Comparing Light Gauge Steel and Concrete Construction

PROPOSAL ON THE PROJECT TOPIC:
A COMPARATIVE USE OF LIGHT GAUGE

STEEL CONSTRUCTION OVER CONCRETE
WORKS FOR PUBLIC AND HOUSING UNITS
By
BAKARE, Haneef Akinsola
13/30GB059
CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT,
UNIVERSITY OF ILORIN,
ILORIN, NIGERIA.
Submitted to
Prof. Y.A Jimoh
(Project supervisor)
12/03/2018
Contents
1.0 BACKGROUND ................................................................................................................. 2
2.0 PROBLEM STATEMENT .................................................................................................. 3
3.0 JUSTIFICATION ................................................................................................................ 4
4.0 AIMS AND OBJECTIVE.................................................................................................... 4
4.1 Aim:.................................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
4.2 Objectives: .......................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
5.0 METHODS .........................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
5.1 METHODOLGY .............................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
6.0 LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................................................... 6
6.1 SOLUTION .....................................................................Error! Bookmark not defined.
6.2 DRY CONSTRCUTION.................................................................................................. 8
6.3 STEEL AS AN IMPORTANT CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL ................................... 9
6.4 HISTORY OF LIGHT STEEL BUILDING TECHNOLOGY ...................................... 10
6.5 WHAT IS LIGHT GUAGE STEEL BUILDING? .........Error! Bookmark not defined.
6.6 LIGHT GAUGE STEEL IN USE .................................................................................. 17
6.7 ADVANTAGES OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL (AS CONSTRUCTION METHOD AND
MATERIAL) ............................................................................................................................. 24
6.8 DISADVANTAGES OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL (AS ACONCTRUCTION METHOD
AND MATERIAL) ................................................................................................................... 26
6.9 CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION .................................................................................. 27
6.10 ADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION ................................................ 27
6.11 DISADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION .......................................... 28
7.0 ANTICIPATED RESULTS OF STUDY .......................................................................... 28
8.0 CONCLUSION .................................................................................................................. 28
9.0 COST AND PROGRAM DURATION ............................................................................. 29
10.0 REFERENCES .................................................................................................................. 29
TABLE OF FIGURES:
Figure 1 Load-bearing wall components in LSF systems (Amarildo V. Moreira, 2015) ............. 18
Figure 2 Steel framed walls and its loads (Amarildo V. Moreira, 2015)...................................... 18
Figure 3 Building elements supplied from the factory based (http://www.rsgsoftware.com ) ..... 19
1 | Proposal On The Project Topic: An Investigation Of The Comparative Use Of Light Gauge Steel Construction Over Concrete Works For
Public And Housing Units By Bakare, H.A.
Figure 4 Panel made from factory and shipped to site (http://www.rsgsoftware.com) ................ 19
Figure 5 Light gauge steel procedure (The Steel Construction Institute) ................................. 22
Figure 6 Roof framing using rafters and purlins (http://www.rsgsoftware.com ) ........................ 22
Figure 7 Floor system (http://www.rsgsoftware.com ) ................................................................. 23
Figure 8 Floor to foundation connection (www.SteelFramingAlliance.com) .............................. 23
Figure 9 Framing components of a light gauge steel .................................................................... 23
1.0 BACKGROUND
The need for better and efficient construction methods for building housing units keep increasing
daily. This can be traced to the difficulties, set-backs or problems associated with the traditional
construction methods currently in use. Most housing units in Nigeria are built with concrete,
because it is cheaper and readily available, than some other construction materials like steel and
also preferred over the untreated earth or soil construction because of its longer lifespan and
durability.
The traditional concrete construction method have a lot of advantages such as low maintenance
cost, durability, relatively high fire resistance, acoustics, and much material availability.
Notwithstanding the enumerated advantages, traditional concrete construction still reflect the
intensive need for labours and materials, high cost of raw materials, environmental hazard during
production and use, relatively low strength-to-weight ratio, poor materials, little adherence to
specifications; all of which constitute the complexities that account for total building collapse are
among the challenges facing the use of concrete as a construction material in Nigeria. While some
of these challenges are attributed to concrete naturally, some are specific or inherent in the Nigeria
construction environment. The cost of cement which is a major material used in concrete
production increases annually in the past few years due to high cost of production, unfavourable
foreign exchange policies and the demand of higher quantity than the supply (by almost a factor
of two) thus requiring importation to supplement the demand (James & Agele, 2016). Construction
in wet concrete is very convenient and attractive to non-skilled or semi-skilled workers.
The light gauge steel technology involves the use of cold formed steel sections for partitions,
ceilings, floor systems, roofing linings in buildings. They are constructed off-site and transported
to site for assemblage using rivets or self-tapping screws for joining the elements together. The
light gauge steel building technology has not been used in Nigeria in a large scale compared to the
conventional concrete construction (James & Agele, 2016).
The light gauge steel building technology which is in much use in other countries like UK, US,
Australia, has been proven to safe construction time by almost 50% of the construction time of the
same project when built using traditional concrete construction method (Barnard, 2010). Other
advantages of using light gauge steel building technology are that it produced buildings that are
robust, 100% recyclable, reduced overall building loads, less prone to organisms attacked. Though
cost of construction using light gauge steel may be higher than that of concrete construction (James
& Agele, 2016). However there are other factors affecting construction where light gauge steel has
more advantages than the traditional concrete construction.
Shortcomings to the use of light gauge steel building technology are thermal bridging, high cost
of maintenance, low acceptability, high skilled man-power required for production and
construction etc. (Perkins, 2009)
This project investigate the comparative use of concrete and light gauge steel building technology
in quantitative terms using a selected building project as a case study for construction of massive
housing units in Nigeria. The project will also present a more sustainable construction method
between the concrete and light gauge steel building technology thus providing a sustainable
solution to the problem of construction of housing units in Nigeria. Hence come up with
suggestions on areas of better application of each methods in massive housing units construction
in Nigeria. The factors to be considered during the course of investigation are: construction time
(project delivery time), cost, maintenance (routine and cost of repair), material availability and
Production, technical skills involved in construction, building durability, safety during and after
construction and whole-life cost savings
2.0 PROBLEM STATEMENT

