45 A strong & secure story
Whether it’s building bridges or delivering homes, there’s plenty of scope for structural steel across the construction sector. Chris Holleron of Hadley Group details the material’s uses, from its invention to its current application in the offsite construction sector
first developed the ‘Bessemer process’, a manufacturing approach that allowed high-quality steel to be produced economically enough for use in the construction sector. Prior to this, steel had been ignored by architects, who instead opted to use wrought and cast iron until the very late 19th century. The ‘Bessemer process’, however, changed all of this and allowed a number of industries, which were previously
T
he history of structural steel is long and storied. For many, the tale begins with Sir Henry Bessemer, who
constrained by the lack of steel, to expand. Noticing the immense potential of the technology, Sir Henry Bessemer moved his operation to Sheffield and set up the nation’s first steelworks plant. In doing so, not only did he shape the face of a city, but also he changed the way we would go on to build the world around us.
One of the first industries to benefit from a greater availability of steel was the bridge-building sector. The Brooklyn Bridge in New York was the first bridge to extensively use steel throughout its design. At the time of its construction, it was the
ADF OCTOBER 2019
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