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AISI Member Companies Promote Homebuilding Benefits to Rebuild Gulf Coast with Steel
During the AISI 2006 General Meeting, the Gulf Coast Steel Initiative (GCSI) announced its continuing efforts to promote innovation in housing technology and to improve the quality, durability, affordability, and environmental performance of homes in rebuilding the Gulf Coast. GCSI is a group of North American steel companies focusing on implementing long-term strategies to positively impact future construction practices in the region. "It is inevitable that homes built along the Gulf Coast will again have to endure more high wind and high water and there is intense pressure to get construction underway before the next hurricane season. In the debate over where to rebuild, considerable attention needs to be placed on how to rebuild," Andrew G. Sharkey, III, president and CEO of AISI said. The hot, humid climate of the Gulf Coast posed significant challenges to the durability of residential and commercial structures even prior to Katrina's landfall. Through GCSI, the industry aims to provide steel-intensive solutions for rebuilding and fortifying the region against future storms. "The rebuilding effort is a monumental undertaking since an estimated 350,000 houses need to be replaced in a region that once built only 30,000 houses a year. To meet this unprecedented demand, new technologies need to be employed that will provide builders with the economies of scale to produce the volume of houses that are needed at a price that residents can afford," David C. Jeanes, AISI senior vice president of market development said. Benefits of using steel for homebuilding include: High Performance Construction - Steel framing and metal roofing can be designed and engineered specifically to hold up under extreme conditions such as flooding, earthquake, high wind or fire - that can cause degradation or destruction of the structural system. Steel is flexible; making it more resilient compared to other brittle materials when exposed to earthquakes and high-wind conditions, and has inherent strength in uplift and gravity loading. Steel-framed structures are also non-combustible, and framing members and roofing do not burn or contribute to the spread or intensity of a fire. Steel is an inherently stable, engineered material with consistent properties and attributes and therefore behaves in a highly predictable manner when subjected to the structural loads and stresses imposed by events such as high winds. Steel framing and metal roofing can be designed to withstand wind speeds of 150 miles per hour. Metal roofing systems are available that have wind resistance and uplift resistance above the new building code requirement. Durable
- Steel framing is naturally dimensionally straight and connected
mechanically, creating a stronger, more resilient building. It is
also naturally protected against deterioration by a galvanized coating
of zinc. In a seven-year study titled Galvanized Steel Framing for
Residential Buildings sponsored by the International Lead Zinc Research
Organization (ILZRO) and conducted by the NAHB Research Center,
corrosion test samples were installed and monitored in the exterior
walls and vented crawl and attic spaces of four houses located in
different geographic locations (inland, marine, In addition, termite damage in the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan Area costs more than $600 million per year.1 Steel framing can help mitigate the occurrence and growth of mold in buildings, as steel does not provide a food source for the fungi that cause mold and mildew growth in residential construction. Cost Effective - There is a general perception that using steel for homebuilding is more expensive than using wood. Recent research conducted by a field evaluation team of the Steel Framing Alliance (SFA) has found that the cost of building a home using steel versus wood is 1-3 percent of the total cost of construction. Ongoing cost reduction technologies and practices have considerably increased the affordability of the steel framing system. Homes built with new techniques using steel makes them more marketable since buyer confidence is higher knowing issues like termites and decay are avoided and longevity of the structure is higher. In fact, experienced steel homebuilders appreciate the value, quality and efficiency of the steel-framed system. Environmental - All steel products, including steel framing contain recycled steel. Steel framing contains on average a minimum of 25% recycled steel2 and is 100 percent recyclable at end of life. In contrast to many other building materials, steel is routinely collected in aggregate quantities from construction and demolition sites and recycled into new steel products. Steel structures are also more energy efficient and do not require maintenance with chemicals for insects, mold and mildew. The Gulf Coast Steel Initiative is a $1.1 million effort of 12 North American steel companies. The supporting companies of the Gulf Coast Steel Initiative are: AK Steel Corporation; California Steel Industries, Inc.; Dofasco Inc.; IMSA ACERO, S.A. de C.V.; IPSCO Inc.; Mittal Steel USA; Nucor Corporation; Shenango Incorporated; Steel Dynamics, Inc.; United States Steel Corporation; USS-POSCO Industries; and Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation. The initiative involves partnerships with local government disaster relief efforts and will establish higher-performance construction criteria by promoting state building codes that define state-of-the-art practices for hurricane-prone areas. In the coming months, GCSI will launch a series of training and educational programs that will provide additional skilled workers to the building and roofing contractors throughout the region. For more information, contact Elizabeth Vago. 1Source - Louisiana
State University Agricultural Center Research and Extension
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