What is light gauge steel construction?

Light-gauge steel (also known as cold-formed steel and cold-rolled steel) is a cold-formed material that is used to make construction processes smoother and products stronger. It does not deteriorate, like wood. It is not bulky, like structural steel. It is not heavy, like concrete. It is something completely different, and if you have ever worked with it before, you know that there is a practically endless list of benefits. Let’s look further into this wonder material and how iSPAN Systems’ light-gauge steel structural solutions can benefit you on your next project.

Early in the 1900s, builders began searching for new ways to use steel. Hot-rolled structural steel was extremely strong, but expensive and difficult to install. The innovation and housing shortage after WWII spurred research into light-gauge steel as a load bearing and non-load bearing element. It was found to be 20% stronger than hot-rolled steel with a far superior strength to weight ratio, with significantly less material and energy use than anything else.

Once American design standards came around in 1946, builders quickly began moving forward on constructing homes and mid-rise buildings out of this newly approved building material. In the 1950s and 1960s, as the economy grew, so did the number of cold-formed steel structures in the commercial market.

Today, after further research and engineering support, light-gauge steel is standard use in many new single homes and mid-rise buildings, such as hotels, apartments and condominiums.