Steel section bending has probably been done one way or another since steel members were first produced. Today’s modern, section bending involves sophisticated hydraulic rolls to create accurate, attractive and structurally sound curved steel. But what about that material that is fed into the bending machines? How were the standards we have today for steel sections developed?
Steel has been around for a long time. The oldest known pieces of steel were likely used as small tools and have been found in archaeological sites in Turkey. These tools are around 4,000 years old. Since then, steel has come a long way.
It’s only been a little over the past century that we have had uniform standards in steel production. In Philadelphia in 1898 the group that was the precursor to the American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) was founded with the goal of working towards standards in steel production. A large portion of their early members were scientists and engineers with ties to the railroad industry. In 1900 they made A7 steel for bridge building, one of their first standards.
Even that early, they realized that “it is thoroughly appreciated that in the rapid advances made in the process of manufacture, and the increased demands made by the Engineers in their Specifications, that no Standard Specification can be in force for a long time. It will of necessity have to be modified from time to time.”
That thought process has led to the continual development and introduction of new standards over the years which have been set not just by the producers of steel but largely by the buyers – a significant change to the industry. The A36 structural steel standard we still use was first introduced in 1962. The Wide Flange A992 structural steel standard came about as recently as 1998. It is without a doubt that as the industry’s needs for steel beams change and new advances are made, standards will continue to change.
