Protect your farm and livelihood with pre-engineered steel buildings
Pre-engineered steel buildings provide livestock and farmers with a safe, comfortable environment.
When investing in an agricultural operation, one of the top priorities is to provide adequate shelter for your livestock, machinery, feed and harvested crops. There are many different construction methods available, but few can compete with pre-engineered steel buildings in terms of longevity, cost-effectiveness, customization, and safety.
Some of the reasons pre-engineered steel buildings are well-suited for farm use include:
Steel barns are sturdier and built to last
Compared to a traditional pole barn, where wooden poles are buried in the ground and raised as columns for a roof, metal buildings and other pre-engineered steel buildings are anchored by steel columns to a concrete foundation. Their construction is easier and more durable as steel is resilient to weather-related damage such as mould, cracking and rotting, In addition to this, steel barns are more fire resistant and do not require as much maintenance such as repainting, and steel is resistant to soil damage.
They’re fast to assemble
Pre-engineered steel buildings are easier to design and are created using standardized components and connectors. Their pre-assembly allows them to be erected that much quicker. In fact, an efficient work crew can often complete projects in less than six weeks.
They will save you money
The price of metal buildings are kept low due to a number of factors:
- Less manpower is required to build pre-engineered steel buildings so labour costs are kept low
- Less ongoing maintenance
- Increased energy efficiency
- Lower insurance premiums
- Improved steel construction technology
They offer more floor space
Whether it's for storage, livestock, machinery or a craft-brewing or wine facility, metal buildings can accommodate a clear-span floor plan, without structural steel columns interrupting the space. It can also easily be expanded if more space is required.
Protect Your Livelihood
No matter which type of operation you’re in, you’re going to need some building infrastructure. Fortunately, the design flexibility of a pre-engineered building makes it a good candidate for just about any type of farm activity. Here are a few examples.
Caring for Livestock
Calving season is a critical time of year for farmers. Having a place where you can carefully monitor cows and their calves is beneficial to both farmer and animal. Depending on the size of your herd, you can design a structure that meets your current needs, with room for:
- Monitoring pens
- Medical care areas
- Rest areas for caretakers
The latter point is particularly useful, as calving season usually involves a few long, sleepless nights in the barn. Additionally, if you decide to ramp up your operation later on, pre-engineered buildings are readily expandable, which helps you save on steel building prices.
Reduce Machinery Maintenance
There’s nothing sadder than seeing a valuable piece of farm machinery weathering away out in the elements. Many Alberta farmers spend vast sums of money to acquire equipment to keep their operations running smoothly. Without the right size and type of steel garage, you’re likely to encounter:
- More frequent and expensive equipment maintenance costs
- Challenges with servicing your equipment
- Shorter equipment life expectancy
- Lower resale prices
Supporting Diverse Operations
Contrary to popular belief, agriculture in Alberta goes beyond fields of wheat and cattle ranches. The industry has diversified greatly to include a range of other farming activities, including:
- Beekeeping
- Sugar beets
- Pulses
- Market gardens
- Game animals
Pre-engineered steel buildings are readily customizable to fit any type of farm operation. As long as the farmer knows what they want, a designer will find the right building solution.
Shelter for Feed and Crops
Whether you’re storing feed for your animals, or crops before selling them to market, a steel barn will ensure they’re safe from the elements in a well-ventilated area. Many incorporate oversized sliding doors to provide easy access for tractors, trucks and other loading equipment.
Pests are a common problem anytime you store feed and crops. A well-built storage building will help keep rodents and other pests where they belong. Of course, having a good barn cat wouldn’t hurt either.
Project Example - Stag’s Hollow Winery
This custom-designed 6,000 sq. ft. pre-engineered steel building was started by our crew from the ground up — literally.
Our crews were put under pressure to perform under tight working spaces to avoid damaging any of the vineyards which surrounded the area and material transport path. MSC provided project management and used our crews to complete this project from start to finish. The customer was so happy with the work we performed that 15 years later, they reached out to build their sister winery, Shuttleworth Winery.
We hired MSC for the new warehouse on our Shuttleworth Creek Vineyard property. We chose MSC as they had built our production facility at our home vineyard about 15 years ago and had had a good experience then. Steve and his team at MSC have all been great to deal with throughout the process, even when we faced major delays (from outside factors unrelated to MSC). Once construction was able to finally go ahead, the team got the building up in what seemed like record time, despite un-seasonally cold weather. Everything was handled very professionally, and we loved getting the photo updates from Marty with drone footage giving a bird's-eye view of the project. MSC certainly met all of our expectations and I would recommend them to anybody needing steel construction for their project.
Erin Korpisto, General Manager
Whether it’s a commercial or industrial project, or for storage, retail, or agriculture purposes, find out how a steel building will meet your needs. Metal Structure Concepts will help you save time with a built-to-last pre-engineered steel building. Contact us to learn more.</p