The problem is to compare the light gauge steel building technology with the traditional
construction method in Nigeria and find out which method or technology is more sustainable in
view of the many factors of individual or massive housing development. Among these factors are
the production or work rate, installation and maintenance costs, overall cost effectiveness and other
major factors that affect the quality of construction. Also maybe the new technology can be
adopted for some projects based on its advantages or both methods can be combined to obtain
optimum results. Most stakeholders in the industry believe that light gauge steel building
technology are costlier than concrete buildings and thus have hindered its use in the industry
(James & Agele, 2016).
3.0 JUSTIFICATION
The recent adoption of light gauge steel building technology in most developed parts of the world
like Europe, America and others have really showed the enormous benefits in the use of LGS
technology. One of the important benefits that LGS technology has brought to the construction
industry is saving construction time drastically to almost 50 percent of initial time of construction.
The LGS building technology produce building that is environmentally friendly. The anticipated
result of this study is that there will be prospect for the use of LGS building technology in Nigeria
by considering major factors affecting building construction including the cost of maintenance. It
has the potential of improving the quality and standard rate of production of housing units in
Nigeria to address the much housing gap rationally.
4.0 AIM AND OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study is to investigate in quantitative and long term effects, the comparative use of
light gauge steel building technology in Nigeria construction industry over the use the use of
concrete for appropriate promotion of housing units.
The objectives of this study are to:
1. assess, in qualitative and quantitative terms, the perception of the public on the use light
gauge steel building technology in the Nigeria construction industry,
2. review the relevance of the light gauge steel building technology in housing construction
in comparison with concrete construction in Nigeria,
3. identify and catalogue initial cost and other factors in addition for development of a
building unit with relative weighting of significance,
4. present a comparative scale of performance of housing construction using LGS building
technology and concrete, and
5. hence come up with suggestions on the better technology for massive housing programmes.
5.0 MATERIALS AND METHODOLOGY
The following are the proposed methodologies to be used for the project:
5.1 DATA COLLECTION AND SAMPLING

The raw and primary information will be collected by conducting structured survey among
the major stakeholders in the Nigeria construction industry, such as government or public
servants, contractors, real estate investors/managers, structural engineers, consultants and
architects. This will be achieved by creating a questionnaire that will contain necessary
information to reflect the aim of this project. The questionnaire will be both in electronic
and physical formats. The electronic form will be made in Google form and the website
link will be made available to the participants. Likewise, the survey will be monitored so
as to control who is participating hence the link to the survey form and the manual formats
will only be given to the targeted participants.
The survey will address the perception of the public on the use light gauge steel building
technology in the Nigeria construction industry. The data will be collected randomly and
the survey will be dynamic, that is, depending on a question that is answered, another one
will appear. The questions may be multiple choice or short answer may be required.
The survey is divided into three parts. The first part is aim to get information about the
participant filling the survey such as the name, role in construction industry (engineer,
builder, etc.), experience and location. The second part focuses on how they get projects,
how they choose material for construction, factors considered when they are choosing
materials. The third part finds the perception of the participants on the light gauge steel
building technology such as their knowledge on light gauge steel, the type of building they
have used light gauge steel for (if any), years of experience with light gauge steel and the
challenges they faced when using light gauge steel as a construction material. The sample
of the questionnaire is attached as appendix.
5.2 DATA ANALYSIS

The data collected will be analysed and necessary observations will be noted. This will be
done using statistical and other software packages like Microsoft Excel, SPSS. This will
help to analyse the information collected through the survey and reliable results will be
obtained. There may be need for a data analyst or statistician.
5.3 RESEARCH
A study of the Nigeria construction industry, its stakeholders and the environment to obtain
the necessary information about the construction materials in use, their advantages and
disadvantages and why they are using them. A comprehensive study is also done on the
materials considered in the project (concrete and light gauge steel) including their effects
on the construction factors such as time, maintenance, material availability, cost,
maintenance etc. This will provide the obtainable benefits that this technology has to offer
to the Nigeria construction industry. During the course of research, the conventional
method of construction is also discussed and then compared with the light gauge steel
technology.
The construction process or requirement needed for the two technologies is considered and
this will help to present a scale of performance of housing construction using LGS building
technology and concrete. Thus, suggestions on which method is more preferable for mass
housing programmes is presented.
It is important to note that the light gauge steel technology is yet to be fully adopted in the
Nigeria construction industry, at some instances, references will be made to the
performance of this technology in other countries so as to obtain a more reliable and
practical information on light gauge steel technology.
6.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

