systems come in different designs, profiles and skins including stucco-finish, plaster-finish, natural stone and quartz aggregates. These panels provide a stylish, modern architectural appearance to American steel buildings.

Another option for facades of American steel buildings are the natural-looking simulated or faux stone and brick panels. These products are made of lightweight materials that add value and style, as well as, heighten the exterior appeal of your home of business establishment.

Synthetic stone or brick panels for American steel buildings are waterproof and resistant to unpleasant weather conditions and pests. They are also flame resistant and self-extinguishing. The panels are highly durable and impact resistant. In fact, they have been proven to resist cracking better than their real counterparts.

Since the products are lightweight, easy to handle and are cut on the jobsite with standard tools, installation is very fast and easy, requiring lesser tradesmen. For you, this means a lot of savings in labor costs and time. Besides, simulated stone or brick panels for American steel buildings are typically less pricey than real brick or cast stone facades. And again, since they significantly weigh less, shipping and handling costs are much lower, as well.

Besides, for most applications, synthetic stone or brick finishes provide significant insulation value. And for those who are adherents of the green movement, the good news is that these products for American steel buildings are considered “green”. Why? Because they are 100% inert, non-toxic, non-gaseous and odor-free.

Indeed, simulated or synthetic stone or brick products are popular because they provide beauty, practicality and functionality for American steel buildings.

During the past decade, American steel buildings have consistently been the top choice for construction, renovation, or expansion of various facilities. American steel buildings, after all, are economical, flexible, and durable – perfect for any building type, purpose, and budget.

Now, American steel buildings may not look the same in terms of interiors and exteriors. However, all American steel buildings share common components that are indispensable for such structures, namely, girts, purlins, cladding, bracing, I-beams, C-sections, and fasteners. There are, of course, other possible components but these are the basic ones that make American steel buildings the economical and efficient building that they are.

Manufacturers recognize that these days, investors – whether big companies or starting entrepreneurs – are all constantly looking for ways to make the most of every dollar. It is a good thing that American steel buildings are designed for efficiency, not only in function but also in form. This feature comes as a consequence of characteristics common to all American steel buildings. One, steel being a naturally strong metal allows for only a minimal number of parts to be used while maintaining exceptional structural integrity. Also, today’s computer modelling technology also makes it possible to optimize the use of material, meaning, no matter what the design of the building, only the amount of steel needed will be used. This is primarily why material and construction costs are kept at a minimum.

You won’t have to worry about getting cheap performance just because you paid a relatively cheap price. Structural optimization of American steel buildings has in fact been proven to reinforce the building’s quality. Imagine paying less for more structural stability. This is because the material optimization leads to structural redundancy – this simply means that even with less material, more load paths are being made available for within the structure. Having multiple load paths, in turn, implies that the building is stronger and more durable since the load is well distributed; thereby, lengthening the service life of American steel buildings.

While speed and ease of construction are two other popular characteristics tagged to American steel buildings, these aren’t exactly the reasons why investors go the unconventional way. The versatility of American steel buildings almost always seals the deal. Not only are American steel buildings flexible in terms of design, they are also very accommodating to changes. This is why steel buildings are popularly used for commercial and industrial applications. The moment you find the need for more space, you can easily make the changes you want since steel buildings are also designed for disassembly and expansion. End walls can easily be detached and reattached to make way for new components and provide more room.

With all these features combined, and possibly more, it’s easy to see why American steel buildings are undoubtedly the best buys in town.

Steel, an alloy of carbon and iron, is easily gained recognition in the construction arena since it was first introduced, and is possibly the most widely used metal alloy for structures whether for industrial, commercial, and residential applications. American steel buildings are essentially made up of, as the term implies, steel. And the many benefits of American steel buildings are owed to the innate properties of this hard-wearing metal.

Apart from immense metallic strength, steel is also – surprisingly – very light weight. This property essentially facilitates the quick assembly of American steel buildings. In fact, steel has the smallest strength to weight ratio relative to other construction materials.

It is common knowledge that American steel buildings are pre-engineered, pre-fabricated structures. Because of its lightness, steel members are easy to transport in kits from the supplier’s location to the construction site. However, steel’s flexibility basically allows for the pre-fabrication process. Steel is highly malleable and hence it is readily possible to create steel members of practically any form. This is also why American steel buildings are known to be fully customizable in terms of design. Nowadays, in fact, there are rarely ever two American steel buildings that are exactly alike in structural design.

American steel buildings are known to be maintenance-free structures. The primary reason for this is again because steel is innately highly resistant against corrosion. This is also why American steel buildings stand strong even when exposed to changing weather conditions. American steel buildings do not corrode nor deteriorate even when constantly exposed to fluctuating moisture levels in the atmosphere and water from rainfall or snow. This is also why manufacturers don’t really think twice about offering 20- to 30-year warranties.

Now, how do you know if you’re getting the right quality of steel for your building? There are several guidelines you can check as you go along finding the right steel building supplier. However, you can just as well remember only the rule of thumb – the quality of steel can be seen right through its appearance. In general, the more lustrous the metal’s surface, the more refined the steel is.

Apart from that, there are more technical ways of finding out the quality of steel. Of course you would want to have a structure that can match the other American steel buildings that are still standing strong up to date. There are such things as stress and shock tests meant to measure tenacity and endurance of the material. There is also such a thing as the R-factor or the resistant factor meant to represent the strength of a particular kind of steel. You must check that these numbers would be good enough to meet your expected performance before making any purchase. Usually, resistant factor of 28-gauge or more is used to guarantee hard-wearing American steel buildings.

In short, the quality of a steel building is dependent on the quality of the basic material, which is steel. Hence, it is important to know the fineness of the material and its properties before choosing which steel type will work best for your purpose.

Over the years, there has been a growing concern for the state of the earth’s natural resources and their apparent fast-moving depletion. Today, it has been proven that in 50 years or so, most of the planet’s energy sources would have been used up, among these sources being oil – which is the basic reason why all industrial countries live and breathe.

Manufacturers of American steel buildings saw how this movement can be an opportunity for steel structures to take the spotlight and, at the same time, serve as a venue for every American to be socially responsible.

“Green building” started to become a popular term in the States, especially in regions like California, where sustainability has been a recent top priority. Green building simply means using alternative materials and new technologies in a move to gain sustainability, both in resources and energy. In simple terms, sustainability can be achieved by using renewable energy sources, choosing recyclable materials, paying attention to carbon footprints, among other things. American steel buildings actually meet most – if not all – these requirements. And this is precisely why American steel buildings are currently taking the lead in the green building movement.

Compared to concrete buildings, American steel buildings relatively consume less material and their construction consequently produces less waste. What’s more, American steel buildings do not simply manifest these characteristics during the time of construction. These structures are actually environment-friendly in every way up, until the time they have to be demolished. In fact, American steel buildings are 100% recyclable. When a steel building is demolished, practically all of the steel components can be recovered even with all the non-metal debris, thanks to existing technologies and steel’s innate magnetic properties. The recovered steel can then be cleaned, melted, re-shaped, re-built into practically a new steel building without compromise to quality and structural integrity. This is fairly an impossible feat if wood or concrete were used for the building.

American steel buildings do not cause pollution to nature in any way. One basic reason is that American steel buildings, unlike wood or timber, do not have to be treated with toxic substances to protect the members from infestation. Steel does not rot and virtually needs no maintenance for over 30 years.

In addition, manufacturers are continuously improving their fabrication processes to produce American steel buildings with less greenhouse gas emissions.

Indeed, when speaking of green construction, American steel buildings will always be at the forefront.