While Stainless Structurals is our name, it is not all that we do. Throughout the years, the core of our business has been stainless steel structural shapes used in industrial applications and corrosive environments. More recently, we have expanded our production facility with new equipment to produce sharp cornered carbon steel profiles. These types of special products are becoming increasingly popular in architecturally exposed structural elements.
Steel Production by Laser Welding
Our architectural steel profiles are produced by proprietary laser welding technology. This is the same technology used in the production of our structural shapes. Strips of carbon or stainless steel flats are laser cut to size and then pass through the laser welder to produce the required profile design. There is no filler metal used in this type of laser welding which achieves a full penetration bond over 1” thick. There are many distinct advantages of laser welding including:
Sharp corners and edges
Improved profile tolerances & high accuracy on geometry
High flexibility on profile design
No tooling cost
Nearly invisible weld seams with no weld correction factor
Meets AESS guidelines
For specification purposes, laser welding has achieved its own ASTM standard. ASTM A1069-19 covers laser welded stainless steel and there is currently a standard under review for laser welded carbon steel.
Popular Profiles and Architectural Applications
No other technology offers the customization in steel designs like that of laser welding. These profiles have 90° corners, square edges and clean lines that give a crisp look to critical features. They are the ultimate step towards individual, creative designs of architecturally exposed structural steel. The most common architectural applications for sharp corner steel profiles include glass facades and curtain walls, storefronts and canopies, sunscreens, skylights and structural applications.
Some of the more prevalent architectural steel profiles that we produce are sharp cornered square and rectangle tubing, tee sections, and custom free form shapes. All of these are available in stainless steel grades 304/L, 316/L and duplex stainless and grades A36 and Gr.50 in mild steel. Other alloys are available upon request and feasibility. We can manufacture profiles as small as 1” all the way up to 36” depending on the geometry and ratio of cross sections. Thickness can range from 3/16” to over 1”. Our standard profile lengths are 20-foot but we have the capability to produce up to 45-foot lengths.
Customer Resources
There are several industry resources available for using stainless steel profiles. The AISC design guide, section properties, Revit files and more are available to download from the support page on our website. As mentioned above, ASTM is currently working on a standard for laser welded carbon steel that should greatly benefit architects and designers in specifying these profiles. We have also launched two new accredited lunch & learn courses for architects and engineers to earn either AIA or PDH credits. One course is tailored towards architects with an in-depth look at the benefits and applications of architectural steel profiles. This course also highlights our growing portfolio of specific projects. The second course is tailored for engineers and goes into detail about using structural stainless steel in industrial applications. Our knowledgeable sales team can assist with any questions you may have about architectural steel profiles.
Please contact us today for more information.
