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Metal Buildings for Big Box Stores

Massive Retailers Overwhelmingly Choose Steel Buildings

It seems there are big box stores popping up everywhere. From grocery and dry goods giants, to home improvement megastores, to gigantic wholesale club store operations, and warehouse-filled furniture marts, big box stores rule.

No other building system accommodates the open space concept of these monster marts as well as steel buildings.

Photo of large steel warehouse-type retail outlet with headline Big Box Stores"Whether it is a 50,000 square-foot furniture mart, a 100,000 square-foot home improvement center, or one of 200,000-plus square-foot behemoths called the “bigger big box” retailers, steel frames most superstores.

Defining Big Box Stores

General merchandise “one-stop-shopping” mega sized retailers carry everything from clothing to household items, to groceries. Specialized stores focus on books, electronics, gardening supplies, office supplies, sporting goods, toys, and other targeted products.

All the big box models strive to impress consumers with a dazzling array of products at very competitive prices.

Architecturally, massive stores generally have these things in common:

• A basic box-shape design

• A single story

• As few interior columns as possible to maximize floor space

• A slab foundation

• An immense parking area

Big box retailers seek enormous physical space to ply their wares. Keeping the retail store construction cost-per-square-foot low is paramount.

People shop big box stores for bargains. And they are willing to make small sacrifices to save money. Big box stores generally employ none of the fancy displays and colorful ambiance of up-scale retailers. Customer service is often scarce in these superstores. Lines are sometimes long. But the dollars saved seem to outweigh the little inconveniences to the true bargain hunter.

High-volume, no-frills sales allow big box stores to operate with a lower profit margin, creating attractive pricing for big box shoppers.

How Steel Buildings Fill the Needs of Big Box Stores

Big box retailers choose steel buildings for the same reason steel framing appeals to large warehouses and industrial buildings: its affordability. Pre-engineered steel buildings cost less to buy, build, and operate than other building systems.

However, steel buildings provide additional benefits for retail store construction that warehouse-like stores demand:

  • Pre-engineered metal buildings boasts spans up to 480 feet wide— the length of one-and-a-half football fields— with very few interior support columns.
  • Steel buildings clear span as far as 300 feet wide.
  • A metal building’s length is unlimited.
  • Steel building designs reach 40’ or more at the eave height.
  • Steel buildings promises increased protection from Mother Nature at her worst. Metal buildings resist damage from blizzards, earthquakes, fire, hurricanes, lightning, strong winds, and termites much better than other construction systems.
  • The fire resistant qualities of steel framing earn lower insurance premiums, saving even more on the operating budget.
  • Steel’s unmatched strength-to-weight ratio means fewer pieces construct a highly stable structure. Professional fabricators manufacture steel buildings to exacting specifications in a quality-controlled environment.
  • The steel building kit arrives clearly marked and ready to assemble, slashing construction time by 33%.
  • Steel structures require very little maintenance.
  • Steel building exteriors can be finished in colorful steel panels, brick, glass, stone, stucco, tilt-up concrete— or even EIFS, Hardee board, or wood.
  • Steel buildings hold their value for decades longer than other building systems.
  • Inorganic steel never outgases like other building materials— nor supports mold or mildew, creating a healthier indoor air quality than other building systems.
  • As the most recycled material in the world, steel qualifies as an environmentally sound building material.
  • At the end of the big box store’s lifespan, the steel can be sold and recycled once again— without losing any of its strength.
  • Commercial consume extraordinary amounts of energy. Properly insulated steel buildings, like those using the RHINO Pro-Value insulation system, cut energy use in half, further reducing the operating budget.

RHINO Charges into Big Box Store Construction

For more information or a free quote for your big box store project or other commercial and industrial building projects, contact RHINO Steel Building Systems, a leader in prefabricated steel buildings for retail store construction.

RHINO structures meet or exceed all current building codes for the lifetime of the structure— guaranteed! RHINO ships pre-engineered metal buildings from multiple shipping points all across the U.S., as well as Canada and Mexico.

We help bring your big box store in on time— and on budget.

Discuss your big box store or other building project now with a RHINO steel construction specialist by calling RHINO at 940.383.9566.