If there’s one material on the planet that seems omnipotent and omnipresent then it is steel. Domestic, industrial or local, steel is like a family member – present in the house we live in, the car we commute in, or the appliances we use daily. Can we imagine our world without steel? Definitely not. From factories to bridges, transmission towers to buildings, steel is everywhere in all shapes and sizes. But, is it so easy to make anything out of steel in any shape and size? No, of course not. To come to life from a blueprint steel has to go through a lot, literally. This entire chain of events comes under the umbrella of ‘steel structure fabrication’. Let’s find out more…
STEEL STRUCTURE FABRICATION
Our civilisation has seen the baton of metal fabrication being passed on across periods through copper, bronze, cast-iron and steel. Structural steel fabrication is the same process that fashions raw steel into the desired fit and is widely popular since the industrial revolution. There are as many as 3500 grades of steel developed by structural steel manufacturers — 75% of them in the past two decades.
THE PROCESS
Fabrication is a process that features several standard steps:
It involves cleaning of the steel surface by firing shots of air in the form of a jet stream. This results in a rough steel surface free from dirt and scale.
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND
Since structures are going to rest on the framework, there are many things to bear in mind during this entire process of fabrication.
THANKING STEEL
Steel has emerged as a safe and quicker alternative to construction. With pre-engineered buildings, the demand for steel in industrial and commercial lanes has gone up already. With 100% recycle value, it can be melted and re-fabricated. Due to its strong and sustainable nature, its presence and importance is felt over every major industry – automotive, energy, infrastructure and housing. It is the metal of modern civilisation.