Overview facts & constraints in residential construction
For some people who allocate funds for building their first homes, modification of their existing buildings, construction of commercial structures, …, are faced with the constraints of getting their building(s) ready for occupation on time. This is primarily due to working conditions and factual properties of the major structural materials used; for example; the most used reinforced concrete would take 24 to 48 hours to set (hard enough to walk on) 28 days to fully cure at maximum strength.
Using Structural Steel is the utmost approach to handing over a complete structure within a matter of days. The use of steel in the housing and residential building sector is a great boost in construction due to appreciation of the performance benefits that arise from the offsite nature of the construction process. Offsite steel construction technologies improve the final quality of the building and the speed of construction. As such, you can have your building designed, structural members fabricated away from site (your plot of land) after which they are transported to site, erected and finished within a matter of days.
Our offer
Structural steel is one of the three principle services offered at Mikab CM Ltd; This covers everything from design, costing, Fabrication, NDT & Erection. As such, you can have a composite package thus ensuring not only timely & quality delivery of your structure but also performance within the budgeted array. However, for some provisions, partial services like design & costing, NDT, or site installation can be executed to fit the clients’ needs.
For some people who wish to have a multi-storey residential buildings, or commercial buildings of mixed-use, where the lower levels are for commercial use or, in some cases, for basement car parking, the compatibility of floor grids is a key factor in the design solution and is more easily achieved using steel construction which may include structural steel frames, Infill walling, floor decking, lightweight façade, roofing systems, and modular systems depending on the nature of the project.
Approximate cost breakdown, application & economic benefits:
The approximate breakdown of total build cost for a multi-storey residential building is as follows:
Site management (preliminaries) 10 to 15%
Foundations 5 to 12%
Super-structure and floors 15 to 20%
Cladding and roofing 20 to 25%
Windows and doors 10 to 15%
Services (mechanical , electrical & lifts) 15 to 20%
Services (sanitation and water) 5 to 8%
Finishes and fitments 20 to 25%
To ensure quality, timely and cost-effective deliveries, we apply various steel-based technologies depending on the nature of the building requirements from the client:
Structural steel frames supporting either composite floor slabs or precast concrete units.
Non-load bearing light steel infill and partition walls within steel or concrete structures
Light steel framing for housing and medium-rise residential buildings.
Modular construction for special cases using fully finished 3-D units that are structurally stable as a group and can form whole buildings or parts of buildings.
These are applicable in the various buildings; Detached, semi-detached and terrace houses, Residential buildings in suburban areas, Residential buildings in urban areas, Mixed-use residential buildings, Student residences, Hotels, Warehouses, ... .
Economic benefits of steel construction in residential buildings
Speed of construction:
25 to 65% reduction in construction time relative to site-intensive construction, thus an imperative for speed of construction in terms of cash flow.
Site management costs:
Basing on our professional team of construction managers, Site management costs can be reduced by 20 to 60% because of the shorter construction period, which can lead to a 4 to 9% saving in terms of overall building cost.
Foundations:
Foundation costs for residential buildings represent 5 to 12% of the building cost. Steel construction is less than half the weight of an equivalent concrete structure which is equivalent to a 30% reduction in overall foundation loads, leading to a 1.4 to 3.25% overall saving in terms of construction cost.
Why you should use Structural steel in your residential construction.
In addition to the economic benefits, incorporating steel in your building project offer the following edging the ordinary site-intensive construction methods.
1. Adaptable and accessible:
There are circumstances where an owner or tenant may want to make changes that increase floor area or loads significantly. Walls may need to be re-positioned to create new interior layouts based on different needs and space usage. Steel-built structures can cater for such changes.
2. Added fire resistance:
Advanced design and analysis techniques allow precise specification of fire protection requirements of steel-framed buildings, often resulting in significant reductions in the amount of fire protection required.
3. Earthquake resistance:
Steel is inherently ductile and flexible thus, it flexes under extreme loads rather than crushing or crumbling under earthquakes incidences which are normally unpredictable in terms of magnitude, frequency, duration, and location.
4. Endlessly recyclable:
Steel can be recycled endlessly without loss of properties. Nothing is wasted. Steel saves on the use of natural raw resources since around 30% of today’s new steel is already being made from recycled steel.
5. Fast, efficient, resourceful:
Steel can be assembled quickly and efficiently in all seasons. A whole frame can be erected in a matter of days rather than weeks, with a corresponding 25% to 65% reduction in construction time relative to on-site construction.
6. More usable space, less material, less columns, more open space:
Single storey buildings, rolled beams provide clear spans of over 50 metres. Trussed or lattice construction can extend this to 150 metres. This allows for minimising the number of columns thus making it easier to subdivide and customize spaces.
7. Strength, beauty, design freedom:
The combination of strength, durability, beauty, precision and malleability of steel broaden our parameters to explore ideas and develop fresh solutions.
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