Steel Buildings Move Beyond Storage and Garages

Most people are familiar with the use of steel buildings in agriculture and industry, but design innovations in the past ten years have widely expanded the uses for metal buildings. From home offices to garages to churches and schools, many people are discovering the advantages offered by pre-fabricated steel buildings. A broad overview of the new categories and uses for steel and metal buildings might surprise you.

Homeowners often choose steel structures when they add garages to their property, so it should come as no surprise that auto and truck dealerships are turning to steel buildings when they expand their operations. The interior construction of arch-frame steel buildings allow for maximum customizations. It’s easy for dealerships to move cars in and out of the showroom, and add mezzanines for oversight of the selling floor.

New advances in color, trim and construction have made it possible to erect steel buildings that look like traditional construction or even better. This has been important to another category of industry that’s been making use of steel buildings—churches. While appearance may be important to a congregation, cost is also a vital factor in choosing the type and scope of new church construction. Many small congregations have found that a steel building easily suits their needs while staying within their budgetary limits. In fact, because most steel buildings are delivered ready to assemble, many churches can tap their own congregations to erect the church building themselves, saving on the cost of construction. Because steel buildings are so much more economical, a congregation can often erect a new church building at a fraction of the cost and in a fraction of the time needed for a conventional building.

Entertainment venues have also begun turning to steel buildings in increasing numbers. Arch-frame construction allows for unobstructed lines of sight in nightclubs and theaters, as well as uninterrupted space for dancing and setting up dining tables in event venues. Metal buildings allow venue owners to offer virtually unlimited floor plan layouts for events, shows and conventions. Innovative entrepreneurs have taken the column-free interiors even further, opening indoor beach volleyball courts and skating rinks under steel domes.

Schools and universities frequently find themselves in the position of having to house more students than expected. Steel buildings, including modular steel buildings and arch-frame Quonset buildings, provide a quick, relatively inexpensive solution to housing classrooms in emergency situations. Custom-designed classroom buildings can be erected in a space of weeks, at a cost far less than renting a temporary space when a fire, electrical or plumbing catastrophe has made a school building unusable.

Steel buildings, once regarded as ugly stepsisters to more conventional business and public buildings, are coming into their own. If your organization or company is planning an expansion or move, take a serious look at the many advantages that metal buildings have to offer.