How to Reduce Time and Budget on Your Next Construction Project

Building professionals have to meet strict timelines, safety and code requirements, and quality control throughout any construction project. But within all these considerations, one key factor always remains: Budget.

Cost-effective building projects aren’t just about choosing the least expensive materials.

Over the lifespan of any construction project, there are other various expenses, including labor, design, insurance, material loss, repair, and replacement costs.

When considering the total construction cost, cold-formed steel framing systems have significant cost benefits over other building materials.

A comparative case study on a six-story office building by the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC) compared steel framing and cast-in-place (CIP) concrete.

The entire construction cycle was analyzed, including concept, design, construction, sustainability, and total project costs. The result?

The steel building had a net cost savings of $7.50 per square foot ($81/m2).

How can cold-formed steel framing reduce construction costs while maintaining work quality and output?

Cold-formed steel framing has a demonstrated track record of cost-effective benefits for mid-rise buildings. Steel reduces life cycle costs because it is resilient, adaptable, and durable. Steel framing systems readily and economically adapt to the changing requirements of occupants, functional obsolescence, and the cost and disruption of refurbishment, redevelopment, or demolition.

Cold-formed steel’s durability leads to savings that are built to last.

Cold-formed steel framing is invulnerable to environmental factors that typically threaten the lifespan and integrity of other framing materials. Cold-formed steel does not need costly treatments or repairs typical of other building materials because it is resistant to corrosion, mold, and vermin.

Corrosion Resistance

Steel structures provide long-term durability and excellent service life when properly designed and constructed. Steel-framed structures are designed to tolerate or protect against corrosion that impairs strength or serviceability. Steel framing is typically protected by galvanizing (coating with zinc) but can be protected by barrier coatings, depending on the severity of exposure conditions.

When properly installed and insulated, zinc-coated steel (standard for cold-formed steel framing) lasts beyond the life of a building. Zinc “sacrificially” corrodes over any area where the steel becomes exposed and protects it.

Mold Resistance

Steel framing is inorganic, so it has no food source for mold to grow. Moreover, steel framing can also help resist mold onset and growth. Since it is dimensionally straight and fastened mechanically with screws rather than nails, it provides a fitted structural envelope with no nail pops or drywall cracks. Moisture cannot get into steel studs, helping to eliminate the expansion and contraction around windows and doors, where leaks can occur.

Cold-formed steel framing is resistant to corrosion, mold, and vermin and does not require costly treatments or repairs.

Vermin Resistance

Every year, termites cause more damage to wood structures than fire, storms, and floods combined – destruction that is rarely covered by insurance. Even the formidable Formosan termite, one of the most destructive termite species in the world, doesn’t affect cold-formed steel. That’s why the International Residential Code recognizes cold-formed steel as one of the ways to follow the requirements for termite-resistant construction. Cold-formed steel eliminates the need for regular termite treatments or the use of pressure-treated lumber.

Unrivaled Dimensional Stability

Framing systems are designed for structural integrity and stability. The taller the structure, the more critical the considerations. Unintended structural movement causes expensive and potentially disastrous consequences to a building’s structural, mechanical, and finish systems. Cold-formed steel framing is dimensionally stable with no moisture-related expansion and contraction. It won’t shrink, split, warp, crack, or creep.

Steel has the same dimensional properties in all directions (isotropic). It has the same strength in all loading directions – up and down a member and side-to-side. The tighter envelope provided by cold-formed steel framing increases the structure’s overall energy efficiency and reduces long-term maintenance and repair costs.

The durability of cold-formed steel framing has significant cost savings throughout the construction project cycle, besides making a building safer and more stable.

Building the Most Cost-Effective Mid-Rise Building

For builders and developers, the growing demand for mid-rise buildings creates opportunities and challenges as they use strategies to maximize return on investment. This includes apartments, condominiums, senior living, affordable housing, and mixed-use developments.

Most builders and designers still focus on the bottom line, even with today’s heightened environmental awareness. While some builders resist the increased environmental regulations and safety requirements, others embrace these challenges and find ways to reduce consumption, improve safety, and increase return on investment for developers and owners. But how can builders build cost-effective and environmentally sensitive mid-rise buildings, meet market needs, and maintain safety?

To help make your next mid-rise project the most cost-effective, here are four essential tips.

Choose the Right Material

Mid-rise structures (3 to 9 stories in height) are very common for motels, hotels, apartments, condominiums, dormitories, barracks, and multi-family housing.

Since structural details play a critical role in the cost of a building, choosing the right material is critical. Every additional square foot is more potential revenue for the building owner. More stories and higher density equal more revenue from the same footprint.

Cold-formed steel has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any construction material. Loads imposed on steel frames can be up to 50 percent less than those of concrete. Less material is needed to carry the same structural loads, so cost savings start at the foundation. That means that foundation costs can be considerably less. The lightweight quality of cold-formed steel framing makes it possible to build in difficult soil conditions where heavier materials need deeper and more expensive foundations.

Another important factor is construction cycle time. Cold-formed steel framing reduced the construction timeline by six weeks in a five-story residential project in Brantford, Ontario, resulting in significant cost savings.

The dimensional stability and consistent high quality of steel framing mean fewer warranty claims and callbacks. Builders can also trim their insurance costs. Using non-combustible steel construction minimizes the risk of fire-related incidents and subsequent legal action. There are significant insurance savings for the builder during construction and the owner over the structure’s life.

