Need Steel Building Education

[RdSnake]

Im starting my research on steel buildings for our barn/garage/workshop/weekend getaway for our property here in California. We are hoping for a structure that is somewhere around 5k to 10k square feet.
I noticed that there are a lot of vendors out there for these buildings and pricing is all over the place. Its a big invest so we want good value.
Is there an industry standard for these structures?
Would it matter if the vendor is local or not or out of state?
What specs should I be looking for?
TIA

 

[Shoester]

My only comment would be to ensure that whomever you decide to go with, make sure they manufacture their own steel and that they aren't just a broker. Plenty of metal building companies are simply brokers, and you have no idea who you are really getting your building from.

 

[matt_i]

Quite an impressive size!

I worked in a 50' x 125' for a couple years (rented a portion of the bldg). The owner had made a career of building such buildings and I spent a lot of time with him.

I will just say that there's a lot more going on than just a 4" flat concrete slab. Its engineered, big monoliths under the columns, it has to be laid out very precisely otherwise the metal won't fit together.

I'm guessing you are looking at turnkey where a GC handles all of the details, so you don't have to be up on all of this.

Have to pre-plan for your sub-slab utilities and how to get from the metal frame to finished space (guessing drwalled areas and kitchen/bath areas). I would plan all the way to HVAC so you know how that's going to work into the overall package as well.

 

[The Tool Tyrant]

You need to contact this gentleman...https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/member.php?u=152410

 

[RdSnake]

Thanks, gents!
I guess one question I have is if going straight to a manufacturer is going to be cheaper than going to a broker?
Should I look for somebody local or not necessarily?
Are these buildings like refrigerators or TV's where there's really just a handful of manufacturers and the units are just rebranded or brokered off?

 

[mcbane]

Find a local contractor who is responsible for everything. Otherwise you buy a kit and hire a contractor. If the kit is wrong or the contractor screws up, you are caught in the middle.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[ZRX61]

Find out who built those Sun Air hangars to the West of the tower at Camarillo airport...


Edit:
It was Forest Construction.

 

[readhead]

Start at the planning and building departments and find out what you can or can’t do. Once you have some direction draw or have someone draw a basic set of plans. Be mindful of inside dimensions because eave height doesn’t mean much if you have specific clearance requirements.

Try to locate a local metal building contractor that can actually come visit your site and give recommendations. I recently quoted a building and the customer had a quote from an internet company that was almost half what I quoted. Of course he thought I was gouging him so I asked him to bring in the quote so I could look it over. They had the wrong code year, wrong snow load requirements, no insulation, no windows, missed the leanto he requested, left out sales tax and shipping. He asked me to come to his site and I suggested he move the building to another location on the property that would have a lot less excavation and tree removal. I got the job.

The most common mistake I see is people looking for a building first, getting excited about what seems like a great price, and then being brought down to earth when they find out what all the additional costs will be. That is why a plan from the beginning is important. The plan can be adjusted depending on budget or site constraints.

The local contractor can help with the budget issues. Even if you only purchase the building and decide to erect it yourself you will have someone nearby to answer questions and deal with material issues if they come up.

 

[RdSnake]

Find a local contractor who is responsible for everything. Otherwise you buy a kit and hire a contractor. If the kit is wrong or the contractor screws up, you are caught in the middle.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

Found one! Im gonna meet with him and discuss the project.

Find out who built those Sun Air hangars to the West of the tower at Camarillo airport...


Edit:
It was Forest Construction.

I live close to Cam Airport but my project is going to be in Kern County....

Start at the planning and building departments and find out what you can or can’t do. Once you have some direction draw or have someone draw a basic set of plans. Be mindful of inside dimensions because eave height doesn’t mean much if you have specific clearance requirements.

Try to locate a local metal building contractor that can actually come visit your site and give recommendations. I recently quoted a building and the customer had a quote from an internet company that was almost half what I quoted. Of course he thought I was gouging him so I asked him to bring in the quote so I could look it over. They had the wrong code year, wrong snow load requirements, no insulation, no windows, missed the leanto he requested, left out sales tax and shipping. He asked me to come to his site and I suggested he move the building to another location on the property that would have a lot less excavation and tree removal. I got the job.

The most common mistake I see is people looking for a building first, getting excited about what seems like a great price, and then being brought down to earth when they find out what all the additional costs will be. That is why a plan from the beginning is important. The plan can be adjusted depending on budget or site constraints.

The local contractor can help with the budget issues. Even if you only purchase the building and decide to erect it yourself you will have someone nearby to answer questions and deal with material issues if they come up.

All great points Thank you!! Are there companies that I should stay away from??....

 

[My Old Tools]

Find a local contractor who is responsible for everything. Otherwise you buy a kit and hire a contractor. If the kit is wrong or the contractor screws up, you are caught in the middle.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

This....Get bids from a few good local contractors, two or three if possible. Let them source the material. I have done three that way with three different contractors in different locations. They all turned out good.

 

[readhead]

There are very little differences in the construction of red iron buildings. There are quality issues with some builders. Rhino comes to mind. I don't think I have ever erected one of their buildings that wasn't missing something or was fabed wrong. The big broker that everyone has heard of is General Steel. They contract with several builders for the cheapest price and feed them jobs. You have no idea who will be making your building and if there is a problem GS hands you off to whoever made the building and that company has very little interest in helping you because they sold the building for rock bottom money.

Most of the building companies use software called MBS to design their buildings. The big difference is service. If you buy from an internet company they are just in it for the sale and after sale service may be useless. If you deal with a local provider they have some skin in the sale. They may rep one or a few building companies and they have a relationship with that builder and are more likely to get problems solved quickly.

PM me if you want some more info.