Coated Steel for

Lightweight Steel
Framing
Nguang Suok Ling
Technical Marketing Engineer– NS BlueScope Malaysia S/B

17th August 2021, MYCSI Webinar

BlueScope Steel Limited. ASX Code: BSL
The information and advice contain in this presentation is of a general nature only, and has not been
prepared with your specific needs in mind. BlueScope makes no warranty as to the accuracy,
completeness or reliability of any estimates, opinions or any information contained in this
presentation, and BlueScope disclaims all liabilities and responsibility for any loss or damage, direct
or indirect, which may be suffered by any person acting in reliance on anything contained in or
ABN: 16 000 011 058 omitted from this presentation.
CONTENT

Introduction of Lightweight
1 Steel Framing (LSF)

Corrosion Resistance
2 Performance

3 Case Study

4 Q &A

2
INTRODUCTION OF LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING
Lightweight steel framings (LSF) are cold formed structural members used as studs, joists, rafters,
purlins and girts and in assemblies such as steel roof trusses and panelized walls

Source: BlueScope Literature; https://nashnz.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/NASH-Std-Part-2-2019_LR.pdf 3

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
INTRODUCTION OF LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING
Lightweight steel framings (LSF) are cold formed structural members used as studs, joists, rafters,
purlins and girts and in assemblies such as steel roof trusses and panelized walls

Source: BlueScope Literature 4

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
INTRODUCTION OF LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING
Benefits against conventional framing material

Prefabricated & Dimensionally

Accurate

100% Termite Proof

Non-combustible

Life Cycle Benefits

Source: BlueScope Literature 5

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
MANUFACTURING OF LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING

1. Cold Rolled Coils (CRC) 2. Continuous Hot Dip-Galvanizing 3. Metallic Coated Steel

6. Installation at Project Site 5. Delivery to Project Site 4. Roll-forming Process

Source: BlueScope Literature 6

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
ROOF TRUSS MEMBERS
– COMMERCIAL / RESIDENTIAL PROJECTS

Roof Batten

Source: BlueScope Literature 7

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
ROOF TRUSS MEMBERS MAIN COMPONENTS
– MINIMUM THICKNESS

Chords: BMT >0.75mm

Web: BMT >0.60mm

Batten: BMT >0.48mm

Source: : http://mycsi.org.my/Downloads/MyCSI-SpecsForPCFS-Final_Rev5.pdf 8
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
ROOF TRUSS MEMBERS MAIN COMPONENTS
– STEEL GRADES

BMT <1.2mm = G550

BMT >1.2mm = G450

Source: : http://mycsi.org.my/Downloads/MyCSI-SpecsForPCFS-Final_Rev5.pdf; AS1397:2011 pg.13 9

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
QUALITY CHECKS OF METALLIC COATED STEEL
(AS 1397 / MS 1196)

Coating Mass Test (Triple Spots / Single Spots)

Thickness (Base Metal Thickness) & Tensile Test Coating Adherence Test
Source: BlueScope Literature 10
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
Corrosion
Resistance
Performance of
Coated Steel
Coating Class – Coating Type and Coating Mass

11
THE IMPORTANCE OF CORROSION RESISTANCE
PERFORMANCE
Some red rusting can potentially be tolerated provided that structural integrity is not compromised

Source: BlueScope Literatures 12

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
THE IMPORTANCE OF CORROSION RESISTANCE
PERFORMANCE
Avoid premature corrosion failure which may contribute to long term structural failure

Source: BlueScope Literatures 13

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
THE IMPORTANCE OF CORROSION RESISTANCE
PERFORMANCE
Corrosion vs Strength Loss

Corrosion vs Strength Loss

16

14
Tensile Strength Loss(%)

12
When surface red rust
10 reaches 50%, it is expected
to have a tensile strength
8 loss of 5 – 10%. Beyond 50%
red rust would lead to higher
6 strength loss.
4

