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This is a look at Residential Construction methods throughout time, so we can see where construction methods have changed and where they are heading in the future. Accelerating framing requires simplifying engineered panels and trusses that virtually anyone can assemble and erect.
Residential construction has been typically built with wood framing before the 19th century.
What construction methods started DIY Metal Home Skeletons?
What is Timber Framing
This method was brought by the colonists. This method uses large timbers and craftsmen manually cutting mortise and tenon joinery into the timbers and using wood pins to hold the timbers together. This was a labor-intensive process.
What is Balloon Framing.
This method uses long dimensional lumber. At the turn of the 19th century the Slitting Mills revolutionized the mass production of the common nail. In Balloon framing the long studs (vertical members) would run from the bottom of the first floor and to the top of the second floor. Long dimensional lumber eventually became harder to come by.
What is Platform Framing.
In this method the first floor would be built, and the second floor would be built on top of the first floor in a stacking process. Platform Framing is the most common method used in residential framing today.
In all these methods it took highly skilled craftsmen to build the structure. Also, in wood framing there is a large percentage of waste processed. To put it into perspective, for every five to six homes built the amount of wood that is disposed of is the equivalent of one structure.
Throughout the decades there have been numerous different methods to constructing a residential structure. Some examples are manufactured homes, modular homes and 3D printing of homes just to name a few.
What is Engineered Steel Framing?
CFS is creating a lot of interest in United States residential construction market.
CFS has been a standard practice in commercial construction since the early 1950s (CFS is known best as steel studs). In CFS 18 & 20 gauge steel which passes through a Cold Roll Forming Machine. This machine forms and cuts the component parts with precise accuracy.
Also, CFS has been used in New Zealand for residential framing for more than 20 years. The company that is supporting this industry is FRAMECAD USA, which manufactures Cold Roll Forming Machines. There integrated CAD software incorporates design, engineering, structural analysis and detailing to produce the component parts for the DIY metal home skeletons.
What is FrameUpNow?
One company that is pioneering Cold Formed Steel CFS for the residential constructions arena is FrameUpNow (FUN).
FUN has incorporated their plan conversion methods to convert architectural plans from wood structure into CFS structure plans. FUN has partnered with FRAMECAD and has combined the Cold Roll Forming Machines and their expertise in plan conversion methods.
With these methods FUN takes, the component parts and in a controlled environment facility assemble penalized sections of your CFS DIY Metal Home Skeletons kits. These panelized section can be shipped to your construction site for you or your contractor to assemble.
FUN also supplies detailed plans and how to video’s to instruct you on the Frame Kit assembly. With this process you do not need to be a highly skilled craftsman and any DIY consumer can erect a DIY metal home kit.
Another advantage is the structure can be erected within three to four day verses three to four weeks for wood framing.
All waste processed from this CFS process is one hundred percent recyclable and CFS provides many other advantages over wood framing.
Cold Form Steel is proving that it will become a dominant player in Residential Framing Market.