Our beautiful homeland very strong earthquakes has a geographic structure. We have seen this in recent years with the earthquakes in cities such as Gölcük, Erzincan, Van and İzmir. On the other hand, we did not start the year 2023 well. Unfortunately, the earthquakes that happened in Kahramanmaraş more than 35,000 We lost our citizen.

It is impossible to escape an earthquake. As a result, we will remove Turkey and move to a place where there is no earthquake risk. we can’t carry. What to do then? We need to rewrite the rules of the construction industry and maximize anti-earthquake measures. For example, steel construction systemsor as it is popularly known as prefabricated houses.

What is a steel construction system?

*Skeleton of the steel construction system

If you want to build a building, tons with concrete and iron you build a skeleton and then you wrap that skeleton in briquettes or bricks. When you put the roof on top, the construction of the building is completed. In steel constructions or prefab housing systems, the skeleton of the building is replaced by iron and concrete. of steel materials is built. Then the inside and outside of the building are covered with the covering material.

If you look at the prefabricated buildings from the outside, you see them as if they were a reinforced concrete building. So everything from the outside it’s pretty standard. Only the construction system of the building is different. Engineers, for steel construction systems makes private accountsThey determine how the steel construction should be used in the skeleton of the building.

The steel construction system has numerous advantages.

Steel construction systems have many advantages compared to reinforced concrete buildings. These benefits can be summed up as follows:

• It is light.
• It takes less time to build a building.
• Earthquake resistance is better.
• It’s long lasting.
• Their cost is lower.
• It is easier to expand.
• It can be used in many types of structures.

*Steel structure system in the project phase.

The main advantage of steel is that it is much more efficient than reinforced concrete buildings. it is light. The advantage of lightness comes to the fore in the event of an earthquake. While reinforced concrete structures are exposed to much higher earthquake loads due to their weight, this is not the case with steel structures. In addition, there is the aspect of flexibility. Prefabricated structures are very flexible compared to reinforced concrete structures. This too chance of collapse drastically reduces it.

Another advantage of steel construction systems is to low cost that it has. If you contact the companies that make steel buildings today, you will find that the cost of a medium-sized two-story building is about 500 thousand TL. In addition, steel structure systems are made of reinforced concrete buildings. much faster they are somehow built. Steel profiles prepared with CNC machines are assembled after being taken to the construction site. During the time that the concrete of a building can dry, the entire assembly of the steel structure can be completed.

Prefabricated systems last a very long time. In fact, a well-maintained steel building, as the tests show, can last 180 years. In addition, it is much easier to expand on steel structures. In addition to all these, steel structures can be used in detached houses, apartments, factories, shopping malls or stadiums. in all building types you can use.

This does not mean that steel construction systems are perfect. These are the disadvantages of steel structures:

Until this part of our content, we have praised steel structures. Let’s take a look at these structures. to the drawbacks let’s see. We can list the disadvantages of steel constructions as follows:

• If the building is neglected, the steel will rust. It is very difficult to make rusted steel reusable. it is expensive.
• A in case of fire Reinforced concrete buildings are more durable. While steel melts after a certain temperature, this chance is smaller with concrete.
• Although unlikely, steel chance of breakage has.

Steel construction systems, which are 40 percent in Europe and the US, are preferred at 1 percent in Turkey.

Ege Demir, Vice President of Aegean Exporters’ Associations, and Yalçın Ertan, President of Non-Ferrous Metals Exporters’ Association, stated in their evaluation after the earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş that steel structures are very popular in the US and Europe. it is commonThey stated that it should also be expanded in Turkey. The following statements were used in the statements:

For safety, the steel structure model, which is an extremely safe model against earthquakes with its non-fragile flexible structure, strength and lightness, should be popularized in buildings. Compared with reinforced concrete structures, steel structures have many advantages, especially for regions in the earthquake zone. Unfortunately, the awareness of the steel construction system in Turkey is quite low. While the use of the steel system in Europe and America is around 40 percent, this percentage is in Turkey. about 1 percent watching.

So why are prefabricated house systems not common in Turkey?

Gazi University Prof. Dr. Cüneyt Kutay and Mustafa Badem, years agoResearch into application possibilities and limitations of steel constructions in European countries and TurkeyThey are writing an article entitled “. The “Conclusion” section of this article uses exactly the following statements:

It is very big in terms of production technologies used between Turkey and European countries. there are no differences. The technologies used in production are the same, all countries follow the technological developments and renew their facilities.

In the establishment of the culture of structural steel, able to play an active roleschool, hospital etc. The use of structural steel is partly mandatory in these buildings, especially in buildings where many people were lost to the earthquake and which represent the prestige of the state. is necessary.

The necessary environment for the steel production system, which is preferred by European countries, to be used more intensively in the conditions of our country. must be prepared. In order for Turkey to lose the title of developing country and become developed countries, it is necessary to keep up with innovations and technological developments and minimize this period by taking advantage of the experiences of countries that have gone through these stages of development, not only in the construction sector, but in every sector. to look to the future with confidence.

Interpreting the results of the article titled “Examination of the Applications and Limitations of Steel Structures in European Countries and Turkey”, we can see that the prefabricated houses in Turkey are better than in Europe. has no shortcomings we come to the conclusion. However, the emphasis on ‘culture’ does not go unnoticed. As a society, we see reinforced concrete buildings in general, our country’s need for steel structures. being foreign seems to have caused. Perhaps the earthquake in Kahramanmaraş will change this situation…