0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Red Rust Percentage(%)
Note: The data analysis was based on the coated steel material itself. It does not represent any direct relationship to structural design strength loss. 14
Source: BlueScope Literature; CPA-TRUSS-MUL-SST-750 Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
METALLIC COATED STEEL – COATING COMPOSITION
Zinc-rich family

Aluminium-rich family
Source: AS 1397: 2011 15
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
METALLIC COATED STEEL – COATING CLASS
Coating Class refers to the Coating Type (Z – Zinc or AZ – Aluminium / Zinc) and the minimum mass
(weight) of coating per square metre (total of both surfaces) of steel sheet

Continuous Hot Dip-Galvanizing

Coating Mass
Coating Class Min. Coating Thickness
Coating Type (min. grams of coating per square metre
Designation µm – on one surface
– total of both sides)
AZ150 Aluminium / Zinc Alloy 150 161
Z275 Zinc 275 151

AZ100 Aluminium / Zinc Alloy 100 112

Z180 Zinc 180 103
Source: [1] AS 1397: 2011 – Table C2; [2] ISO 9364: 2017 – Table 7; [3] ISO 4998:2014 – Table 5 16
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
TYPE
Long term corrosion resistance performance after 20 years shown Type “AZ” coating has no sign of
rusting as compared to Type “Z” coating

Type “AZ” (AZ150): 55% Al, 43.5% Zn, 1.5%Si After 20 years

Type “Z” Galvanized Steel (Z275): ~99.8% Zn

Source: BlueScope Literatures and ASM Handbook, Volume 5: Surface Engineering – Continuous Hot Dip Coatings 17
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
TYPE
Type “AZ” Coating (e.g. AZ150) Type “Z” Coating (e.g. Z275)
Sacrificial & Barrier Protection Sacrificial Protection

Base steel is exposed

\

Microscopic view of Type ”AZ” after weathering Microscopic view of Type “Z” after weathering

• Has superior barrier protection (insoluble

• Has better sacrificial protection in the early stages.
aluminium oxide layer) with the aluminium-rich
• But once the zinc is gone, corrosion of the steel
phases slowing corrosion.
substrate proceeds i.e. continue to corrode the
• The rust should stop when it comes in contact
entire sheet.
with aluminium in the substrate.
18
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
TYPE

Source: BlueScope Literature – Corrosion Performance of TRUECORE® and GALFAN® in Framing Applications 19
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
MASS

Type “AZ” Type “Z” Type “Z” Type “Z”

(AZ150 – 150g/m2) (Z220 – 220g/m2) (Z180 – 180g/m2) (Z120 – 120g/m2)
More corrosion resistance protection

Source: SIRIM Test Report (Ref: 2007KL0045 and 2008KL1064) after 500 hours Salt Spray Test (ASTM B117). Salt Spray Test is an accelerated laboratory test used for quick assessment of 20
corrosion performance which does not mimic real-world wet & dry environmental conditions hence can’t be used to predict actual product performance.
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
MASS

0.1 < r corr < 0.7

0.7 < r corr < 2.1

2.1 < r corr < 4.2

Source: InterZAC08; http://steelproducts.bluescopesteel.com.au/files/dmfile/CTB4-Corrosion-EffectofCoatingThickness.pdf; ISO 14713-1: 2017 Table 2 21

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE – INFLUENCE OF COATING
MASS

Type “AZ” Type “AZ”

(AZ150 – 150g/m2) (AZ100 – 100g/m2)

Source: SIRIM Test Report (Ref: 2007KL0045 and 2008KL1064) after 500 hours Salt Spray Test (ASTM B117). Salt Spray Test is an accelerated laboratory test used for quick assessment of 22
corrosion performance which does not mimic real-world wet & dry environmental conditions hence can’t be used to predict actual product performance.
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – DURABILITY

Source: https://nashnz.org.nz/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/NASH-Std-Part-2-2019_LR.pdf 23
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – CORROSION
RESISTANCE PROTECTION
The sacrificial protection at cut edges will delay corrosion while there is zinc or aluminium / zinc alloy
coating left

• The degree of protection is determined by (1) thickness of the base steel, (2) availability of metallic
layer in the coating adjacent to the exposed steel and (3) the nature of environment. Refer to
Technical Bulletin TB-10 for details.

