Strong Steel for Strong Structures
Prefab steel buildings are excellent for storage, as living spaces, retail spaces, and just about anything in between, but what makes them such strong and reliable structures? The answer is simple: rigid steel columns. Steel columns are what give your metal building the support and structure it needs.
You might be wondering how steel columns relate to metal buildings. Steel columns are vertical beams arrayed to form the backbone of a metal structure. They distribute the roof’s weight along each beam, safely allowing metal structures to maintain integrity with no support beams!
But while these steel columns essentially perform the same task, they aren’t created equal. In fact, there are seven varying types of columns in most constructions, depending on the building’s architectural style. Despite these different versions, many engineers agree that straight columns provide the best structural support.
7 Steel Buildings Types & Their Columns
Steel columns work in conjunction to make your metal building stand firm for years to come. But with seven different styles available, which type is best for you? Here are all the ways these various columns affect building style:
1. Straight Column
If you’re looking for a building with lots of open space, you need a straight-column building. The flat and defined floorplan of these buildings offers the most available square footage possible for interior finishing. Customers that want to turn their buildings into finished living spaces or business offices prefer this style for that reason.
2. Single Slope
Our single slope buildings, also known as mono-slope structures, are free-standing lean-tos that provide you with open storage space. These buildings are denoted by roofs that slope in one direction instead of a traditional peaked style.
3. Tampered Column
This red-iron style building gives you lots of interior space for finishing, with a unique look to tie everything together. These columns are wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, giving your building that extra aesthetic appeal.
4. Lean-to
Lean-tos are a great addition to an already installed structure. These buildings can easily be installed to add to your square footage and are constructed with the same strong steel columns that make our straight column buildings so resilient.
5. 1 Row Modular Span
One row modular buildings have a single row of columns running along the center of the building. This design essentially divides your building into two equal parts that you can use however you please!
6. 2 Row Modular Span
These buildings are divided into thirds, with two rows of interior columns. Even with more columns than the single row type, there is plenty of space to do whatever you need!
7. 3 Row Modular Span
As you may have guessed by now, three-row modular span buildings feature three rows of interior columns. These columns separate the structure into fourths, leaving you with many ways to utilize the divided space.
Why Engineer’s Agree that Straight Column Buildings are Superior
We’ve already established that engineers prefer straight column steel buildings, but we want you to know why! There are three main benefits to straight column buildings, and we’ll go through each one in detail.
• Maximize Your Space; Minimize Your Load
Regardless of how you intend to use your prefab steel building or steel building kit, you want to maximize your available square footage. Straight steel columns are the best way to accomplish this because they have the smallest overall footprint of all steel columns. Additionally, they efficiently transfer horizontal loads to your foundation slab, requiring it to maintain less weight per square inch.
• Suitable for All Settings
Not only do straight columns help maximize square footage while minimizing loads on your foundation, but they’re also suited for many different scales of facilities. Not only do they work well for smaller buildings, but they are also instrumental in steel buildings as large as 80′ wide. The ample space provided by this style gives you the ability to function regardless of what sector your business services.
• Applicable to Every Need
Thanks to all the usable square footage straight column buildings offer, they work well for a wide variety of purposes and industries. With these building types, the only limitation is your imagination. In fact, many creative customers have used our steel straight column buildings for restaurants, coffee shops, pet grooming facilities, agricultural storage buildings, guest houses, and everything in between.
Choose Metal Barn Central’s Strong Steel
Steel buildings are among some of the best construction methods available in the market today. They’ve risen to the top in terms of versatility, ease of construction, and longevity. Below, we’ve compiled a few of the most significant reasons steel buildings are superior to almost any other building material.
1. Durable and Strong
There is no stronger material available than steel. It’s durable, long-lasting, and can withstand anything Mother Nature throws its way. Precipitation like heavy rain and snow slide right off the roof panels, and most falling debris will bounce off, leaving your valuable items protected.
2. Fast and Efficient
Unlike wooden homes and buildings that can take months to build and install, your prefab steel building can be constructed in as little as a few days to a few weeks depending on its size. This saves you time, money, and the countless headaches stick-built structures bring.
3. Adaptable and Accessible
Steel buildings are the best option if expansions to your original structure are necessary. Since everything is prefabricated, it’s much easier to add additions to steel than to wood or any other building material. Additionally, steel building kits offer numerous door and window placement options, allowing you to design your building with as much accessibility as one could want.
4. Eco-Friendly
Steel buildings and steel building kits are the most environmentally friendly construction option available because steel is one of the most recyclable materials on the planet. Over 85% of the steel we use in our buildings at Metal Barn Central is from recycled steel.
5. Fire-Resistant
If you want to protect your automobiles, equipment, and valuables from one of the most devastating forces on the planet, you want a prefab steel building from Metal Barn Central. Unlike wood, steel is non-flammable and only melts under extreme temperatures not found in typical structural fires.
6. Earthquake-Resistant
Earthquakes and seismic activity both literally and figuratively rock our world. They can destroy homes and buildings with ease, but there are materials designed to withstand them. Unlike concrete or wooden construction materials, steel is flexible and won’t crack under seismic forces. Choosing steel is the best precaution you can take if you live in earthquake-prone regions.
7. Spacious
Steel structures and straight column steel buildings are among the most spacious building options available. Steel can support greater loads than wood or stone while requiring less support than other materials, giving you more usable, open space than you would find with any other construction method.
Obviously, steel buildings are superior to just about any other building type, but that doesn’t mean all metal structures are created equal! You should choose a strong prefab steel building or steel building kit from one of the nation’s top providers: Metal Barn Central.
Call Now to Make Your Dreams Come True
Now that you know why you need a straight-column steel building, it’s time to invest in your very own. Before you do, however, make sure you’re buying your new prefab steel building from Metal Barn Central. We are the industry leaders in all things metal buildings and provide you with some of the best metal structures in the industry. Our customer service team is second to none and prepared to handle any questions you may have. Give us a call today at (980) 365-8481 to start designing the building of your dreams!
