Environmental Advantages of Building with Steel

EnvironEnvironmental Advantages of Building with Steel



Steel is a terrific choice for sustainable and green construction, a benefit that is becoming more and more important to people as the natural resources of our planet are increasingly depleted. Take a look at these impressive facts:

Steel is 100% recyclable

All new North American steel currently being forged contains recycled steel.

Every ton of steel that is recycled saves approx. 2,500 pounds of iron ore, 1,400 pounds of coal and 120 pounds of limestone.

New steel made with recycled steel is vastly energy efficient, needing only ¼- 1/3 (approx) of the energy required to make steel from raw materials!

Greenhouse gas emissions per ton of steel shipped have been reduced by nearly 45% since 1975.

Both air and water emissions from steel production are a whopping 90% lower today than just 10 years ago.

Steel building materials do not release pollutants, although you must check with your manufacturer about the paints and coatings used on the steel if this is a concern for you.

Research on “cool metal roofing” proves that the reflective properties of steel roofs provide significant savings in energy consumption. (“Cool metal roofing” uses heat-deflecting coatings that significantly decrease heat build up inside a building.)

Heat and cooling loss, especially around doors, windows, foundation, and roofing, are significantly lower than other types of construction.

The insulation used in steel structures also makes a huge difference to the energy efficiency of the building. Insulation such as “Prodex Total Insulation” is both ICC-ES recognized and Energy Star Qualified. (ICC-ES is a nonprofit corporation that does technical evaluations of building components, methods, and materials.)

Click here for the "why''s" and "how''s" of insulating a steel building.

Steel is a sustainable choice for “green” construction. The World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987 (U.N. Brundtland Report), explains the concept of sustainability in this way: “Meeting the needs of present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.”

When you choose a steel building system, you can feel confident that you have made an environmentally responsible choice, and are building for a sustainable tomorrow.

Did you know…

“It takes about 45 seconds to shred the average automobile into fist-sized pieces of steel for recycling.”

-The Steel Recycling Institute

Metal building systems are used in an ever increasing variety of applications today. It’s quite likely that you have been in many steel buildings without realizing that they were not traditional buildings. No longer an ugly metal box, today’s metal buildings can be accessorized with different architectural finishes, such as brick or stucco, and a wide variety of paint options, to look like conventional structures and blend in with the neighborhood.

Retail stores, entire shopping malls, motels, office complexes, rec centers, skating arenas, and airplane hangars- these are just some of the buildings constructed from steel. You will also find steel buildings designed for warehouses, garages, barns and even churches.