https://tmfwelding.com/news/ Steel, plainly explained. Short technical pieces for builders and project managers, by the people who fabricate it. en-AU Tue, 29 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-schools-public-projects-procurement/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-schools-public-projects-procurement/ Tue, 29 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Tendering Public sector steel packages carry a prequalification layer, stricter material evidence and site rules private work never sees. None of it is hard — but it has to be priced and programmed, not discovered. https://tmfwelding.com/news/mill-certificates-material-traceability-structural-steel/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/mill-certificates-material-traceability-structural-steel/ Sun, 27 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Standards A mill certificate proves what the steel is. Traceability proves the certificate belongs to the piece in your building. They are two different things, and only one of them can be fixed after the fact. https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-subcontractor-prequalification-pack/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-subcontractor-prequalification-pack/ Fri, 25 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Tendering Prequalification is where a head contractor decides whether you are worth sending drawings to. Most packs are held up for expired certificates rather than missing ones. https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-tolerances-square-and-plumb/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-tolerances-square-and-plumb/ Wed, 23 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Standards Steel is never perfectly straight, and AS/NZS 5131 says how straight it has to be. Knowing the difference between essential and functional tolerances settles most handover arguments before they start. https://tmfwelding.com/news/bolted-or-welded-site-connections/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/bolted-or-welded-site-connections/ Mon, 21 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Detailing Most Australian steel is shop welded and site bolted, for good reasons. Where a drawing calls for a site weld instead, it changes the access, the inspection and the tolerance — so it belongs on the drawings early. https://tmfwelding.com/news/fire-rated-structural-steel-what-builders-supply/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/fire-rated-structural-steel-what-builders-supply/ Sat, 19 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Compliance Fire protection is priced off the fire resistance level, the section sizes and the protection system. If those three are not settled before fabrication, the steel gets blasted twice. https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-construction-categories-cc1-cc4/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-construction-categories-cc1-cc4/ Thu, 17 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Standards AS/NZS 5131 sorts structural steelwork into four construction categories. Naming the wrong one costs you either inspection you never needed, or paperwork that does not exist at handover. https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-shop-drawings-what-builders-supply/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/structural-steel-shop-drawings-what-builders-supply/ Tue, 15 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Detailing Shop drawings turn an engineer's design into the pieces a workshop actually makes. Four things hold them up every time, and all four are decided before fabrication starts. https://tmfwelding.com/news/galvanised-painted-or-duplex-steel-finish-south-east-queensland/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/galvanised-painted-or-duplex-steel-finish-south-east-queensland/ Sat, 12 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Durability The finish is chosen from where the steel is going and how long it has to last — not from the price line. Here is how the decision is actually made, and what it does to your programme. https://tmfwelding.com/news/as-nzs-1554-1-weld-categories-explained/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/as-nzs-1554-1-weld-categories-explained/ Wed, 09 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Welding AS/NZS 1554.1 sets two weld quality categories. Which one applies changes the inspection, the rework risk and the paperwork you get at handover — so it belongs on the drawings. https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-stairs-balustrades-access-platforms-standards/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-stairs-balustrades-access-platforms-standards/ Sat, 05 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Compliance Steel stairs and barriers answer to more than one rulebook, and which one applies changes the geometry. It has to be settled before detailing, not at inspection. https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-erection-what-builders-should-have-ready/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/steel-erection-what-builders-should-have-ready/ Wed, 02 Sep 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Installation A steel package can be right in every dimension and still lose a week on site. What decides it is settled before the truck is booked, not on the morning it turns up. https://tmfwelding.com/news/what-a-steel-fabrication-quote-should-include/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/what-a-steel-fabrication-quote-should-include/ Tue, 18 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Quoting Two quotes for the same job can differ by thirty percent and both be honest. The difference is almost never the steel — it is what each one quietly left out. https://tmfwelding.com/news/how-long-structural-steel-fabrication-takes/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/how-long-structural-steel-fabrication-takes/ Tue, 11 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Programme The honest answer is that it depends on the job — but the things it depends on are predictable, and most of them are decided before anyone cuts steel. https://tmfwelding.com/news/choosing-a-steel-subcontractor-brisbane/ https://tmfwelding.com/news/choosing-a-steel-subcontractor-brisbane/ Tue, 04 Aug 2026 09:00:00 +1000 Prequalification Licences, insurances and welding standards are the easy part. The things that actually go wrong on a steel package are further down the list.