The Case for Cold-Formed Steel Construction for the Mid-Rise Residential Sector in Australia: A Survey of International CFS Professionals

Abstract

Australia has a growing population, especially in dense city regions; this has led to an increase in the number of mid-rise apartment buildings being constructed. More efficient methods of construction could enable the sector to meet this increased demand. Internationally, cold-formed steel (CFS) is used widely as the loadbearing structure within mid-rise apartment buildings. However, the use of CFS for the construction of mid-rise apartment buildings in Australia has been extremely limited. At the time of writing, Australian mid-rise apartment buildings are typically constructed using reinforced concrete, and the potential benefits of using alternative construction systems are not well-known. The Australian construction sector could benefit from an increased understanding of the advantages of CFS construction. Through the use of both a desktop study and a survey of international CFS industry experts, this study aims to explore the benefits and practices of CFS construction. The study identifies current CFS industry practices that have been used in completed projects in the UK, USA and Canada. A variety of loadbearing and lateral load resistance systems exist in practice, as well as fire and acoustic solutions. The prominent advantages of CFS are found to be speed of construction, cost effectiveness and non-combustibility. Potential improvements for design and construction are identified, including load-path alignment and solutions for long spans. Addressing these issues could lead to a more efficient solution for an Australian structural CFS system. The survey ascertains the positive benefits of CFS construction and common methods of use in practice. This addition to the body of knowledge helps to close the gap between research and practice and demonstrates that CFS offers potential benefits for the mid-rise apartment construction sector in Australia.