There is a lot of metal around all of us at all times of the day; such is the modern world we live in. the concrete jungles we live in use a lot of steel in all parts of it. The most common forms of steel we see are SHS and RHS steel. SHS and RHS stand for “Square hollow sections” and “Rectangular Hollow sections”, respectively.

What are these RHS and SHS

These are high-quality steel tubes that are formed into different shapes of hollow squares and rectangles. The steel used is cold-formed and of the highest quality, made to endure stress and maintain integrity. RHS and SHS steel is many times primer painted to protect it from storage and handling.

Quality standards in different parts of the world

Since this steel is used in many important construction projects to withstand heavy loads and tensions, many governments have their steel quality standards to ensure safety after usage; these standards need to be followed by every manufacturer. The American government has the ASTM A500 or ASTM A1085 standards, with the European Union following EN 10210 and Australia and New Zealand following the AS/NZS 1163.

Specifics of design to aid performance

RHS – for the economy and the strength: rectangular hollow sections is an apt choice for mechanical, structural and construction purposes; this is because of the flat surface, which is more economical in joining and helps in fabrication works. Because of the rectangular shape, when entering, the sections only need to be straight cut, which means there is minimal edge preparation during the usage of RHS steel. RHS steel is also very viable from the architectural point of view due to possessing clean straight lines along with structural strength.

SHS- for balance, strength and aesthetics: these square sections also have a flat surface like the RHS steel, making usage easy with minimal edge preparation for joining and fabrication. It has a symmetrical appearance and rounded edges, making it aesthetically viable with the square cut, which helps balance.

Applications

There is a multitude of places where hollow steel is used. In construction, it is used as columns and supports, scaffolding, fence posts, rails, bearing for floor, decking, bridges, buildings, houses and a lot more. They are also used in the automotive industry in race cars for roll cages, chassis, electrical wire protecting tubes and silencers. The application for this cannot be quantified because the qualities of durability and ease of usage are in demand in all infrastructure sectors.

Supply and demand

Like I mentioned, the demand for the product is too vast; surprisingly, the supply seems to be there to support it. There are a massive number of suppliers and companies which offer steel; the pricing of this sector appears to be incredibly competitive, with companies trying to outdo each other by giving the best price and better services to get on top of the competition.

Choose carefully

Because of the competition, we see some companies giving the product at an exclusively low price. Still, there is a need to be careful when choosing which company you will be buying from because using low quality in this is dangerous and may cause problems for the project it is being used for. So choosing the proper specifications and a place with good services even if it may come at a slightly higher price is wise in this sector.