Why is it better to use steel structure and metal panel to build prefab industrial workshop?
For industrial enterprises, building a fast production, flexible adaptation, and low-cost operation and maintenance industrial workshop has become the key to enhancing competitiveness. Traditional concrete buildings are no longer able to meet the dynamic needs of modern industry due to long construction periods, high self weight, and single functionality. The combination scheme of prefabricated and modular steel structure and metal panel, with its dual advantages of industrial genes and functional adaptability, is becoming the preferred choice for the construction of prefab industrial workshop.
1. Combination of steel structure and metal panel
The demands of industrial projects are often complex and diverse, ranging from tropical regions with high temperatures and humidity to seismic zones with frequent winds and earthquakes, from the requirement for constant temperature and humidity in electronic precision workshops to the demand for large-span warehousing and logistics. Traditional building models often fall into the dilemma of cost overruns, construction delays, and functional mismatches due to one size fits all design. The combination of steel structure and metal sandwich panel can precisely solve these pain points.
1.1. Efficient construction
Industrial enterprises are highly sensitive to production efficiency, and a one-day halt in a production line can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in order losses. The prefabrication and modularization characteristics of steel structures and metal sandwich panels have completely overturned the traditional on-site masonry mode of buildings.
Factory precision prefabrication: Steel structural components are processed with high precision in the factory (with errors controlled at the millimeter level), and metal sandwich panels (core materials such as rock wool and polyurethane) are customized according to design requirements for fire resistance, insulation, and moisture resistance. All components have passed ISO 9001 quality system certification and are installed on site.
On site rapid assembly: The steel structure is quickly assembled into the main frame through bolt connections or welding (a single span of 30 meters in the workshop only takes 3-5 days to complete the main installation), and the metal panel is fixed to the steel frame through locks or self tapping nails, without the need for large machinery throughout the process. The construction personnel are only one-third of traditional concrete structures.
Cycle compression of 60%: Taking a 2000 square meter prefab industrial workshop as an example, traditional concrete structures take 6-8 months, while steel structures and metal sandwich panel solutions only take 2-3 months, helping enterprises to start production ahead of schedule and seize the market.
1.2. Wide applicability
The geographical and climatic differences in industrial projects are significant. Northern Europe requires workshops to withstand low temperatures of -40 ℃, Southeast Asia needs to cope with typhoons and high humidity, and the Middle East requires workshops to withstand high temperatures of 50 ℃. The functional combination of steel structure and metal sandwich panel can perfectly cover various extreme scenarios.
Structural safety: The steel structure has excellent toughness and can withstand earthquakes of magnitude 8 or above (in accordance with the EU EN 1998 seismic standard). The metal sandwich panel is tightly connected to the steel frame through self tapping screws, matched with sealing strips, and has a wind resistance rating of up to level 12 (in accordance with the American ASTM E1592 anti stripping standard).
Temperature control and energy saving: The thermal insulation performance of metal panel core materials (such as polyurethane thermal conductivity ≤ 0.024W/(m · K)) is 3-5 times that of traditional brick walls. Paired with double-layer insulated glass windows, it can reduce workshop energy consumption by more than 40% (in line with German passive room PHI certification requirements).
Moisture and fire prevention: Rock wool core material (fire rating A1) or polyurethane core material (B1) can meet different national fire protection standards (such as BS 476-6 fire protection standard in the UK), and the surface of metal panel is galvanized (zinc layer thickness ≥ 275g/㎡). The service life can reach more than 25 years in high salt spray environments by the sea (far exceeding 15 years for concrete structures).
1.3. Full cycle economy
Enterprise investment decisions focus more on full cycle costs rather than just initial costs. The combination of steel structure and metal sandwich panel achieves long-term benefits through low construction cost, low maintenance cost, and high residual value.
Initial investment is controllable: standardized production of steel structural components reduces material loss (loss rate<3%, much lower than 10% of concrete), prefabrication of metal sandwich panels in factories reduces on-site labor (reducing labor costs by 50% per square meter), and overall construction costs are 15% -20% lower than traditional concrete.
