Green building (also known as green construction or sustainable building) refers to a structure and using process that is environmentally responsible and resource-efficient throughout a building’s life-cycle: from sitting to design, construction, operation, maintenance, renovation, and demolition. This requires close cooperation of the design team, the architects, the engineers, and the client at all project stages. The Green Building practice expands and complements the classical building design concerns of economy, utility, durability, and comfort. [Green Building]
At SteelHomes™, the company directives are to design, build and manage projects using the following principles:
Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources
Protecting occupant health and improving employee productivity
Reducing waste, pollution and environmental degradation
Steel Green frames are designed to meet the loading requirements of all relevant Standards. Lightweight Steel Green frames mean less strain on installers and provide safer work sites.
Recyclability
Much of the steel used to make light Steel Green Homes framing is recycled.
When a steel frame building is demolished, the steel can be recycled.
It takes approximately one-quarter of an acre of mature trees to produce the wood framing for a typical house. The same house can be steel framed from three or four old cars.
Steel can be recycled indefinitely without losing any of its qualities.
When steel buildings are no longer required in their current location, they can be dismantled and re-erected elsewhere.
Steel is one of the world’s most recyclable building materials. All components
of a steel frame can be recycled at end of life.
Energy Efficiency
Prefab Steel Green Homes framed buildings can be very energy-efficient. The strength of steel requires fewer wall studs, so there are fewer thermal bridges (un-insulated areas) to transmit heat.
Prefab Steel Green Homes frame buildings do not settle or warp, so they remain more airtight.
The depth of the steel beams provides a wider space for insulation.
The design flexibility of steel frame buildings enables architects to focus on energy-efficient housing features.
High performance materials provide superior thermal insulation, so buildings are more comfortable and require less electricity for heating and cooling. The result is reduced running costs and less capital investment in power generation.
In international studies Steel Green framing as a material has been shown to consume only 6.5% of the total life-cycle energy used by a home; the balance is consumed by heating and cooling, food refrigeration and lighting.
Manufacturing
Almost half the world’s steel production now takes place in electric plants that operate exclusively with recycled scrap and generate no CO2 emissions.
The by-products arising from steel production are all re-used. For example, slag is employed as a high-value mineral material for highway construction, as ballast, and for the manufacture of cement.
Steel construction entails the assembly of semi-finished products in a factory, limiting the noise and disruption of open-air operations.
Steel’s light weight allows smaller foundations and less excavation. In some cases, a few piles are sufficient to raise the building completely from the ground.
Being extremely lightweight, steel frame construction requires lighter foundations and can reduce
building footprints. On steeply sloping terrain, this can reduce site disturbance.
Durable & Safe
Steel will not rot and is immune to termites and other insects.
Steel frames stay straight, unlike timber which can move and warp, twist and shrink during and after construction. This significantly reduces ongoing maintenance, as there are fewer call backs for things like plasterboard cracking or framing popping.
Steel is non-combustible and won’t contribute to the spread of a fire.
A SteelHomes™ frame building is more resistant to the effects of severe hurricanes and tornadoes. Also, there is less likelihood of damage from lightning strikes due to superior earthling characteristics of steel.
Steel doesn’t have to be treated with pesticides, preservatives or glues, so steel frame houses offer indoor air quality benefits.
Because of steel’s inert character and the manner in which steel framed buildings are insulated, floors and walls are not susceptible to moisture build-up, which contributes to the formation of mold.
Dry galvanized products (studding, track, ceiling batons and other residential and commercial building components) do not support mold and mildew growth, and they do not off-gas. As a result, they are considered non-allergenic and have a neutral impact to indoor air quality.
Design & Flexibility
Compared to timber framing, SteelHomes™ framing can span greater distances, allowing greater design flexibility. Interior walls can be placed without load-bearing considerations.
Any timber frame plan can be easily converted to a steel frame plan, using 3D modeling software.
Once completed, steel frame homes can look just like traditionally built homes.
Modifying an existing steel frame building is relatively simply. Interior walls can be moved without a concern for structural support.
The construction technology imposes no limitations on what can be achieved at a remote site. SteelHomes™ frame buildings can be designed in virtually any style and for any application — from a guard-house or a small accommodation unit to a large family home or a multi-storey commercial building.
SteelHomes™ frame panels can also be used with hot-rolled steel sections.
Steel Homes frames made from Galvanized steel manufactured by SteelHomes™ come
with a 50 year durability statement when installed to specification.