6.1 PREAMBLE
Due to the housing deficit in Nigeria housing sector, there is exceedingly high demand and the
high cost of new construction and this has made the cost of housing in Nigeria to be expensive
when compared to the local household incomes (Ronald, 2013). Ronald (2013) stated that in Lagos
state alone, there is more than six times the accepted affordability benchmark which is higher than
even Hong Kong. The affordability benchmark is based on the value of median multiple of 3 which
is considered affordable worldwide by the Agenda 21 of the United Nations framework on
sustainable development (United Nations, 2012). The median multiple of house-price-to-income
is an internationally recognized measure of housing affordability and is defined as the ratio
between median house price and median annual household income (Ronald, 2013).
The negative trend in the level of affordability in housing in Nigeria may not be only caused by
the little investments from the real estate investors (in less expensive home for low income
households) but rather, other factors contributing to this trend include expensive lands, high
construction costs-high cost of materials and labour (Ronald, 2013). The low performance or
capacity of indigenous companies allows for high dependence on importation of at least 50% of
construction materials which make up 60% of the cost of construction (Oladipo & Oni, 2012).
Cement, which is widely used in the construction industry, despite being sourced locally, was also
found to be expensive relative to world standard (Ronald, 2013).
Other major problems of housing provision in Nigeria include (Iwuagwu & Iwuagwu, 2015);
1. Poor financing system (high interest rate on loans, unsteady income)

2. Poor promotion of security of tenure which is a perquisite for sustainable improvement of
housing and environmental conditions. Tenure issues leading to eviction would be solved
through promoting security of tenure thus improving investments in homes and
communities and;
3. Expensive or unaffordable land, and poor infrastructures and services.
The most common and mostly used approach used in solving the problem of housing deficit in
Nigeria is through improving availability and access to mortgage financing (Ronald, 2013).
Several government policies have been laid down to support this financing method and special
interventions from different tiers of government such as mass social housing construction which
are available at cheaper price and are not aimed at profit making. However, as the approach have
been used several times with some positive results, some researchers opined that the problem can
be tackled from the construction point of view that is, lowering cost of construction (Ronald, 2013).
According to Ronald, major drawback to mortgage financing as a viable solution for making
housing units available and accessible to low income households is the unsteady or low income
thus lowering repayment capacity required for mortgage loans. Even in emerging nations,
low/moderate income earners cannot afford a mortgage loan (Ferguson & Bruce, 2008).
According to Federal Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development in a study conducted
in 2012, over 80% of Nigeria’s population cannot afford a 2.5 million naira mortgage loan even
with 20 year tenure, no down payment and zero interest even when paying 45% of their income
(which, of course, exceed affordability) (Ronald, 2013).
Then approach of lowering the cost of construction may be a better and an important solution to
the housing deficit in Nigeria from the fact that high cost of construction has also been one of the
major problems of housing deficit in Nigeria. High cost of construction often derives from high
cost of materials and labour because “Building materials often constitute the single largest inputs
to the housing construction in most developing countries particularly in Africa cities (Iwuagwu &
Iwuagwu, 2015) where technology driven practice is still low or yet developing. Thus high cost of
materials can relatively affect the affordability and availability of housing units in Nigeria. Ronald
further argued that this sustainable, systemic solution –lowering construction cost- will work no
matter what else happens or doesn’t happen in the housing finance market.
6.2 HOUSING CONSTRUCTION METHODS/TECHNIQUES

The methodology, therefore, used in lowering construction costs involves finding or developing
alternatives or improvements to the components, activities or methods that made up the
construction as a whole as related to building. These components, activities or methods are majorly
materials, labour, construction methods or techniques. Hence innovative building technologies
developed and used in developed economy can be examined. Ronald listed the following
innovative building technology as relevance to Nigeria:
1. Dry construction
2. Indigenous materials
3. Green and Recycled Materials
4. Emerging Technologies and Composites.
6.2.1 DRY CONSTRCUTION IN CONCRETE AND LIGHT STEEL

This is a method of building construction without using conventional mortar or plaster (Ronald,
2013). The dominant construction method in Nigeria construction industry especially housing
sector is wet construction which involve use of concrete blocks and masonry works.
Dry construction mainly involve prefabricated elements (partitions, ceilings, floor system, roof,
linings) which are assembled on site. In the dry construction method, common materials used are
timber, steel and precast concrete structures. Lightness in weight is the common attribute between
these materials while the gain in time of construction is the obvious and added advantage over the
wet. The merit for curing properly before further stages of construction is highly reduced.
Steel as dry construction material can be cold or hot formed. The cold formed ones have been
predominantly used than the hot formed. Cold formed steel is fabricated in the factory where it is
cut into exact dimensions and is assembled on site. The building technology that involved the use
of cold formed steel as a construction material for building homes is called LIGHT GAUGE
STEEL BUILDING TECHNOLOGY (Barnard, 2010). The following review is about the use of
steel and its advantages and disadvantages as a construction material.
6.2.2 STEEL AS AN IMPORTANT CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL

The important qualities of steel makes it an important material in the construction industry. Steel
can be adopted in two major ways in construction: as reinforcing bars for reinforced concrete
structures or as stand-alone material for construction (Anthony, Gideon, Jadesola, & Dominic,
2015). In developing nations like Nigeria, steel have been used mainly for reinforced concrete
structures while in the developed nations, steel frame structures are well developed and practiced
(Anthony, Gideon, Jadesola, & Dominic, 2015). Over 90% of single storey, non-domestic
buildings, roofing for super markets, big outlet sports, and holiday centres are made of steel
structures. (Amarildo & Amarildo, 2015)Steel properties such as strength, beauty, precision,
malleability, light weight, durability, reduced time of erection, 100% recyclability and flexibility
in changing building layouts over time make it adoptable as main frame structure (Anthony,
Gideon, Jadesola, & Dominic, 2015). Steel materials lend for industrialization of products and
factory-finished construction elements comes with the most exacting specifications under highly
controlled conditions. Thus making the final product more predictable and repeatable, eliminating
the risk of on-site variability (Anthony, Gideon, Jadesola, & Dominic, 2015). The efficiencies of
steel construction leads to substantial resources efficiencies and economic benefits, including
accelerated project schedules, reduced site activities and earlier returns on investment (Anthony,
Gideon, Jadesola, & Dominic, 2015)
6.3 HISTORY OF LIGHT STEEL BUILDING TECHNOLOGY
Light steel building technology is just gaining interest in the Nigeria construction industry. To gain
proper insight about this technology, information will be sourced from countries where this
technology have been practiced for years and such information will be more reliable and practical.
According to Amarildo and Amarildo (2015), in their research about light steel framing system,
the Light Steel Frames (LSF) are made by a process called roll cold-forming in which a long strip
of sheet steel is passed through a series of rollers to form the bends and create the desired shape.
The frames are manufactured at room temperatures, relatively considered low temperatures (cold
working) and the strength is achieved by a combination of properties of the steel, such as thickness.
Zinc which is used as the steel in the light steel framing system protects it from rusting, which can
lead to damage during storage or even loss of strength during the construction phase (Amarildo &
Amarildo, 2015). Other method of making light gauge steel is the “brake forming method” which
involve pressing and braking several times to form the desired shape or section (Cabiroglu, 2015).
Steel produced from cold forming process such as light gauge steel are characterised with increase
in yield point and strength while the ductility is decreased. Also, fatigue strength increases
especially at bent corners (Cabiroglu, 2015).
6.3.1 STRUCTURAL BEHAVIOUR OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL

