Resilient outcomes with TRUECORE® steel

Sustainability is an increasing priority in construction, with builders, developers, fabricators and specifiers seeking materials that balance performance with sustainability credentials. The Product Sustainability Information brochure for TRUECORE^® steel outlines BlueScope’s approach to responsible manufacturing, offering insights into our sustainability initiatives and credentials.

As the industry faces rising labour costs, material shortages, housing affordability concerns and climate considerations, framing made from TRUECORE^® steel offers a resilient and reliable solution.

Manufactured by BlueScope, TRUECORE^® steel is a metallic coated steel product designed specifically for fabricating into light gauge steel framing used in both residential and commercial applications. Distinguished by its signature blue finish, it features a steel substrate with a metallic coating that incorporates BlueScope’s Activate^® technology to deliver enhanced corrosion resistance. 

Specifiers and builders can be confident in designing and constructing with TRUECORE^® steel, knowing it has been developed for durability, compliance, and sustainability.

Steel’s inherent qualities - strength, durability, and recyclability - make it well suited to contribute to a circular economy.

Frames made from TRUECORE^® steel are lightweight, durable, and can be screw-assembled, making them ideal for modular construction and projects designed for disassembly and reuse. TRUECORE^® steel’s durability contributes to long-lasting structures with the potential for future reuse or reconfiguration without significant structural changes.

BlueScope also embraces circularity in product design and manufacture through actions such as incorporating recycled content^[1] into the steel (including TRUECORE^® steel) it manufactures in Australia.

Steel is recyclable and retains its quality through repeated recycling. Its magnetic properties allow for easy separation during the recycling process, helping to minimise landfill waste. In some instances, steel can be reused without reprocessing, conserving energy and resources.

Frames made from TRUECORE^® steel are an excellent choice for projects with a strong focus on resource efficiency. Prefabricating frames off-site to precise specifications can help to reduce waste during both fabrication and on-site installation.

Wastage in steel frame manufacture is negligible due to the specialist software used in the fabrication process that optimises material efficiency. Any steel waste that is produced during fabrication can be recovered and returned to the steelmaking process. Additionally, prefabrication reduces the need for on-site cutting, further improving material efficiency and helping to minimise construction waste.

TRUECORE^® steel offers proven durability and resilience and is a reliable choice for long-term performance. BlueScope’s commitment to ongoing innovation and rigorous testing has resulted in the development of Activate^® technology in TRUECORE^® steel. Incorporated in BlueScope's industry-leading metallic coating, Activate^® technology enhances the protective coating of TRUECORE^® steel’s substrate to provide enhanced corrosion resistance. The result is a long-lasting product that helps conserve resources and energy that might otherwise be spent on shorter life span alternatives.

In addition, TRUECORE^® steel is 100% termite and borer proof and will not catch fire, making it a suitable choice for projects in bushfire-prone areas. When built in accordance with the NASH bushfire standard, frames made from TRUECORE^® steel can be a simple construction solution for achieving National Construction Code compliance, including in the most severely rated flame zone (BAL-FZ).

Under the National Construction Code, TRUECORE^® steel can be used wherever non-combustible materials are required, making it an excellent choice for a variety of residential and commercial applications, such as facades, walls, intermediate floor joists, and roof structures.

Renowned for its durability, TRUECORE^® steel is backed by BlueScope. Choosing TRUECORE^® steel comes with the reassurance of BlueScope’s expertise and support. As Australia’s largest steel manufacturer, BlueScope offers a range of warranties, subject to application and eligibility criteria^[2], offering peace of mind for specifiers, builders, and homeowners.

TRUECORE^® steel’s certifications, including its EPD, GreenRate™ Level A rating, and ResponsibleSteel™ certification are recognised initiatives under the Green Star Responsible Products Framework and can contribute to a project’s Green Star rating. The combination of these certifications equates to a Responsible Product Value (RPV) of 21 in the Green Building Council of Australia’s (GBCA) Responsible Products Score Checker, making TRUECORE^® steel a ‘Best Practice’ product. Additionally, the EPD for TRUECORE^® steel provides data that can support credits related to life cycle impacts and upfront carbon.

At Smalls Road Public School in Ryde, NSW, prefabricated modules made from TRUECORE^® steel were assembled on-site and craned into place to create the upper-level wall frames and roof trusses. This method improved construction efficiency and helped ensure the project was completed in time for the 2020 school year.

The fully engineered frames, with their impressive strength-to-weight ratio, played a key role in achieving the design vision. The original concept called for 230 tonnes of hot-rolled structural steel to support the upper-level roof and walls. By reworking the design to incorporate lightweight framing made from TRUECORE^® steel, the steel frame fabricator reduced the steel requirement by nearly 120 tonnes, saving approximately 469 tonnes of CO2-e emissions.^[3]