Steel framed buildings designed and installed by Steelwork Engineering

When it comes to choosing a framing material for multi-story buildings, steel is by far the UK construction industry’s most popular choice. Thanks to its long and proven track record of delivering cost-effective, high-quality, sustainable structures, steel has become to the go-to choice when constructing schools and educational buildings.

The construction of school buildings involves a range of particular design requirements which must be adhered to, including flexible use of space, spatial planning, acoustics, vibration control and durability. However, the requirements change depending on the type of building so, for example, an infant or primary school, although based on a standard grid-design of multiple classrooms, will be different to a secondary school or college which is likely to be multi-storey. In addition, high education buildings have to be designed to accommodate staff offices, laboratories, lecture theatres and even halls of residence.

However, perhaps the biggest challenge when constructing schools and educational buildings is speed. Fast construction times are essential to ensure that the construction of new buildings is completed within an academic year, or in some cases over the long summer holidays. Speed is important in order to minimise any potential disturbance to the sight and to ensure disruption to pupils and students is kept as low as possible.

Steel construction offers the ideal solution to such time constraints and as a result, has achieved a strong place in the market for all types of educational buildings. Not only does steel construction allow for buildings to be constructed into modular elements, designed to be quickly assembled on site, it also allows for shallower than normal floor construction which helps aid acoustic performance and reduce vibration.

Cost-effectiveness is where steel really is top of the class though as this form of construction offers a wide range of economic benefits for all sizes of project: from extensions to primary school buildings to brand-new halls of residence and university buildings. Steel construction offers savings in a number of areas including quicker erection times, flexible and future-proof design, off-site manufacture and the extension or construction of buildings with an existing constricted space.

Get in touch with Steelwork Engineering

To find out more about the benefits of steel construction, or to discuss your project requirements, get in touch with Steelwork Engineering at: info@steelworkengineering.com or by calling 01535 630100.