Source: BlueScope Literature 24

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – CORROSION
RESISTANCE PROTECTION
After 9 Years at Severe Marine Environment (ISO 9223 – C4). Type “AZ” coating shown better cut edge
protection against Type “Z” galvanized steel

Type “Z”
Type “AZ”
Galvanized
Steel
Steel
(AZ150 –
(Z275 –
150g/m2)
275g/m2)

Source: BlueScope Literature - 9 Years Unwashed Vertical at Bellambi Point, Australia (AS/NZS 1580 457.1) 25
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – CORROSION
RESISTANCE PROTECTION
Type “AZ” coating shown better cut edge protection against others coated steel (less than BMT
1.5mm)

Type “Z”

Type “ZA”

Type “AZ”

Source: ZAC Association 26

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
BlueScope
Case Study –
Lightweight Steel
Framing

27
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – BASE METAL
THICKNESS (BMT) VS TOTAL COATED THICKNESS (TCT)

TCT

BMT: Base Metal Thickness

TCT: Total Coated Thickness

Source: BlueScope Literature 28
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – BASE METAL
THICKNESS (BMT) VS TOTAL COATED THICKNESS (TCT)
BMT 0.50mm AZ150
steel batten:

= 0.50mm

Total Coated Thickness (TCT) = Base Metal Thickness (BMT) + Metallic Alloy Coating Thickness

TCT 0.55mm = BMT 0.50mm + 0.05mm (AZ150 Alloy Coating Thickness)

Source: BlueScope Literature 29
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING – BASE METAL
THICKNESS (BMT) VS TOTAL COATED THICKNESS (TCT)
Total Coated Thickness (TCT) = Base Metal Thickness (BMT) + Metallic Alloy Coating Thickness

BMT 1.00mm AZ150 steel batten:

TCT 1.05mm = BMT 1.00mm + 0.05mm (AZ150 Alloy Coating Thickness)

Source: BlueScope Literature 30

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
IS ALL THE AZ150 SIMILAR CORROSION RESISTANCE
PERFORMANCE?
Optimum microstructure, coating composition and coating consistency is important to deliver best
corrosion resistance performance

Supplier “A”(AZ150) Supplier “B” (AZ150)

Source: BlueScope Literature; AS 1397; CPA-TRUSS-MUL-SST-750 31

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
IS ALL THE AZ150 SIMILAR CORROSION RESISTANCE
PERFORMANCE?

Supplier “A”
(AZ150)

Supplier “B”
(AZ150)

Source: SIRIM Test Report (Ref: 2021CE0061) after 750 hours Salt Spray Test (ASTM B117). Salt Spray Test is an accelerated laboratory test used for quick assessment of corrosion 32
performance which does not mimic real-world wet & dry environmental conditions hence can’t be used to predict actual product performance.
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #1
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (10 YEARS)
• Project: Kampong Bakam National Primary School, Miri, Sarawak.
• Location: Approx. 250m from breaking surf marine environment.
• Installation date: Completed in early 2009. Revisit in June 2019 (after 10 years).
• Steel roof trusses (AZ150) are fully enclosed within the building envelope.

Source: BlueScope Case Study (June 2019): TRUECORE® steel after 10 years. 33
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #1
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (10 YEARS)

Source: BlueScope Case Study (June 2019): TRUECORE® steel after 10 years. Approx. 250m from breaking surf marine, Miri, Sarawak. 34
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #2
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (6 YEARS)
Steel framing at eave ends (exposed). 1 2

Approx. 95m from calm marine, Kudat.

