How Metal Buildings Beat Wood-Eating Creepy Crawlers A steel building offers many advantages over a wood building. Lumber simply cannot compete with steel’s strength and durability. However, one of the strongest arguments for building with steel instead of wood is that steel does not invite creepy crawlers or critters to dinner. Organic Wood vs. Inorganic Steel Wood is organic. It comes from living organisms: trees. As an organic material, lumber is edible. It presents a tasty treat to many living… Read More
Why Damage-Resistant Metal Buildings are the Smart Choice The weather-related disasters of 2017 underline the need for stronger, safer structures like steel buildings. The cost for 2017 natural disasters in the U.S. topped $306 billion, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). This shocking bill is four times the average annual cost over the last decade. Sixteen separate incidents contributed to the soaring 2017 price tag. Drought, freeze, floods, major hurricanes, tornadoes, and other severe storms plagued the… Read More
Part 1: Why Building the Best Welding Shop Starts with Steel Why do metal buildings make the best welding shops? Because welding can cause fires and steel buildings are fire-resistant. It’s true. Welding presents grave fire risks. Without proper safety precautions, welding and other “hot work” activities can turn deadly in a heartbeat. What is a “Hot Work”? According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), “hot work” includes any undertaking that produces flames, sparks, or enough heat to ignite… Read More
Part 1: Safer Structures in Hurricanes, Floods, and Fires In the wake of recent billion-dollar natural disasters, people are looking to prefab steel buildings for better protection from Nature’s savage furies. We’ve seen ample evidence in 2017 that Mother Nature’s outbursts inflict unbelievable damage. Now let’s look at what pre-engineered metal buildings can do to counter such natural disasters. Prefab Steel Buildings in Howling Winds Hurricane-force wind damage often results from structural connection failure. Winds create a lifting force against… Read More
Mother Nature Having One Hissy Fit After Another This Year We have just passed mid-October, and 2017 weather disasters continue to unfold. Blizzards, droughts, floods, freezes, hail, hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfires— there seems to be no end to the calamitous climate-driven catastrophes this year across the U.S. Billions of Losses from Weather Disasters National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) tracks weather-related events annually, both in the U.S. and globally. By compiling the data year after year, the NCEI documents climate trends… Read More
Fire Story Lost in the Media’s Heavy Hurricane Coverage The national media recently covered the paths of destruction of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, Maria, and Nate practically minute by minute, all but ignoring the rash of fierce wildfires flashing across the Northwest. Admittedly, the hurricanes were huge stories with incredible impact on the U.S. However, the catastrophic story unfolding in California, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, barely made a blip on the national news radar— until this week, when deadly fires… Read More
Planning Your Fire Escape Route in Advance President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the first National Fire Prevention Week in 1925. The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) campaigns vigorously during this week to increase fire safety awareness and save lives. Today this observance is the longest-running public health campaign in the U.S. National Fire Prevention Week starts every October on the week corresponding to the anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. This year’s drive focuses on urging people to plan… Read More
Understanding Fire-Related Building Terms If you’ve followed this blog very long, you have doubtless read about the fire-resistant qualities of pre-engineered metal buildings. But what exactly does “fire-resistant” mean? What Are Fire Resistance Ratings? The fire standard for most building codes comes from tests conducted by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). The ratings are based on how long a particular building material or system resists the spread of the fire and sustains its structural integrity. In other… Read More
Why Housing Wood in Wood is Not Good Look around town and you will see most home improvement centers and lumberyards choose steel buildings to house their operations. That seems odd, doesn’t it? Wouldn’t you expect a lumber business to be housed in a lumber-framed structure? There are three main reasons wood sellers use steel buildings: 1. Lumberyards Need Massive Space Maneuvering and storing piles of wood studs, plywood sheets, and other building products demands lots of space. Only steel… Read More
The Shocking Truth About Metal Buildings in Thunderstorms Contrary to urban myth, steel buildings resist lightning, not attract it. The height of a structure, not the framing material, determines the probability of a direct lightning strike. The taller the building, the greater the risk that lightning might hit it. Conductible Steel Buildings Resist Lightning Damage Lightning is nothing more than super-charged electricity. A single lightning bolt generates up to 100 million electrical volts! All building materials either conduct or resist… Read More
