Thousands of people attended dozens of free events around the country on September 19 in celebration of the structural steel industry’s sixth annual SteelDay, hosted by AISC and its members and partners. AEC professionals, university students and the public took the day to see the industry at work and learn about the latest advancements in steel design and construction by visiting structural steel facilities, touring jobsites, attending educational presentations and joining in networking events.
“It was another successful SteelDay,” commented Ross Allbritton, AISC industry mobilization manager. “This year featured more building project site tours than ever before, offering guests the opportunity to see current steel projects up close. We can't wait to see you again and bring more opportunities in 2015!”
And across the country, steel fabricators, erectors, mills, galvanizers and others opened their doors for guests to get an inside look at various facets of the industry.
“I learned more about the process of building both usual and large structures, and found it very exciting to then attend a demonstration of the use of a crane,” said Greg Adams, a structural engineering and mechanics graduate student at North Carolina State University and part-time civil design engineer at Shearon Harris Nuclear Plant in New Hill, N.C. He was a winner in AISC’s SteelDay Twitter contest and attended a SteelDay event at Buckner Companies in Graham, N.C., and explained, “There were also more than 200 high school students there who learned about all the different trades involved in constructing steel structures, including fabricators, riggers, ironworkers, crane operators and welders. SteelDay continues the education of all participants and, with the event I attended, helps to recruit the next generation of engineers and tradesmen into the steel industry.”
“If you’ve never attended a SteelDay event, then you’re missing out on all of the innovative and practical aspects of steel construction,” he added. “Plus, it’s a lot of fun!”
Virtual events were also held, including AISC’s “Resilient: You Can’t Even Spell It Without Steel,” webinar presented by Charlie Carter, S.E., P.E., Ph.D., AISC vice president and chief structural engineer. If you weren’t able to catch it live on SteelDay, you can view the webinar recording for free and still receive 1 hour of continuing education credit for watching the course video and completing an online quiz.
SteelDay also featured creative elements, including AISC’s second annual “STEELapalooza” music competition. Artists involved in the structural steel industry submitted their original compositions for a compilation CD that was distributed at various SteelDay events. If you weren’t able to attend an event and receive your free CD, you can view information about the featured artists and listen to, download and share their music by visiting www.steelday.org/steelapalooza.
Additionally, AISC members crafted their own innovative steel sculptures in this year’s SteelDay Sculpture Competition for a chance to be one of five finalists to have their creation on display at the 2015 NASCC: The Steel Conference, March 25-27, in Nashville, Tenn., where the ultimate winner will be chosen by attendees. Fourteen sculptures were entered into the competition with their photos posted to www.steelday.org/SculptureCompVoting where fans voted for their favorites. The top five finalists headed to The Steel Conference are: Tearing Down the House by Coastal Steel; Steel Your Way Through Central PA by Ritner Steel; Making Music with Steel by Michelmann Steel; Compass Rose 001 by J.R. Hoe & Sons; and Structural Steel Supporting the World from the Inside Out by Macuch Steel Products, Inc.
Photos from this year’s SteelDay can be found on AISC’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/AISCdotORG) in the “SteelDay 2014” photo album. If you’d like your SteelDay photos featured on AISC’s Facebook page, submit them to socialmedia@aisc.org with a caption and the company name.
Next year’s SteelDay is scheduled for September 25, 2015. Mark your calendar!