Since cold-formed steel framing has the highest strength-to-weight ratio of any construction material, less material is required to carry the same structural loads as other materials.

Make It Safer

Steel construction offers inherent safety advantages, along with its design flexibility. Since steel construction is manufactured offsite, most work is carried out in safer, factory-controlled conditions. Less workers are required on site. Fewer deliveries of materials and equipment to sites equals fewer potential jobsite hazards. Using steel means shorter building programs and less pressure on workers to reach completion.

Speed Up Projects & Maximize Value

The efficient construction methods of cold-formed steel projects can significantly reduce the construction schedule. Cold-formed steel can mean an early site start, and structures can be erected quickly. The accuracy and predictability of steel allow follow-on trades to get to work sooner. This delivers time savings. One of the main reasons for selecting steel is the speed of erection. In many high-density urban projects, reducing disruption to nearby buildings is critical, minimizing the impact on neighboring residents and avoiding causing traffic congestion. Shorter construction times lead to savings in at least three ways; site preliminaries, quicker return on investment, and lower interest charges.

A faster construction schedule means that clients move in sooner, helping building owners earn money faster on their investment.

Shorter construction times lower interest charges and financing costs. Time-related savings can be between 3 and 5 percent of the total project value. This reduces the building owner’s requirements for working capital and improves cash flow.

Speed can be achieved without jeopardizing safety, making steel construction safer than other construction methods.

Make It Sustainable & More Profitable

More builders use sustainable materials due to consumer and market demand. Worldwide, green building continues to double every three years.

A sustainable building is cost-effective when appropriately constructed. Savings result during construction as steel building components generate very little onsite waste. Components are manufactured to tight tolerances before being delivered to the building site. Onsite steel waste is easily collected for recycling or reuse.

For mid-rise construction, this is very beneficial because steel components can help get the US Green Building Council’s LEED program points for certification.

Here are 6 examples of general contractors who built with cold-formed steel framing and saved.

The value of cold-formed steel framing is catching on among general contractors. Brandon Bergholz, project manager at Mortenson construction, said, “The quality is just phenomenal.” More companies are discovering that cold-formed steel effectively lowers commercial construction costs and cuts delivery times.

Here are six benefits general contractors experienced when they used cold-formed steel framing systems as part of their projects:

Shave Months Off the Construction Cycle

To complete an 831,000-square-foot hospital, it would usually take a year. In Denver, Colorado, Exempla Saint Joseph Replacement Hospital cut construction time by more than seven months. Premanufactured cold-formed steel exterior panels were used by Mortenson Construction. The 30-foot by 15-foot exterior panels were built offsite in controlled conditions, making installation much quicker than “stick-built” construction onsite.

The University of North Texas in Denton, Texas, built a 163,415-square-foot dormitory and came in four months ahead of schedule – just in time for the new school year. The design-build team switched from concrete construction to a load-bearing cold-formed steel framed wall system to meet strict cost constraints and schedules.

Work During the Winter

A six-story student residence at Sheridan College was constructed over a tough Canadian winter when temperatures ranged from 14 to -4 degrees. The foundation was poured in the fall. Rather than using concrete during the winter, cold-formed steel framing was specified. This was advantageous to the general contractor since heat was not required to install cold-formed steel. Heat would have been needed for masonry or concrete load-bearing systems and would have added to overall construction costs.

Across North America, general contractors use cold-formed steel framing to cut time, solve problems, save costs, and improve modeling. For all parties involved, it ensures a smoother decision-making process and workflow.

Reduce In-place Weight

Pound-for-pound, cold-formed steel framing is much lighter than concrete. Not only does it have a high strength-to-weight ratio, but it also resists warping, mildew, and cracking. In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the City Green condominiums used exterior, load-bearing cold-formed steel framed walls to support nine stories and steel balconies. The cold-formed steel framing design decreased the foundation load compared to other systems. The developer says the cold-formed steel framing system reduced the amount of concrete needed for each footing, saving money.

Reduce Scaffolding

Panelized framing eliminates building by piecemeal. This includes setting up scaffolding on site plus the framing, sheathing, and installing exterior panels by hand. The scaffolding costs were reduced at Exempla Saint Joseph Replacement Hospital, and the job site was more open. That meant all trades got onsite sooner and were not obstructed by equipment.

Reduce Carpentry Man-Hours

Cold-formed steel framing is non-combustible, durable, cost-effective, and easy to work with. So, it’s the perfect framing material for pre-fabricating panels. Panelization reduced carpentry man-hours by 30 to 40 percent at Exempla Saint Joseph Replacement Hospital.

Cut Financing Costs

Using load-bearing, cold-formed steel framing, hollow-core concrete plank floor joists, and cold-formed steel roof joists, the Sheridan College student residence project shaved three months off its construction cycle. The project saved an estimated $300,000 in financing costs alone.

Across North America, general contractors use cold-formed steel to cut time, save costs, solve problems, and improve modeling. It ensures a smoother decision-making process and workflow for all involved.

When considering the lifecycle of a building, using cold-formed steel framing offers significant cost savings due to reduced labor and offsite construction. Plus, it has long-term resistance to termites, mold, and vermin.