2 Canteen
1 Block
3

Source: BlueScope Case Study (Nov 2016): Steel framing (exposed) after 6 years. Approx. 95m from calm marine, Kudat, Sabah (6 years) 35
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #2
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (6 YEARS)
3 Location approx. 32m from calm marine

Source: BlueScope Case Study (Nov 2016): Steel framing (exposed) after 6 years. Approx. 32m from calm marine, Kudat, Sabah (6 years) 36
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #3
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (17 YEARS)

Source: BlueScope Literature – Corrosion Performance of TRUECORE® and GALFAN® in Framing Applications 37
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CASE STUDY #4
– CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE (20 YEARS)

Source: BlueScope Literature – Corrosion Performance of TRUECORE® and GALFAN® in Framing Applications 38
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION RESISTANCE PERFORMANCE OF COATED
STEEL FRAMING
• The corrosion behaviour of a roof truss is very different to product in applications that involve rain
washing, such as roofing.
• The environment within the roof space usually has a low corrosivity in the short term, but
corrosivity increases in the long term due to the continued accumulation of corrosive species.
• The following influences corrosion of a truss in the roof environment:
1. The age of the building – length of time for accumulation of corrosive species.
2. The corrosion severity of the external environment – distance from the source of corrosive
species, such as marine surf or industrial pollution.
3. The building detailing – how well the external corrosive species are excluded from the roof space.
• In some environments and buildings designs, truss made from AZ150 may last up to twice as long as
truss made from Z275.
• Based on our understanding of the performance of ZA180 relative to Z275 in outdoor exposure
conditions, we anticipate that truss made from AZ150 may last up to twice as long as truss made
from ZA180.
• The coating mass of galvanized steel truss strongly influences their lifetime with Z180 expected to last
only two-thirds the life of Z275.

Source: BlueScope Literature 39

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION DUE TO IMPROPER CUTTING

Residual burrs due to improper Swarf stains after cutting

cutting tools usage

Source: BlueScope Literature 40

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
CORROSION DUE TO IMPROPER CUTTING
Use tin snips, electric shears or nibblers instead abrasive discs or angle grinders as they produce
fewer damaging hot metal particles and leave less burr with no burnt edges on the cut sheet.

https://truecore.com.au/installers 41
Source: BlueScope Literature
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
INSTALLATION DO’S AND DON’TS – CHECKLIST

Source: BlueScope Literature 42

Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
IDENTIFY COATED STEEL FRAMING – PRODUCT
MARKING

Supplier A Supplier B

Source: BSR/M/2009/053 43
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
COATED STEEL FOR LIGHTWEIGHT STEEL FRAMING
– SUMMARY
• Lightweight steel framing are cold-formed structural members made of metallic coated steel that
provides prefabrication solution, 100% termite proof, life cycle benefit and non-combustible solution.
• Steel roof truss consists of battens (min. 0.48mm BMT), chords (min. 0.75mm BMT) and web (min.
0.60mm).
• Coated steel Type “AZ” Aluminium / Zinc Alloy coating up to BMT 1.5mm showed better corrosion
resistance compared to Type “Z” galvanized product because of its sacrificial and barrier protection.
• A higher coating mass (thicker metallic alloy coating thickness) of a same coating type will provide
greater corrosion resistance e.g. AZ150 > AZ100; Z275 > Z180.
• The environment within the roof space usually has a low corrosivity in the short term, but
corrosivity increases in the long term due to the continued accumulation of corrosive species.
Important to ensure enclosed design i.e. how well the external corrosive species are excluded from the
roof space.
• Follows manufacturer installation do’s and don’ts or checklist for long lasting performance. E.g. use
tin snips, electric shears or nibblers instead angle grinders to avoid corrosion due to improper
cutting.
• The product marking e.g. G550; AZ150; Manufacturing Date is important to ease product traceability
and identification.
Source: BlueScope Literature 44
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission
Thank you
Nguang Suok Ling (+60168918270)
E-mail: suokling.nguang@bluescope.com
Web: www.nsbluescope.com/my/

45
Not to be reproduced or disseminated without permission