Project details

After meeting a contact from Ocean Key Holdings and learning of their plans for an affordable housing development, Scott Elsley of Straight Edge Steel Frame Homes, wasted no time in pitching the idea of a hybrid framing model to them, in place of the brick and timber construction they had been considering. Mr Elsley invited Ocean Key Holdings to a presentation with his preferred steel fabricator, Smartsteel Frames, to learn more about the benefits of building with LGS frames. The collaborative presentation which also included members from the BlueScope team, resulted in Ocean Keys selecting a brick and LGS framing solution to save both time and money on the build.

Following this decision, Billingham Construction, a long-time partner of both Straight Edge Steel Frame Homes and Smartsteel Frames, was awarded the building contract for the first 11 townhomes in the development. Excited for another collaboration, all parties involved had the same goals – to provide affordable living for homebuyers by maximising the use of each block of land, implementing smart building design principles, and using materials that maximise the speed of construction.

Each of the phase one townhomes is a two-storey build with living, dining, and kitchen on the ground level, and three bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs. All are ‘zero-lot’ homes - meaning that there is only a 30-millimetre clearance between the adjoining walls of each neighbouring property. Double-cavity brick was used for the ground floor construction, and LGS made from TRUECORE^® steel was used for the upper-level internal and external walls, flooring joists, and roofing trusses.

“Steel is strong, durable and lightweight. It doesn't twist, shrink, rot or warp over time, and termites can't eat it! It's quick to install, it won't catch fire and it has versatility within its design.

TRUECORE^® steel has a high strength-to-weight ratio and is precision engineered, thus ensuring walls are straight and true. Floor space gains can be achieved by using steel, combined with external cladding construction which resulted in each of the three bedrooms being 7-8% larger in size. Framing made from TRUECORE^® steel also arrives onsite prefabricated, and we saved valuable time with the quick installation”.

Lee Billingham, Owner of Billingham Construction.

For Smartsteel Frames, the upfront planning with Straight Edge Steel Frame Homes, meant that the project went smoothly for their team and the biggest challenge they faced was ensuring that the frames they detailed and fabricated allowed for the variances in tolerance that brickwork naturally has. Said Dene Figliomeni, Managing Director at Smartsteel Frames, “We use the ENDUROFRAME^® system which is a CNC system so everything is specified to the millimetre in the design. Our frames have tolerances of 1-2mm, whereas with brick you must rely on manual human labour which can vary. Therefore, we allow for a minor tolerance for this to ensure that no adjustment to the frames is needed onsite.”

Smartsteel Frames were also appreciative of the support that they received from BlueScope which helped to bring this project over the line. Explained Mr Figliomeni, “BlueScope helped to speed things along everywhere they could, provided us with the documentation we needed and ensured that there was plenty of steel available. It all worked out really well.”

The Clarkson Townhouse development is still under construction and phase one is due to be completed by the end of 2021.