Structural Steel Economy
Over the recent past, the price of steel has become unpredictable. While the price of steel in the market continues to rise and fall, the underlying factors for production remain the same. The structural design, fabrication, and labor have remained the same, but the price keeps on changing. Labor and cost production remains the biggest puzzle for engineers to solve the problem. However, it is ironical that the cost of production and labor has not changed while the prices for the product keeps on changing. Structural engineers are faced with a myriad of choices as they move forward to resolve the issue. Nevertheless, before making the final decision, it imperative for the engineers to put into consideration labor requirements, the material used, and the implication to deliver the product in the most economical way to match today’s economic climate.
The use of less material will reduce the overall cost of steel production. However, it is integral to consider the design of erecting the steel structures to meet today’s market demand. Additionally, it is crucial to minimize labor in production shops. This aspect will help to improve efficiency in the construction schedule and reduce the overall cost needed in the production of steel. Engineers and designers can reduce labor by avoiding excess welding, allow a single shear connection, and review the member sizes in relation to design connections.
The use of less material can increase the cost incurred in the construction of steel. This is light materials may require additional bracing or shoring. This aspect may add labor costs and acquisition materials needed in erecting steel. Therefore, to minimize the cost, the designers are required to increase materials to reduce pieces necessary for the structure. Reducing the piece count will help to reduce the overall cost of production, even if the weight of the material increases.
Designing connections for a percentage of UDL is a simple and effective approach in reducing the cost of production. Designers should not entirely depend on the uniform distributed load UDL for connections but instead, use short beams to connect large units. Furthermore, designing actual steel materials help in reducing the number of plates used in the reaction process by double.
The increase of design complexity will help in reducing the cost of materials used in production. However, it is essential to note that the reduction of the material cost may eventually end up increasing the cost of the whole project. Therefore, designers and engineers need to come with better approaches that will reduce the construction cost of steel material. For example, designers may incorporate simple load paths and pure fabrication and connection as a means of lowering the connecting units. Engineers need to note that an increase of complexities in areas such as steel construction and fabrication will not address the increasing costs of labor. However, the designers should invest in finding alternatives that will reduce labor costs and save the project some money.
With labor costs rising, designers should look for appropriate ways of constructing steel. They should have a deep understanding of how the applied will impact labor costs. The designers can do this by creating beam copes, double plates, skewed connections, and temporarily shoring requirements. At this point, engineers are required to coordinate with other structural parties in order to come up with the most appropriate decision and solution to reducing labor costs. Furthermore, engineers must design a matrix that is capable of balancing labor costs, material costs, and schedules to deliver the most economical plan.