Steel Making
Minor Dents in
Residential
Framing Market
espite a surge of usage by larger builders in
Florida, Arizona, and Hawaii, steel continues
to lag behind wood as a framing material,
according to a survey conducted by the NAHB. More
than 600 builders participated in the poll, but fewer
than one percent listed steel as a "primary material"
in their new homes.
Respondents are using wood to frame the interior
walls in 92% of the new homes they build, a drop
from 95% in the 1995 survey. The marginal rise in
the popularity of steel framing is due mainly to
demand from larger builders (defined by the NAHB
as those starting more than 100 units per