Nucor Skyline is a proven leader in North America’s structural and foundation industries as a supplier of beams for various applications. Through its extensive network of manufacturing and fabrication capabilities, we are able to provide beams for any project, public or private.
Advantages of Nucor Skyline Structural Sections
- Wide range of beam sizes and weights
- Custom lengths manufactured according to your specifications
- Fabrication services to meet all your project requirements
- Multiple stocking locations throughout the U.S. and Canada
- Exclusive engineering support throughout the entire project life cycle
- Your all-encompassing structural and foundation steel solutions partner
When compared to standard beams, the ‘H’ design of wide flange and H-pile beams provides better weight distribution over a wider area, resulting in the ability to support heavier and larger structures. This allows the flexibility to build grander projects without the risk of weakening beams. Ease of transportation and use, due to their lightness, is another inherent
advantage of using these structural beams. Their light weight makes them ideal for transporting and installing across the globe.
Nucor produces a wide range of steel beams and other structural steel components for many different types of construction projects. Structural steel beams play an integral role in the design and construction of steel foundations and retaining structures. Whether you are designing structural columns for a building or a waler system for a cofferdam, these shapes allow designers to specify the most cost-effective system.
From deep foundations for load transfer in bridge piers, buildings, and stadiums to bracing systems for cofferdams, beam and lagging walls, or combination walls, structural steel beams are the backbone of the steel construction business.
Applications of Structural Steel Sections
- Walers and Bracing for Cofferdams
- Secant and Tangent Pile Walls
- Beam-Z Combination Walls
- Beam & Lagging/Soldier Pile Walls
- Sound Walls
- Falsework for Bridges and Other Structures
- Caps and Corners for Steel Pile Walls
Types of Structural Steel Sections
Wide Flanged Beams & H-Pile Beams
In addition to being the largest supplier of steel foundation products, Nucor Skyline supplies structural steel sections. Wide flange and H-Pile beams can be used as bracing, walers, and in-wall systems. Nucor Skyline has access to every W shape size in the AISC range.
Channels
Channel sections are used to create waler systems for retaining walls. Nucor Skyline supplies waler systems and channel sections for projects throughout the United States, South America, and Canada.
Angles
Angle iron is often needed for miscellaneous work on job sites or for fabrication. As referenced by the name, an angle iron has an L-shaped cross section. Nucor Skyline has various sizes readily available for your needs.
Structural Steel Shapes and Dimensions
Structural steel beams are measured by their depth and width. Wide flange beams have parallel flanges and are designated by their nominal depth and weight. For example, a W36x231 is nominally 36 inches deep and weighs 231 lbs/ft. H-piles are as wide as they are deep and have the same thickness in the flange and web. For example, an HP 16 has a depth and flange width of approximately 16 inches. Nucor Skyline offers a full range of wide flange and H-pile beams in a number of steel grades for all your structural steel needs.
Applications of Structural Steel Shapes
Walers and Bracing for Cofferdams
Structural beams are commonly used as a horizontal support system in conjunction with sheet pile or soldier pile retaining walls with anchoring systems. Walers help transfer anchor loads into the piles of a soldier pile wall, or evenly across a sheet pile wall. Designed to sit flush against the wall, walers are typically either bolted or welded to the main steel components of the wall. Wide flange beams are typically used in this application, but H-piles can be used as well.
Secant and Tangent Pile Walls
Flanged beams, such as a wide flange beam or an H-pile beam are often used in secant and tangent pile walls. These are walls that are designed for numerous loading conditions and are used for retaining walls, foundation walls, or cut off walls. They are comprised of drilled or augered concrete columns with steel reinforcement. In a secant configuration, the concrete columns overlap, whereas in a tangent configuration, the concrete columns are adjacent with no overlap. Using structural steel beams allows for a faster, one-step installation and easier flow of concrete, when compared to a rebar cage to avoid potential voids in the wall. Nucor Skyline’s geostructural products, such as threaded bar or strand, can be used to provide additional anchoring support if required by project design parameters.
Beam-Z Walls
When used in combination with steel sheet piles, both wide flange and H-pile beams can be used as king piles to create walls. These walls can be used as bulkheads, for flood protection, or anywhere you need a wall where sheet pile alone is not strong enough to carry the required loads. This type of wall requires a third component, a connector that is welded to the ends of the flange to create a connection point between the sheet pile and the king pile. The sheet piles are typically between 60% and 80% of the length of the king piles, and are called intermediate sheets. These sheets then transfer the load of the wall to the king piles. Beam-Z walls are highly customizable, with hundreds of potential combinations. Working with Nucor Skyline’s engineering team assures you the most efficient wall design to meet your project needs.
Beam and Lagging/Soldier Pile Walls
Used for permanent, temporary, or temporary left-in-place applications, beam and lagging or soldier pile walls are constructed by placing wide flange steel beams at regular intervals with concrete panels or wood lagging between the steel beams. The wide flange beams may be driven or drilled into the soil to design depth. H-pile beams can be used in some applications depending on final use of the pile walls.
As with secant and tangent pile walls, Nucor Skyline’s geostructural products can be used to provide additional anchoring support. In the case of beam and lagging or soldier pile walls, additional anchoring support might be needed when deflections for cantilevered walls become too high.
Sound Walls
Wide flange or H-pile beams are often used in the construction of sight and sound walls, which are usually non-structural walls designed to provide a barrier for sight or sound pollution, often between a highway and a residential or commercial area. Wide flange or H-pile beams can be used as post foundations or for the posts themselves. Although most sound walls do not carry any significant loads, some may be used in conjunction with retaining walls to carry the load of the soils behind the wall.
Falsework for Bridges and Other Structures
Falsework, typically uses wide flange beams, H-pile beams, and other structural steel components, and is a temporary structure used as support in the construction of a permanent structure. Falsework includes temporary support structures for formwork used to mold concrete in the construction of buildings, bridges, and elevated roadways. When building an arched structure, steel support beams are used temporarily to hold the main construction in place until the construction is advanced enough to support itself.