In the study of structural behaviour of light gauge steel by Cabiroglu (2015), local buckling may
occur before the section yields, this is due to the high width to thickness ratio even under low
comprehension loads. Hence, it is not necessary for the element to reach its loading capacity for
local buckling to occur. Section may be stiffened to resist more load and this is called post
buckling. Likewise, due to small thickness, the element have low tensional and due to eccentricity
coming from loads, the beam will twist making the beam to undergo lateral or torsional flexural
buckling. This is called distortional buckling (Cabiroglu, 2015). Bracing will minimise the lateral
and torsional deformations and will transfer shear and torque to other members. Limitation is given
to the flat-width ratio in the AISI code. Shear buckling and we crippling are also considered in the
design of light gauge steel. Figure 1 shows the various sections of cold-formed steel used for
structural framing
Cabiroglu (2015) gave some important terms used in light guage steel building technology with
their definitions. They are listed below:
1. cold form and galvanised steel: Corrosion resistant, light weight high strength sheet metals.
It has a protective coating made to resist corrosion (see figure 1);
2. bottom plate: which is at the end of wall stud. When upper plate do not have lips, it is U
profile (see figure 2);
3. C-sections: used for structural framing members such as studs, joists, beams, girders and
rafters. Figure 2 shows the parts of a steel section (see figure 3);
4. stud: vertically span full length of the wall supporting vertical and lateral loads. Joist and
trusses must be properly aligned to transfer the loads to the member below. A cripple stud
is a stud that is placed between a header and a windowsill (or jamb) or a windowsill and a
bottom track to provide a backing to attach finishing and sheathing material (Elhajj &
Bielat, 2000). (see figure 4 and 5);
5. noggings: the horizontally fixed plate in the wall assembly and it is used in load bearing
walls to provide lateral restraint to the wall studs; Figure 4 shows how nogging is used in
light gauge steel construction (see figure 6);
6. floor joists: a horizontal member designed to support floor loads. And when used in roofing
system, it supports attic, roof and roof service loads including wind and rain dead loads.
Depending on the design, it can be single or double joists (back to back). Figure 5 indicates
the joist used in a roof system (see figure 7);
7. blockings: are needed in designing distances between taller joists in order to prevent any
twisting problem in the joists;
8. anchor bolt: they are provided to fix the walls and the columns to the foundation because
of uplift and shear forces;
9. x-bracing: 5-7cm flat and with 2.0mm or more width steel bracing needs to be fixed from
corner to corner as diagonal to the wall. This will give resistance to shear forces and this
will protect the load bearing wall from racking and fall over.
Other terms used in light gauge steel building technology are (Elhajj & Bielat, 2000):
10. axial Load: The longitudinal force acting on a member. Examples are the gravity loads
carried by columns or studs.
11. blocking: Solid block or piece of material placed between structural members to provide
lateral bracing as in bridging and/or edge support for sheathing.
12. braced Wall Line: A series of braced wall panels to resist racking (shear) from seismic and
wind forces.
13. braced Wall Panel: A section of braced wall line that extends the full height of the wall.
14. bridging: Bracing or blocking placed between joists to provide lateral support.
15. buckling: A kink, wrinkle, bulge, or otherwise loss of the original shape of a member due
to compressive, bending, bearing, or shear loads.
16. truss: An engineered structural component designed to efficiently carry its own weight and
superimposed design loads. The truss members form a triangular structural framework.
17. clip Angle: An L-shaped short piece of metal (normally with a 90-degree bend). It is
typically used for connections.
18. endwall: The exterior wall of a building which is perpendicular to the roof ridge and
parallel to floor framing, roof rafters, or trusses. It is normally the shorter dimension of a
rectangular building’s footprint.
19. facia: A member applied to the rafter ends as an edge member for attachment of roof
sheathing, exterior finishes, or gutter.
20. flange: The part of a C-shape or track that is perpendicular to the web.
21. header: A horizontal built-up structural framing member used over wall or roof openings
to transfer loads above the opening to adjacent vertical framing members.
22. in-Line Framing: A framing method where all vertical and horizontal load carrying
members are aligned.
23. jack Stud: A vertical structural member that does not span the full height of the wall and
provides bearing for headers. Sometimes referred to as a trimmer stud.
24. king Stud: A vertical structural member that spans the full height of the wall and supports
vertical loads and lateral loads. Usually located at both ends of a header adjacent to the
jack studs.
25. rafter: A structural framing member (usually sloped) that supports roof loads.
26. shearwall: A vertical wall assembly capable of resisting lateral forces to prevent racking
from wind or seismic loads acting parallel to the plane of the wall.
27. sidewall: The exterior wall of a building parallel to the roof ridge, which supports roof
rafters or trusses.
28. single Span: The span made by one continuous structural member without any intermediate
supports.
29. span: The clear distance between bearing supports.
30. structural Sheathing: The covering (e.g., plywood or oriented strand board) used directly
over structural members (e.g., studs or joists) to distribute loads, brace walls, and generally
strengthen the assembly.
31. structural or Load Bearing: Wall systems subject to loads that exceed the limits for a non-
structural system (e.g., wall studs).
32. non-Structural or Non-Load Bearing: Wall systems that are limited to 10 psf (0.479 kN/m)
maximum lateral (transverse) load and/or limited, exclusive of sheathing materials, to 100
pounds (450 N) per lineal foot (0.3 m) or 200 pounds (900 N) maximum superimposed
vertical load per member (e.g., interior partitions).
33. web: The part of a C-shape or track section that connects the two flanges.
34. web Crippling: The localized permanent (inelastic) deformation of the web member
subjected to concentrated load or reaction at bearing supports.
35. web Stiffener: Additional material that is attached to the web to strengthen the member
against web crippling. Also called a bearing stiffener.
36. wind Exposure: Wind exposure is determined by site conditions that affect the actual wind
speeds experienced at a given site. For the purpose of this document, exposures A/B
represent urban or suburban areas or wooded terrain and exposure C represents open terrain
with scattered obstructions.
37. wind Speed: Wind speed is the design wind speed related to winds that are expected to be
exceeded once every 50 years at a given site (i.e., 50 year-return period). Wind speeds in
this document are given in units of miles per hour (mph) by “fastest-mile” measurements.
38. yield Strength: A characteristic of the basic strength of the steel material. It is the highest
unit stress that the material can endure before permanent deformation occurs as measured
by a tensile test in accordance with ASTM
Figure 1 Cold-formed steel sections used for structural framing (Cabiroglu, 2015) and (Amarildo
& Amarildo, 2015)
Figure 2 Bottom plate
Figure 3 Parts of a light gauge steel section (C-shape) (Cabiroglu, 2015)
Figure 4 Studs in use (Cabiroglu, 2015)
Figure 5 Stud bracing with sheathing material only (Elhajj & Bielat, 2000)
Figure 6 Nogging in use (Cabiroglu, 2015)
Figure 7 Joists (Cabiroglu, 2015)
6.3.2 LIGHT GAUGE STEEL IN USE

