We were very pleased to welcome over 150 delegates to our first ever virtual Annual Event and AGM on the 6th November. It gave us the opportunity to show that despite some very big (negative) changes to our funding over the last ten years or so we are still able to solve people's problems, and help them improve their commercial offerings by applying world leading expertise. So we remain relevant.

Two excellent presentations, the first on Shard Place (Taming the Beast from a WSP/Severfield double act) and the second on Gatwick Pier 6 Expansion (How to Move an Airport from WSP), showed how exciting steel construction can be. They also clearly demonstrated how the use of steel allows things to happen that would otherwise be impossible. A sad note, to remind us all of the new reality surrounding us, is that despite the design and planning being so advanced the Gatwick project has not yet gone ahead. But steel construction will emerge from the current crisis, and has the credentials to do so more strongly than ever. We know the Government wants to promote a 'green industrial revolution', and we heard how SCI is very actively working with relevant technologies. Higher strength materials, of which you need less, and demountable construction, which it seems we are constantly being asked about at the moment, are clear examples.

So we, and the sector, have come a long way since huge investment and effort was needed to grow the market for steel in construction. Together we succeeded in that, and together we need to ensure that steel remains relevant and maintains its current shares of 'strong' markets whilst also moving into new areas.

Let's hope we can celebrate success physically together in 2021.

Michael Sansom represented SCI at this roundtable discussion on 12th November. The Light Steel Frame Association event was sponsored by ARV Solutions, EOS, Intelligent Steel Solutions and Trimble Solutions. Representatives from the sponsors and other organisations including Fusion Building Systems, Tata Steel, Mid Group, Richard Hopkins and Wates Construction contributed to this on-line event which focussed on how steel can be utilised as a sustainable resource for the built environment.

The wide-ranging discussion included the following topics:

• The role that steel can play in delivering a circular economy
• How and from where do we attract new skills into the sector?
• What are the main drivers for specifiers to use light gauge steel as a main structural component in their projects
• The role of MMC and digital technologies in delivering sustainable buildings
• Decarbonisation and the transition to low/zero carbon steel production
• The broader sustainability benefits that light steel framing brings to projects.

An article summarising the event is currently being written up and will be published in Issue 3 of the Light Steel Frame magazine due to be published in February 2021.

LSF Magazine Light Steel Frame Association

Caunton framing three apartment blocks in Bristol

Caunton Engineering are most pleased to have been awarded the contract for the framing of three apartment buildings, within a redevelopment of a derelict area of Bristol. Caunton's client is Bristol based PG Construction Management (Carriageworks) Ltd and the project is being engineered by the consulting engineering practice Craddys, similarly Bristol based. The site once housed a former Victorian factory which made carriages back in the days when they were pulled by horses. Hence the site name, the Carriageworks.

Caunton are supplying nearly 700te of steelwork for the three residential buildings . The major building, comprising 435te of mainly beam and column structural steelwork, is an 'L' shaped building with 5 floors and roof: Caunton are also supplying and fixing precast concrete lift shafts, precast concrete floor slabs, and precast stair units. Caunton are most pleased to be helping redevelop an important area of Bristol. The illustration shows how development company Fifth Capital London Ltd envisage the future site.

The new Advisory Desk service emails sent this month included;

Advisory Desk Note - AD 430
Wind Load on unclad Frames

Advisory Desk Note - AD 454
Design checks for Category B preloaded assemblies

If you are an SCI Sole Trader or Corporate Member and not receiving these emails alerts go to the SCI Information Portal and in your Profile click on notifications/alerts and select the notifications you require.

All the Advisory Desk Notes and Questions and Answers together with other technical resources are all available at all times on the SCI Information Portal.

For SCI Sole Trader and Corporate members, SCI offers support through our Advisory Desk Service. For questions asked which we feel are pertinent to the wider member audience we publish anonymously the questions and answers.

Where some questions relate to SCI Publications we publish the question and answers in Connect.

This month our published question is about; Calculating fire resistance of a composite beam with profiled steel sheet

Question: When calculating the fire resistance of a composite beam with profiled steel sheet, what exposure condition should be assumed? Do the voids under the steel sheet mean that the beam is exposed on four sides?

Please see the answer to this Advisory Question/Answer - Ref No AD_QA_7152-20 and all Advisory questions on the SCI Information Portal.

The Advisory Desk Service is for SCI Corporate and Sole Trader Members advisory@steel-sci.com | +44 (0) 1344 636525

Next SCI Member webinar is;

Composite Design. Part 1
8 December 2020
12:30-13:30

This webinar will cover the application and design principles of composite beams, as well as codified design rules. Some recent developments with Eurocode 4 will also be covered.

Register here to view this webinar

SCI Online Training Courses

Light Gauge Steel Design Course - 3 sessions:

This online course is delivered in 3 sessions
Part 1 - 23 February
Part 2 - 25 February
Part 3 - 2 March

This course introduces the uses and applications of light gauge steel in construction, before explaining in detail the methods employed by Eurocode 3 for designing light gauge steel members in bending and compression and calculation of section properties. Specific design issues related to the different uses of light gauge steel are addressed.

For more information and to book this course click here.

For a list of webinars, online public courses visit the
SCI Information Portal

We may have to postpone courses and we will contact you if the course you have registered for is running on the date advertised or provide you with a new date in the future.

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