These days, metal buildings have become prominent in industrial settings. But what is driving them towards this new trend? Businesses keep evolving and finding ways to incorporate modern designs and innovations into their industry to attract customers and investors alike. Even residential projects are looking forward to relying on simple structures that are easy to build and consume less time in aftercare. Hence, there has been a rise in commercial metal buildings.
Why Settle For Metal? – The Rise In Popularity Of Commercial Metal Buildings
Lowers Commercial Operational Cost
Be it any building or a shed, it can be a bit annoying to clean, stain, and paint every now and then. Metal has a smooth surface that does not allow most of the dust particles to stick to it. Further, if you go for vertical roof and wall panels, they can aid water drainage and melting snow along with other debris. So, less cleaning is needed.
Pest control is another issue that many have to face with a timber-built structure, but not with metal. Being inorganic, they do not attract animals, insects, or house termites. So, your steel buildings are hygienic. All these issues add to the recurring monthly cost.
Reusability
Commercial steel structures can be made for storage, but then they can be renovated into an office space or manufacturing facility. This allows businesses to reuse one building without wasting much of their profit on new construction costs. Since metal structures are so versatile, they can be sectioned into various units, each having its own purpose.
Metal buildings can be used for:
- Business office
- Restaurants
- Hotels
- Event venues
- Manufacturing Facility
- Factory outlet
- Retail store
- Coffee shop
- Commercial parking area
- Workshops
- Warehouses
- Logistics
It can also be used in agriculture as barns, livestock shelters, horse arenas, garages, and even as a living space, you name it.
Innovation
When we say commercial metal buildings, does a boring, dull look of grey structure come to your mind? That’s partly true, but not the whole story. Many metal builders offer a range of color options that can make your building camouflage or stand out from the rest of the background.
In addition, metal structures can be column-free for up to 300 ft. of width. No support columns mean you get the maximum carpet area from the available square footage. That’s right! Various façade options like curved, 3D, and perforated metal panels can be added to the exterior to give it a unique, innovative, and finished look.
Biophilic Designs
Want to incorporate natural elements into your commercial metal buildings? Not a big deal. Metal is strong and has more weight-bearing ability than wood or resin. Hence, you can select any artistry or biology design and weave it into your structures.
A workspace that inspires can be encouraging to employees & will increase their productivity. You can incorporate any design, texture, or lighting that appears like a waterfall, mesmerizing the visitors and creating a nature-friendly environment.
Natural Lighting
There are numerous benefits of having natural light in your interior. First, you get your free vitamin D dose, which is good for our eye health. It helps improve our physical health overall and ward off seasonal depression. If you are a business, you will be glad to know that incorporating natural lighting can boost productivity and decrease fatigue.
Natural lighting also means less dependency on artificial lighting sources, eventually decreasing energy bills. But how to incorporate natural light in metal structures?
Simply by adding lightning features like:
- Solar tubes
- Skylights
- Roof daylighting
- Translucent panels
- Windows
- Light interior color
- Clerestory windows
- Adding mirror or reflective items to the interior
If you are adding an HVAC system to your steel structure, do not forget to seal the frames of this lighting source with a silicone sealant that can get maximum efficiency out of cooling/ warming appliances.
Structural Endurance
Needless to say, steel is a high-tensile strength material. Hence, it can bear more load than a wooden frame or resin. That’s why you can find steel buildings that are as high as 40 ft. Steel is extremely lightweight yet can be designed to withstand the harsh forces of nature.
For instance, a certified steel structure can tolerate up to 170 miles per hour of wind speed and 20 lbs. snow load per sq. ft. without any structural failure. Isn’t that great? We thought so, too.
It can last through all seasonal changes with minimal upkeep. Metal does not absorb rainwater and swell or get brittle due to intense summer heat. We can talk about its resilience all day, so let’s quickly jump to another feature that makes steel buildings likable.
Modular Design
Honestly, who on this earth has time to cut, measure, then again, cut to precision, and finally, drill through the panels & frames for joining, followed by shaping? Well, no one.
Steel manufacturers know this, so they offer pre-engineered steel buildings (PEMB), also known as prefab metal structures. These are designed, cut, and drilled in the factory so that at the installation site, they can be assembled quickly, with ease, and without demanding much manpower. This saves both time and money. Speaking of saving money, let’s move on to the next feature.
Insurance & Tax Benefits
Saving doesn’t end above. Whether you are a business or need metal structures for agriculture or residential, you can get a tax credit from the US government for saving on energy. It is fairly easy to make any metal structure energy efficient. You just need to install an insulator and vapor barrier and seal any gaps or holes. To learn more about tax benefits, check out the energystar.gov page.
Since metal is robust and can bear weight, you can install solar panels over it, too. For a seamless look, you can opt for solar shingles, peel-and-stick solar panels, or flexible solar panels.
Metal can resist fire as they are non-combustible by nature. You can enhance this feature further by adding an insulator. This feature does not go unnoticed by insurance companies as you can get up to 40% less for insurance premiums.
Sustainable Metal Buildings Are The Future
Steel buildings do not generate toxic fumes with time and are ideal for work environments in industrial storage units. Many businesses prefer structures that are easy to maintain, last long and do not need much attention. A steel structure does all of that.
From Dutch style to Mediterranean vibes or traditional to contemporary look, a steel building can be designed in any way. From customization to technology integration, multi-functionality to energy efficiency, commercial metal buildings will knock your socks off.
Investing in a certified steel structure from an experienced metal builder gives you certainty on material quality and the longevity of your entire structure. With better acoustics and a variety of colour options to choose from, the key trends are on the rise and will become even more diverse in the future.