Light gauge steel frame building has been in use as a well building method in Australia, US, and
Europe for more than 50 years (Barnard, 2010). Predominantly, from history, light gauge steel are
used as interior wall partitions before they were adopted for complete building framing. Low to
medium rise residential and office buildings, hotels can be constructed using light gauge steel
framing system. According to the Builders Guide of Steel Frame Construction, from the steel
frame alliance, more than 40% commercial structures now are using steel framing and with nearly
500 homes in the US built with steel framing over the past decade. Figures 8 and 9 show examples
of use of light gauge steel construction as load bearing elements.
Figure 8 Load-bearing wall components in LSF systems (Amarildo & Amarildo, 2015)
Figure 9 Steel framed walls and its loads (Amarildo & Amarildo, 2015)
Light gauge steel have been used severally as substitute for the traditional construction materials
such as wood, concrete etc. In fact, regions that are prone to natural disasters like hurricane,
earthquake etc. have also adopted light gauge steel building technology due to its higher tensile
and bending strength. The architectural design is either made available to steel fabricating
companies (which is more preferable) or standard sizes of the elements can be purchased in the
market and cutting and accurate sizing is done on the site. Figures 3 and 4 are structural building
units in pictures.
The assemblage of the frame is such that gap is made in between where insulating material such
as wool are used for thermal protection. It described as ‘off-site’ building, as a lot of the
manufacturing takes place in factories, and the components are assembled on site. R rivets or self-
tapping screws are used to join the section together at the site and are transported to site for
erection.
Figure 10 Building elements supplied from the factory based (http://www.rsgsoftware.com )
Figure 11 Panel made from factory and shipped to site (http://www.rsgsoftware.com)

In Nigeria, there is some little information lately about the history of use of light gauge steel as a
construction material. As evidenced with the example of the state government of Osun adopting
the light gauge steel building technology to build two mega schools of 3000 capacity each. The
complete construction time lasted for 8 months for the Mega School in Osogbo. The second project
is ongoing located in Ilesha Township in State of Osun. There were a lot of challenges faced during
the course of construction of the first project. Major challenges were due to lack of materials and
technical know-how. But the state government’s ministries of works and education decided to
adopt the technology due to a lot advantages that the technology will bring, such as it is perceived
in saving construction and fastness/timely erection of building elements. The materials were
mainly imported from Turkey where they have been pre-fabricated to the exact dimensions as it is
on the architectural plan. Personnel were brought from Turkey though some local workers were
trained too. However, the cost implications of this may be high because of the foreign components
of human and material resources. To sustain effective utilization of light gauge steel in Nigeria
construction industry, the industry will need to work on sensitizing major stakeholders in the
industry on the advantages and disadvantages of this technology and making a comprehensive
comparison between light gauge steel and other construction materials with the best candidate of
comparison being the concrete, thus providing a detailed information to the industry stakeholders
about the superiority of the steel material. Some had the belief that light gauge steel is used for
construction of temporary structures such as portal cabin used as office on construction sites. This
claim had given a general perception that light gauge steel are weak and cannot be used as
conventional construction material. The technology also provide lower floor-to-floor height using
the girder slab, staggered truss and castellated beam.
6.3.3 LIGHT GAUGE STEEL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION DEVELOPMENT IN

STAGES –PLATFORM METHOD
The construction involves using the sections for roof and wall structures (interior and exterior).
The common method for housing construction is the “platform method”. The foundation type,
which is selected depending on the structural requirement of the building is also similar to the
conventional ones used in concrete method, such as raft foundation, strip foundation etc. Pile or
pre-cast pile foundations may be suitable in some cases. Due to its lightness, the over-all building
load is reduced thus reducing amount of structural capacity needed of the foundation structure.
Proper attention should be given to the dimension of the slab to minimise geometrical inaccuracy
or alignment problem. Suspended floor can also be used instead of concrete slab and it is usually
preferable when ground condition is poor and it comprises of steel decking and in-situ concrete,
steel floor joints or traditional beam and block floor. The floor plate, 6 inches high, is connected
using “J-bolt” to the foundation wall. The height is provided to prevent rotting and serve as termite
barrier. Special steel member maybe incorporated into the foundations to facilitate accurate later
attachment of the steel sub-frames or panels. For foundations designed to resist uplift, necessary
anchorages are provided at various position. Wall locations are then marked out on the concrete
plate and wall panels are then constructed on the plate in accordance to the architectural plan. The
wall studs should be arranged such that webs are placed perpendicular to the wall surface because
they are considered as compression members. The fiber boards, plywood or gypsum board as a
cladding material, will give lateral support to the studs. In construction involving more than the
ground floor, the first floor bearers would sit on top of the load bearing walls from the ground
floor. The bearer would connect and carry the floor joists. The floor joists would in turn carry the
floor boards and wall panels above. For roof deck, roof joists would then sit on the walls panels to
carry the roof system and other roof loads. The panels should plumb and be in correct alignment.
The framing elements including the forming stud-bays (wall) or joist-bays (floor) are assembled
using nails in a consistent dimensions at regular spacing as specified in the code, depending on the
design load. Different connection types have been specified in the BS5950-5. The design, detailing
and construction conditions will influence the choice of connection to be used during construction.
Connection types are welded, bolted, screwed, riveted, press joining or clinching, powder actuated
fastenings connection. Some of these connection types have different techniques too. Connections
can also be made using self-drilling screws and bolts. Welding is usually not required as
mechanical fasteners would suffice in most cases. The elements (floor, wall and roof) are stable in
tension by installing plywood or composite wood “skin” referred to as sheathing. The framing
members must be properly spaced to avoid alignment inaccuracy. The required service holes as
specified in the M&E drawings will be drilled on the studs or noggings.
Moisture resistant type P5 chipboard to BS EN 312 should be used in domestic-scale building for
flooring material. Ceiling is done by fixing plasterboard or other ceiling linings directly to the
bottom flange of joists and perimeter Z-sections Cladding which is an insulating material is
installed on the wall (using fiber cement boards or gypsum boards) using self-drilling screws.
Stairs are framed by installing stepped “stringers” and then placing the horizontal “treads” and
vertical “risers”. The roof is framed by assembling the rafters and wall-ties supported by the top
story’s walls. Roof members are covered with sheathing or strapping to form the roof deck for the
finish roofing materials. Figure 12 shows the light gauge steel construction platform in stages.
Likewise, the roof framing and floor system in light gauge steel is shown in figure 13 and 14
respectively. Figure 17 shows load transfer pattern in a light gauge steel building.
Figure 12 Light gauge steel procedure (The Steel Construction Institute)
Figure 13 Roof framing using rafters and purlins (http://www.rsgsoftware.com )
Figure 14 Floor system (http://www.rsgsoftware.com )
Figure 15 Floor to foundation connection (www.SteelFramingAlliance.com)
Figure 16 Framing components of a light gauge steel