Lower operation and maintenance costs: The weather resistant coating on the surface of the metal panel (such as polyester PVDF) can resist UV aging and does not require large-scale renovation within 20 years. Steel structure nodes can be quickly repaired, and local damage only requires replacement of individual components (repair time<1 day), while concrete structures require overall repair once cracked (taking several weeks).
High residual value recovery rate: After dismantling the steel structure, it can be 100% recycled (scrap steel price is about 3000 yuan/ton), and the metal sandwich panel core material can be crushed and reused, with an overall residual value rate of 80% (concrete structure residual value rate<20%).
1.4. Sustainability
The European Union’s “Fit for 55”, the United States’ “Inflation Reduction Act”, Southeast Asia’s “Carbon Neutrality Roadmap”… Major industrialized countries around the world are accelerating their transition to low-carbon economies. The ‘green genes’ of steel structures and metal sandwich panels make them a compliance bonus for overseas industrial projects.
Recyclable materials: Steel is the only building material that can be 100% recycled, and metal sandwich panel core materials (such as rock wool) can be recycled. The carbon emissions throughout the entire lifecycle are 40% lower than concrete (according to the BRE Building Research Institute in the UK).
Energy saving and carbon reduction: The efficient insulation performance of the workshop reduces the use of air conditioning/heating, combined with photovoltaic roofs (metal panel can be directly used as photovoltaic support substrates), which can reduce the carbon footprint of enterprises by more than 30%, helping to obtain international green certifications such as LEED and BREEAM.
2. Canglong Group’s one-stop solution
Despite the significant advantages of steel structure and metal panel, customers still face challenges such as design adaptation difficulties, unstable supply chains, and lack of localized services. As a global service provider with 17 years of deep cultivation in the industrial construction field, Canglong Group provides customers with zero risk one-stop steel structure solutions with full chain capabilities from design to operation and maintenance.
2.1. Customized design
Canglong Group has a climate industry database covering Europe, America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and other regions. Together with international design teams such as German GMP and American AECOM, we provide customers with customized design for the entire process from load calculation (wind/snow/earthquake) to spatial layout (production line flow optimization).
Case: A 30 meter span storage workshop designed for a petrochemical enterprise in Saudi Arabia, targeting the local high temperature of 50 ℃ and sandstorm environment. Polyurethane sandwich panels and heat reflective coatings were used, combined with top ventilation skylights, to lower the internal temperature of the workshop by 8-10 ℃ compared to traditional solutions, reducing operation and maintenance costs by 25%.
2.2. Intelligent manufacturing
Canglong Group has two intelligent production bases in Henan, equipped with CNC plasma cutting machines, automatic welding robots, laser rangefinders and other equipment, achieving efficient production of steel structural components with 72 hour ordering and 15 day delivery.
Quality control: All components have passed international standards such as X-ray inspection and ultrasonic testing (in compliance with EN 1090-2 EU certification). The density and bonding strength of the metal sandwich panel core material have been tested by SGS, with an error controlled within ± 2%.
2.3. Global Service Network
In response to customers’ concerns about construction quality and communication efficiency, Canglong Group has established a global network of headquarters technical guidance and regional service centers.
Logistics support: Cooperate with international freight giants such as Maersk Line and Mediterranean Shipping to establish a fast customs clearance channel from the port to the construction site. Key components are transported in full containers (with a damage rate of less than 0.1%) to ensure that the construction period is not affected.
3. Conclusion
For industrial enterprises, a high-quality prefab industrial workshop is not only a production space, but also a competitive carrier. The combination of steel structure and metal panel precisely responds to the global industrial transformation demand with its core advantages of efficient construction, functional adaptation, full cycle economy, and green and low-carbon. The one-stop solution of Canglong Group, through customized design, intelligent manufacturing, global service, and operation and maintenance guarantee, enables customers to build quickly, use well, and last for a long time without worrying.
On the track of global industrial competition, Canglong Group is willing to become the most reliable partner for overseas customers with the strength of Chinese intelligent manufacturing. Make every prefab industrial workshop an accelerator for the high-quality development of enterprises.
