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IMPACT by Metal Sales
Metal Sales IMPACT Steel Buildings program brings you a powerful, free software tool to allow you to sit down with your customers and help them design their next cold- formed bolt-up steel building from the ground up.
Cold-Formed Steel Buildings
Metal Sales is the leading provider of metal panels for roofing, walls, and more. With more than 55 years of industry experience, we provide a wide selection of premium building products that help you balance cost, sustainability, and durability for an incredible value.
When it comes to choosing metal for your next building project, cold-formed steel is the material of choice for contractors looking to maximize all the benefits that metal buildings have to offer. From visualizing your design to calculated lifetime savings, cold-formed steel offers top performance with measurable cost savings.
Get started using our innovative technology modeling process.
Our IMPACT software
At Metal Sales, we understand the power of innovation. We’re committed to providing you with industry-leading products and the tools that you need to use them. Our process begins with intelligent 3D modeling using IMPACT software that helps you see what your building will look like once it’s complete. IMPACT provides a seamless visual representation of Metal Sales cold-formed steel products applied to your building project plans.
With IMPACT software modeling, you get:
- A better understanding of colors, textures, and elevations.
- Visual communication for buying confidence.
- A cost-effective tool for comparing construction materials.
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WHAT is a cold-formed steel building?
Cold-formed steel is a type of metal that refers to the specific alloy–steel, and the manufacturing process which affects cost, durability, and versatility. The first cold-formed steel building was erected in 1849. Since then, this material has become a popular choice for high-rise buildings that require strength and durability with a comparatively lightweight, low-cost construction. Let’s take a closer look at cold-formed steel as a building material.
Manufacturing process
Cold-formed steel gets its name from the characteristics of the manufacturing process. This product is produced using cold processes. Instead of pouring molten iron into molds which is how traditional steel is made, the steel is cooled as it is rolled into flat sheets using large rollers. These sheets are then manipulated into different forms without heat.
construction process
Steel is strong. It’s the material that allows engineers and architects to create impressive structures like skyscrapers, stadiums, and shopping malls. Cold-formed steel, specifically, provides a durable alternative to typical stick-built construction. From framing to finishing, cold-formed steel can be used to frame and construct roofs and walls for retail buildings, apartments, commercial shops, and much more.
Benefits of Cold-Formed Steel Buildings
Cold-formed steel is a popular material with more than a century of success in building. This material is a favorite for architects, engineers, contractors, and building owners alike due to a range of benefits including cost, durability, sustainability, and ease of installation.
Cold-formed steel is easy to mass produce and easy to install–both factors that keep costs low to provide an affordable building material for constructions of all sizes. Cold-formed steel is an affordable building material that can make the cost of commercial or residential buildings easier to manage, leading to more profitable projects.
Cold-formed steel is one of the strongest metals available. At its core, it’s steel constructed from iron. However, the key to its durability is in the manufacturing process. As cold-formed steel is compressed through rollers, it actually becomes stronger than traditional iron.
Whether you’re working towards LEED certification or just making smarter choices that align with shifting values in sustainability, cold-formed steel can help you achieve both. It’s made from recycled material and is 100% recyclable. Plus, CFS offers a long list of eco-friendly benefits like long-lasting durability and energy-efficient savings.
Cold-formed steel comes in sheets or strips and is often molded to fit specific projects using cold processes that can easily occur on the job site.
Cold-Formed Steel vs. Traditional Metal
Cold-formed steel is made using a different manufacturing process. While it has similar properties to traditional steel, there are some key differences. Let’s take a look.
- Applications: Traditional steel is best for large-scale projects like skyscrapers and stadiums while cold-formed steel is better suited for residential buildings and smaller commercial builds like retail stores.
- Production: Both types of steel begin with molten lava. Traditional steel is cast hot while CFS is cooled between rollers that compress the steel into sheets.
- Design Flexibility: Traditional steel is bulky and typically reserved for framing large buildings that have more than 10 floors. CFS is comparatively lightweight and allows for open floor plans without the need to use center support beams that restrict space.
- Aesthetic: Cold-formed steel is coated with zinc to add self-healing properties and paint that improves the aesthetic value as well as solar reflectivity, making it appropriate for structural and visual elements alike. Traditional steel is bulky and limited in aesthetics, typically reserved for structural elements that are covered by other materials.
- Weight: Structural steel is bulky, that’s the main feature of the iron beams that provide strength and stability for multi-story skyscrapers. By comparison, cold-formed steel offers similar strength properties with significantly lighter weight.
- Installation: Structural steel takes a lot of welding, bolting, and riveting. Side-by-side, cold-formed steel is an easier installation process enabling faster builds with less labor.
Why Buy from Metal Sales
Metal Sales is an industry-leading manufacturer of cold-formed steel products. We offer a wide selection of different products supported by innovative technology to ensure that you get the right thing for the right project.