Figure 17 Load transfer in Light gauge steel building
Although, just like any other construction methods and materials, light gauge steel building
technology have also come with its own pros and cons.
6.3.4 ADVANTAGES OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL
The advantages of light gauge steel, according to Perkins (2009), as both as a material and
construction technology are enumerated in this chapter
1. Light gauge steel are light yet durable and strong compared to concrete with lesser strength-
to-weight ratio, reducing foundation, dead and seismic loads.
2. Light gauge steel saves construction time up to 50%. This is achieved with high speed of
erection of the framing component.
3. Light gauge steel is more flexible. It can be pre-engineered from factories where exact
measurement can be achieved and pre-cut to exact specification. This buttress the fact that
it saves construction time. Builders can actually pre order for all the frames to be used in
the whole building framing without having wait for on-site construction and adjustments.
4. Light gauge steel cannot be affected by damaging organisms such as termites
5. It can also be used in regions prone to natural disasters like earthquake, hurricane etc.
because of its robustness. It doesn’t crap but stand still. It shows effect of bending when
subjected to seismic or any other abnormal loads hence giving a prior warning to the
occupants of possible failure i.e. it doesn’t suddenly collapse.
6. Light gauge steel building technology is eco-friendly and 100% recyclable.
7. It saves material on site during construction. Also, it reduces environmental pollution
during construction unlike the common concrete works which generate dusts, debris etc.
on site. The lightness of light gauge steel makes it to require simple and non-heavy
machines and equipment during erection.
8. The production of light gauge steel is eco-friendly itself and can be produced from
recyclable materials like cans, iron rods etc. hence saving production costs. Its production
time is faster with the use of Computer Numerical Control (CNC) which enables
automation of machine tools by means of computers executing pre-programmed sequences
of machine control commands.
9. Light gauge steel building technology gives room for easy change of building layout before
and after construction. It is easy to repair.
10. It can be adopted in areas with poor soil condition due to its reduced overall building loads
on foundation.
11. Light gauge steel structures are non-combustible.
12. Light gauge steel frame supports, and in fact make plumbering and other housing works
that require drilling and passing of pipes easier. This is done via creation of pre-punched
holes on the necessary part of the framing element without affecting the structural strength
of the element.
6.3.5 DISADVANTAGES OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL (AS ACONCTRUCTION

METHOD AND MATERIAL)
The disadvantages of light gauge steel as a construction material and technology are:
1. The major disadvantage of light gauge steel frame is thermal bridging. Thermal bridge is
when the component or area of steel has higher thermal conductivity than the surrounding
materials, creating a path of least resistance for heat transfer. It causes overall reduction in
thermal resistance of light gauge steel. But to solve this problem, the frame element are
erected such that there is gap in between which will be filled with an insulation substance
like mineral wool for heat and sound protection. Though there are still ongoing research to
dispute this thermal claim on light gauge steel however there are ample research conducted
to prove otherwise (Perkins, 2009).
2. Light gauge steel do possess high resistance to high temperature. Temperatures higher than
300 degree Celsius can cause severe damage to the steel structure. The use of fire resistance
material for cladding have been adopted to solve this problem.
3. The little knowledge about light gauge steel building technology among practitioners and
other stakeholders in the Nigeria construction industry could also bring set back on the
utilization of light gauge steel.
4. Low availability of materials due to lower number of steel industries in Nigeria. This
problem can be solved with the recent policies laid by the federal government on sustaining
and developing steel production in Nigeria. The increase on annual capacity of steel rolling
companies and creation of public private partnership on establishing steel industry in
Nigeria will also go a long way.
6.4 CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION
6.4.1 METHODS AND PRATICES OF CONSTRCUTION IN CONCRETE
Since this is a conventional construction method a brief introduction is done to it. The concrete
construction involve the use of concrete as construction material. The concrete may either be
reinforced with steel reinforcement or mass concrete (no reinforcement). Floor, wall (exterior,
interior and shear), columns, beams, roof etc. can be constructed using concrete. The concrete
is a composite material that contain cement, water, aggregates (fine and sand) in the right
proportions. The function is the cement is to bind the aggregate together and sometimes lime
is also used for this function. Sometimes, due to project specification, admixtures are added.
These admixtures are added to improve the quality of concrete produced in terms of strength,
setting time, workability etc. The concrete building have relatively high fire resistance and to
some extent, can withstand chemical attack. The reinforcement added to the concrete
contributes to the tensional strength (and/or compressional strength) thus increasing the
strength of the concrete. The cover to the reinforcement is specified in the BS 8110 code and
depends on the level or nature of exposure of the concrete to some environmental conditions.
Curing which is a process that involve the controlling of moisture content is done for carried
out after casting of elements. The required number of days of curing is specified in the building
code too. Mass concrete are used where little strength of concrete is only required. The concrete
has its own advantages and disadvantages too as discussed below. Concrete construction can
be in situ or precast. According to National Precast, unlike concrete that is poured on site (in
situ concrete), high quality precast concrete is produced in a controlled factory environment
using advanced manufacturing techniques. Reinforcement is placed into reusable and
adjustable moulds, and concrete is poured, vibrated and cured. If specified, architectural
finishes (such as honing, polishing or staining) may then be applied while still in the factory.
The finished precast elements are then transported to site and then craned into position. Precast
concrete is a highly versatile product available in vast range of different sizes, shapes
and finishes. Precast products are used in a variety of applications, including buildings, civil
construction and landscaping.
6.4.2 ADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION

1. Relatively high material availability
2. Concrete can be produced in various desired strengths depending on specification
3. Concrete has high fire resistance thus provides good fire resistance
4. It has resistance to some natural disasters such as tornadoes, hurricanes etc.
5. The deterioration of concrete is not appreciable with age
6. Maintenance cost of concrete is negligible
6.4.3 DISADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION

1. It has low tensile strength though this can be compensated for by using reinforcement of
required strength
2. It is less ductile
3. It has high strength-to-weight ratio
4. It may contain soluble salts. Soluble salts cause efflorescence
7.0 ANTICIPATED RESULTS OF STUDY

The anticipated result of this study will be that though the use of concrete as a construction may
have more advantages over light gauge steel when some factors affecting construction are
considered, the light gauge steel building technology still has a lot to offer to the Nigeria
construction industry especially in the possible means of promoting an alternate building
technology while other factors affecting construction and buildings are also considered. Although
shortcomings such as little or no knowledge about use of light steel in construction among builders,
consultants, individuals and other industry stakeholders may be encountered. Also builders,
consultants etc. may be reluctant in adopting the new technology.
8.0 CONCLUSION
This proposal proposed the project topic ‘An Investigation of the Comparative Use of Light Gauge
Steel Construction over Concrete Works for Public and Housing Units’. The project will
investigate comparison between concrete and light gauge steel building technology considering
their advantages and disadvantages over each other and their relevance to Nigeria construction
industry. Adopting innovative technology or materials will solve a lot of challenges facing
construction industry. I will be so honoured to be granted the opportunity to further research and
present a project about this topic.
9.0 COST AND PROGRAM DURATION
COST
The projected cost of carrying out is estimated to be #15,000. The cost will cover the cost of
printing questionnaires, traveling to source information, electronic survey and other
contingencies.
DURATION
The project is expected to last for approximately three months. By the end of the third months,
enough information would have been gathered from necessary sources and the results will be
analysed. The author hope the aims and objectives of the project will be archived by then.
10.0 REFERENCES
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as a Key Contributor to Nigeria’s Economic Development, Background Materials,
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construction sector to sustainable development in Nigeria. Net Journal of Business
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Comparing Light Gauge Steel and Concrete Construction

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Comparing Light Gauge Steel and Concrete Construction

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PROPOSAL ON THE PROJECT TOPIC:

A COMPARATIVE USE OF LIGHT GAUGE

2.0 PROBLEM STATEMENT

4.0 AIM AND OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this study are to:

5.1 DATA COLLECTION AND SAMPLING

5.2 DATA ANALYSIS

6.0 LITERATURE REVIEW

1. Poor financing system (high interest rate on loans, unsteady income)

6.2 HOUSING CONSTRUCTION METHODS/TECHNIQUES

6.2.1 DRY CONSTRCUTION IN CONCRETE AND LIGHT STEEL

6.2.2 STEEL AS AN IMPORTANT CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL

6.3.1 STRUCTURAL BEHAVIOUR OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL

Figure 2 Bottom plate

Figure 4 Studs in use (Cabiroglu, 2015)

Figure 6 Nogging in use (Cabiroglu, 2015)

6.3.2 LIGHT GAUGE STEEL IN USE

Figure 11 Panel made from factory and shipped to site (http://www.rsgsoftware.com)

6.3.3 LIGHT GAUGE STEEL BUILDING CONSTRUCTION DEVELOPMENT IN

Figure 13 Roof framing using rafters and purlins (http://www.rsgsoftware.com )

Figure 15 Floor to foundation connection (www.SteelFramingAlliance.com)

Figure 16 Framing components of a light gauge steel

6.3.5 DISADVANTAGES OF LIGHT GAUGE STEEL (AS ACONCTRUCTION

6.4.2 ADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION

6.4.3 DISADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION

7.0 ANTICIPATED RESULTS OF STUDY

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