Steel joists fabrication basics, expert’s guide for housebuilders

Steel Joists Fabrication GuideIn Plain English, For Your Benefit

Steel joist fabrication certainly isn’t rocket science. Yet, only if done right, you can be sure that your home’s roof, floors, and ceilings will serve for decades to come. Knowledge is power, read on— our expert elaborates for your benefit.

Humble steel joist with an important job to do

Steel joists always keep a low profile, but they do an important job. As structural members, they work transferring the load of floors, ceiling, and roof to the joist girders, which then transfer it further to the main structural elements like columns, beams, and walls.

In plain terms, metal joists provide the flooring support for the floor you walk on and the needed structural support to the ceiling and the roof you sleep under.

Steel joist is never a stand-alone, joists and joist girders are usually manufactured together as a set that can later be assembled on the construction site.

The industry-standard steel joists are structural steel beams, very often the ubiquitous hot-rolled I-beams, produced from ASTM A36 carbon steel.  In some cases, cold-formed HSS of ASTM 1085 steel.

Steel joist manufacturer has to be able to read the engineer’s blueprints to determine, what sizes of standard beams are to be used for this particular steel joists and joist girders set manufacturing.

Knowledge and experience, along with attention to detail are needed at this stage. Steel joist manufacturer has to really measure it seven times and then cut the beam to specs, according to the engineer’s blueprints.

Any size deviation will result in floor, ceiling, or roof assembly delays. Holes for bolts, when needed, are also punched during the fabrication. The same goes for girders manufacturing.

Joists and joist girders replacement/refitting/repair projects

The same goes for all the repair/reinstallation/replacement projects, but attention to detail and precision, on spec manufacturing are perhaps even more important, if it’s your home under repair. Then, you want it done ASAP, and the project’s framework is even less suitable for any on-site joists size adjustments. At Structural Beam, we’ve got many successful repair/replacement jobs under our belt, please see our portfolio. If you trust us to repair your home, we’ll do our best to do it fast and to the highest quality standard.

Sticking to the standards

In the U.S., the Steel Joist Institute (SJI) sets the standards for joist engineering and manufacture. At Structural Beam, we follow all the relevant industry standards and regulations relating to steel joists manufacturing.

We are your local and reliable Chicago, Il-based steel joist manufacturer, call 773-917-8998 today to kick off your construction project with a free consultation by our specialists.

In the wide big world out there, there are many types of steel roof joists in existence: gable joists, barrel joists, arched joists, special profile steel joists, and open web steel joists. All those mentioned are more elaborate steel roof joists and actually are much more akin to trusses.

Then, there are composite joists that are used in larger multi-floor residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. And yet, there are also custom joists, custom-made for specific construction projects.

At Structural Beam, due to our focus on smaller-scale residential steel construction like houses, we mostly work with regular standard beam joists,  fabricated from structural steel products like I-beam, H-beam, and HSS.  Easily available, affordable, providing necessary floor support, supporting roofs and ceilings, structural steel joists by Structural Beam will serve you long and well.

For your benefit, use a local, one-stop structural steel solutions provider

When building a new house with a structural steel frame, structural steel member fabrication is a part of the larger construction process, in preparation for the roofing and flooring stages.

If you are looking to replace the existing joists, or to get hold of some standard joists or some special shapes-pretty much the same applies.

To ensure the uninterrupted flow of the building construction process and save on logistics, raw materials, and transportation, we offer you to consider doing it with us, your local Chicago Il. area one-stop structural steel solutions provider. By choosing Structural Beam, you’ll save your money and your most precious time.

How are steel joists fabricated?

Steel joists are fabricated by cutting standard structural beam products to the size, according to the engineer’s blueprints, and punching the holes for the bolts, if necessary. The same goes for joist girders. More elaborate, truss-like joist types’ manufacture involves bending and welding.

Why is there a steel joist shortage?

Some shortage is there due to the COVID-19 situation and resulting supply interruptions for some of the manufacturers. Fortunately, Structural Beam’s supply line is not affected, and being in Chicago, Il. really helps to have an uninterrupted structural steel products supply. You can always rely on us, as your local one-stop structural steel solutions provider, call 773-917-8998 to check availability and for a free estimate.

How far can steel joists span?

With girder support, in the case of a floor steel joist, the span is more than enough for most houses – it can easily span up to 40 feet. The Steel Joist Institute (SJI) and IBC codes determine the standards in that regard.  In Structural Beam, we follow all relevant rules, standards, and regulations to the letter, you can always rely on us, we’ve got you covered.