You do not need finished drawings to start. We carry out a free site survey of your structural steelwork, then either work from your architect’s or structural engineer’s drawings or produce the CAD and 3D design ourselves, and manage the whole steel package through to handover with one point of contact. It is the same team from first measurement to final bolt, so nothing is lost in the handovers where steel projects usually go wrong.
Free site survey
Before anything is priced or fabricated, we visit the site and measure it properly. Surveying first is what stops a beam being cut to the wrong length or a structural opening being framed to a dimension that does not exist on site.
Your free site survey covers:
- Dimensional measurement of structural openings, bearing positions and any existing steelwork
- Access and craneage assessment, so installation is planned before fabrication starts
- Condition checks for refurbishment, extension and steel modification work
- A clear note of constraints (services, levels, neighbouring structures) that affect the design
The survey is carried out by the same people who fabricate and erect the steel, so what gets recorded is exactly what the workshop needs. Book a site visit and we will assess the job before you commit to anything.
In-house CAD and 3D steel design
If you already have drawings, we survey against them and produce the fabrication and connection drawings from there. If you do not, our in-house team produces the full design for you: CAD steel design, structural detailing and 3D visualisation so you can see the steelwork before it is made.
Producing the design under the same roof as the fabrication has a practical benefit. The detailer, the workshop and the erection team all work from one model, so connections, hole positions and member sizes are coordinated from the start rather than corrected on site. For load-bearing work the beam sizes themselves come from a structural engineer’s calculation, and any RSJ or load-bearing alteration needs Building Control sign-off. We detail and fabricate to those calculations; where you do not have an engineer, we will tell you what is needed rather than guess.
3D visualisation also gives homeowners and developers a clear picture of the finished frame, exposed feature steel or staircase before fabrication, which is the cheapest stage at which to change your mind.
Working from your drawings, or producing them ourselves
Both routes are normal here:
- You have drawings. Architect’s plans plus a structural engineer’s calculations come straight into fabrication detailing. We survey to confirm the as-built dimensions match the drawings, then proceed.
- You have nothing yet. We survey, produce the CAD and 3D design, and feed it into our own design and build service where you want us to take the wider project from groundworks to fit-out.
Either way the steel is made in our own Banbury workshop and erected by our own team, so the steel fabrication and on-site installation stages stay under one contract.
Project management: one point of contact
For anything beyond a single beam, you deal with one person who is accountable for the whole steel package. We coordinate design sign-off, fabrication scheduling, delivery sequencing, erection, and the handover to groundworkers, cladders and following trades.
That single point of contact is the difference between a programme that flows and one that stalls. On our turnkey office build for Xsign/Dline in Brackley, survey-to-handover control by one team meant groundworks, frame, cladding and fit-out ran as a continuous programme rather than a series of waits for the next trade to remobilise. You can see more of this work on our projects page.
We work to BS EN 1090 execution standards, are CE approved and fully insured, with material traceability available on request, so the management of the job is backed by the same standards as the steel itself.
Frequently asked questions
Is the site survey really free?
Yes. We carry out the site survey at no cost so we can measure and quote the job accurately. There is no obligation to proceed after the survey. Get in touch to arrange a visit across Oxfordshire and the surrounding counties.
What if I do not have any drawings yet?
That is common and not a problem. We survey the site, then our in-house team produces the CAD steel design and 3D visualisation. Note that beam sizing for load-bearing work still needs a structural engineer’s calculation; we will tell you where that is required and can coordinate it.
Can you work from my architect’s or engineer’s drawings?
Yes. If you have architect’s plans and structural engineer’s calculations, we work from those, survey to confirm the on-site dimensions match, and produce the fabrication and connection drawings for the workshop.
Do you only design, or do you fabricate and install too?
We do the lot. Survey, design, fabrication in our own Banbury workshop, and erection by our own team, managed by one contact through to handover. You can also take the wider build through our design and build service.