On Friday September 30, HFA participated in SteelDay, an annual event sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) in which industry members such as steel fabricators, steel mills, benders-rollers, and steel galvanizers open their doors to the public to show how the structural steel industry operates.
The State College office had the privilege to tour Altoona Pipe and Steel in Altoona, PA. Altoona Pipe and Steel is an AISC certified local steel fabrication facility, currently working with HFA on the Penn State East Halls construction and renovation project. We were able to see a large plate steel press, a CNC hole drilling machine and a CNC shape cutting plasma table, all in action. The Towson office visited B&B Welding, another local fabrication shop, where we were taken on a guided tour through the entire process of fabrication – from estimating and detailing of a job through shipping the fabricated steel to the job site.
After talking with everyone from the guys on the floor to the drafting department to the CEO, we learned what we can do as structural engineers to ease the process down the line and continue to design efficient and constructible steel structures.
Thank you to Altoona Pipe and Steel and B&B Welding for hosting us on the tours. We appreciate your insights.
Related links:
Penn State Housing East Halls Project information, including webcam link http://www.claycorp.com/p/27849/penn-state-east-halls-dev/
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