There are two major sets of factors that will influence the design and construction of your steel building. One is practical: the actual use of the building. This requires work on your part to think through exactly how you'll use the building. For example, if you're building a warehouse, you may need roll-up doors high enough for your forklifts to drive through. Steel buildings always require foundations, which in most cases are flat concrete slabs.
The second is legal. Every state has different building codes that will apply to your project. These will include things like snow load and wind load: how much of either your building must be able to stand up to. If you're building a church or emergency vehicle garage, extra "importance factors" may apply that require push the code requirements even higher. Other legal requirements include local zoning laws, drainage requirements, and more.
Some aspects of your design involve both practical and legal considerations: for a retail facility, appropriate parking and handicapped access fall under both categories.
While steel building suppliers can often help you research these codes - most won't ship you a building that doesn't meet codes in your area - the ultimate responsibility for meeting them is yours. The bottom line on planning your building is that if you're not familiar with major construction projects, you'll need to rely on experts to assist your planning.
Storage containers come in a variety of sizes. Most are usually 8' wide and 8'6" high, and commonly feature lengths of 20 and 40 feet (1,170 cubic feet and 3,340 cubic feet.)
Most businesses choose 20' containers since they provide easier access to items in the back. 40' models provide almost three times as much storage space, but may require additional doors on the back or side to take advantage of the larger space.
Some vendors may offer containers in other lengths, such as lengths as small as 6' or as large as 54', but these odd sizes can be hard to find. For additional clearance, "high cubes" feature internal heights of 9'6".
As with traditional buildings, modular buildings can be used for many different purposes. They can range from portable classrooms to research lab facilities to a medical clinic. Companies in the healthcare, government, education and retail industries often turn to modular buildings for their construction needs.
Unlike traditional buildings however, modular buildings have design constraints. Since the building will be shipped via the road, there are maximum height constraints. Typical ceiling heights are around 8 feet vs. 9 to 10 feet for traditional construction. Companies looking for a building to enclose a much large overhead space (e.g. prefab warehouse, riding arena) will likely fare better with steel buildings.
There are a variety of finishes you can choose for your modular building exterior. They include wood, steel, brick, stucco, aggregate and other exterior siding. You can also customize your exterior with windows, multiple doors, and various roof treatments. Numerous options exist for finishing the interior as well.
As with conventional buildings, you can have your modular building erected so it is flush to the ground or set above ground. To have the building entrance set flush to the ground, you will need a pit-set foundation. You should also consult with a local geotechnical firm to ensure the soil conditions are appropriate for a below-ground foundation. Above-ground foundations will require that your building has ramps and steps to all entrances.
To provide a more custom look, there has been a recent trend to constructing "permanent modular" buildings that require more on-site construction. This translates to having as little as 50 percent of the construction occurring at the factory.
Using storage containers as steel buildings
There are many practical uses for storage containers. From storing equipment to turning it into a modular building (and even in some cases shipping containers are turned into designer homes). Even though the basic design of a storage container is very basic (four steel walls and in most cases double steel doors). Storage containers come in a variety of sizes ranging from 10 feet wide and 20 high to 40 feet wide to 20 feet high.
Aspect of a custom storage container design to consider
There are two major design aspects you should consider; one is commen sense of where you plan on storing the container. The other is legal which means there are certain building codes you might need to follow along with zoning laws and handicapp accessability. Most major storage container companies provide the necessary paper work involved for you area. If not chamber of commerces or the local courthouse are places you can recieve the necessary information.
Author Resource:-
Ronald is head of Marketing for storage containers in the United States.
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