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Steel construction industry to focus on areas of growth potential

INCREASED CONSUMPTIONSome 45% of the steel produced in the world goes into construction, and increasingly more is used in developing countries, such as Brazil, India, Russia and South Africa

INCREASED CONSUMPTIONSome 45% of the steel produced in the world goes into construction, and increasingly more is used in developing countries, such as Brazil, India, Russia and South Africa

12th July 2013

  

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The global steel industry, including the steel industry in South Africa seems to be in a constant state of flux.

This was one of the trends identified at the SteelFuture conference, hosted by the Southern African Institute of Steel Construction (Saisc), in March, which saw authorities from all over the world discussing the issues facing the steel construction industry.

Other challenges discussed included the long-term future of the steel construction industry. The future of the steel industry was discussed to ensure that the industry can identify and is prepared for both the opportunities and the risks that exist.

The conference dealt with only a segment of the steel industry, namely steel construction; however, some 45% of the steel produced in the world goes into construction, more so in developing countries, where the majority of steel will go in future.

Therefore, what was discussed at the conference was of great importance to the steel industry, says Saisc executive director Hennie de Clercq.

The slowdown in the world economy seems set to last for some time, with a very negative impact on the steel industry. But in the longer term, the outlook for steel looks bright, he adds.

“The population of the world is growing inexorably. People are flooding into the cities of the world, especially large cities, and the standards of living are rising, as people become more economically active. This means that significant volumes of housing, places for work or entertainment and relaxation, factories, facilities to generate energy and every other thing you can think of will be required. Moreover, these construction activities will have to be executed with a reduced impact on society and the environment,” De Clercq points out.

Steel looks like the obvious candidate material for the construction of future facilities as there is an abundance of cost-competitive steel available. Steel is also sustainable, as it can be recycled and one needs to use only a relatively small amount to achieve a certain objective, like building a multistorey building, he explains.

What became more clear during the conference is that steel’s strength lies in it being so strongly aligned with the emerging technologies of the world, such as building information modelling (BIM), De Clercq points out.

The term, which refers to computer software that enables the three-dimensional modelling of projects, with a fourth dimension (time) and a fifth (money) added, was heard repeatedly at the conference.

New Technology
Meanwhile, an additional topic that received great attention at the conference was new-generation equipment for the fabrication of structural steelwork and efficiencies with respect to construction.

“Adding these aspects together, one can look forward to a time when the fabrication process will require a fraction of the current working hours needed, which will see complete facilities being built faster than at present, says De Clercq.

Some of the topics discussed during the conference are already reality, if only at the leading organisations in the world. Despite this, much work still needs to be done to realise the full potential of steel in construction globally.

Firstly, the pinnacles of development need to be popularised and made common practice.

This will require something of a fight against ‘human nature’, says De Clercq, adding that, to realise the full potential of BIM, a collaborative approach to construction projects and contracts needs to be attained, “otherwise the advanced technology could merely become a tool for taking the traditional conflicts among the parties on construction projects to a more sophisticated level,” he stresses.

Meanwhile, much work also needs to be done to advance the available technologies, such as robotic welding, which holds much promise for streamlining and mechanising the fabrication process. But robotic welding is not yet user-friendly enough or sufficiently integrated into the BIM process to make it economical on relatively short runs.

Steel Construction Future
It is important for the steel construction industry to realise that the world will, in future, not need stronger steel columns and beams, or even products that are significantly efficiently fabricated and erected. Solutions to tackle the problems of insufficient housing, transportation, energy, and the many other challenges faced globally will be needed, says De Clercq.

“Anybody who can make a significant contribution to the solution of these challenges stands to make large sums of money, while those who merely supply beams and columns will be in the commodities business, having to accept what they can get in the face of intense local and international competition,” he highlights.

It is against this background that Saisc has embarked on a project to develop an entirely new way of constructing office buildings of up to six storeys – which is by far the height of the majority of office buildings being developed in the world.

“Development work has already progressed quite far and we are currently engaged in full-scale testing to ensure that all aspects of the system work as intended, with the aim of unveiling the system to the public before the end of the year,” says De Clercq.

The approach Saisc is working on is not limited to fabricating and erecting a structure but to enable the rapid creation of a whole building, ready for occupancy and with superior sustainability credentials, including complete reusability of the structure.

“This, we believe, will enable the steel construction industry to take a step away from a singular emphasis on tons of steel, towards adding more value to each ton, highlights De Clercq.

The potential for steel in the construction industry of the future is significant, but it will require leadership as the big steel mills are no longer engaged in research and development as they used to be.

This has led De Clercq to pose the question of who will lead the industry to develop the products, systems and approaches to enable steel to be the preeminent material of the future.

Edited by Tracy Hancock
Creamer Media Contributing Editor

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