The Importance of Steel Construction in Buildings

The Importance of Steel Construction in Buildings Turkey was shaken by two major earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş. Istanbul and Izmir, locomotive cities of population and economy, are also among the regions posing the greatest risk. For Turkey, a large portion of which lies in the earthquake belt, the steel construction system, which has very low visibility, is of critical importance. While steel system usage stands at around 40 percent in Europe and America, this figure hovers around 1 percent in Turkey. Turkish exporters emphasize that the earthquake is a natural disaster that must be tackled collectively and evaluated with scientific data, and that necessary precautions must be taken before the earthquake occurs.

Our Turkish Steel Sector Is Capable of Producing All Types of Materials

Jak Eskinazi, Coordinator President of the Aegean Exporters Associations: "Unfortunately, we lost many citizens in the earthquake that occurred on 6 February, and we remember them with respect. Construction is one of the locomotive sectors in our country. The three countries leading Industry 4.0 in the world — Germany, the United States and Japan — have industry as their locomotive sector. According to an Ipsos survey from 2022, Turkey ranks among countries with the highest percentage of natural disaster expectations among people at 77 percent. However, neither society nor the state is prepared for this. In Japan, this rate is 85 percent, but Japan is prepared. Our Turkish steel sector is highly advanced in terms of know-how and is capable of producing all types of materials," he said.

Steel construction model needs to be more widespread

Ege Deputy Coordinator President and Aegean Ferrous and Non-Ferrous Metals Exporters Association President Yalçın Ertan: "We had to confront once again the regrettable truth of the saying 'earthquakes don't kill buildings, buildings kill people.' Now, instead of producing solutions after an earthquake, we are ready to do our part to ensure our structures are built in a manner resistant to earthquakes. For safety, the steel construction model, which has a non-brittle flexible structure, strength and lightness that make it extremely safe against earthquakes, needs to become more widespread in buildings. Steel construction buildings have many advantages over reinforced concrete structures, particularly for regions located in the earthquake belt. Unfortunately, the steel construction system has very low visibility in Turkey. While steel system usage is in the 40 percent range in Europe and America, this figure hovers around 1 percent in Turkey," he said.

Turkey should turn to steel construction in new buildings, urban transformation projects and temporary housing construction

Emphasizing that the manufacture and assembly of steel construction buildings is completed in a much shorter timeframe, Yalçın Ertan concluded his remarks as follows: "The short construction period is important in terms of making the building habitable/usable in the shortest possible time. Steel construction buildings, which are quickly built and at the same time have sustainable characteristics, are also more economical compared to other structures. Steel construction buildings are considerably lighter than reinforced concrete structures. The lightness of the building and the greater flexibility of steel structures compared to reinforced concrete reduce the load on the ground, thereby reducing the impact of the earthquake. In our country, which is in the earthquake belt, it is considered beneficial to turn to steel construction in all new buildings to be constructed, urban transformation projects and temporary housing construction, taking earthquake conditions into account. With the structural characteristic of having no corrosion and decay risk, it provides a significant advantage through longer service life compared to the widely used reinforced concrete model. We plan to conduct activities in the coming period to explain the steel construction system to more stakeholders."