Hard times for UK metal industry but aluminium frame buildings still a hit

Recent news has been disconcerting - a mighty behemoth of British manufacturing is on its knees due to a myriad of international factors.

The Chinese market, global prices of steel and the ironically strong Pound, have steadily piled on the pressure for the industry, and resulted in many of the big players of steel closing down, with the sad loss of many jobs.

Manufacturing had been on the increase in terms of production, demand and export in the last couple of years, so the news is alarming.

Aganto uses aluminium frames for its temporary industrial buildings, yet the aluminium industry also knows too well about the fragility of the market, with recent developments in the UK steel sector eerily echoing what has happened in recent years with aluminium.

However, there is a united push from the UK Metals Forum; representing all Britain’s metal industries with the goal of boosting innovation, productivity and employment, a strategy has been unveiled to create, nurture and maintain a sustainable future for the industry.

Aganto says: "We support all aspects of the UK manufacturing sectors and are extremely proud to be staunch supporters. We are disappointed to hear about the steel industry’s problems and we continue to use aluminium in all our structures."

Aganto temporary buildings come with a structural design life of fifteen years, although many have been in use for much longer.

And, although lighter than steel, the aluminium frame has some unique qualities in terms of durability, strength and ease of use.

Unlike steel, aluminium is extremely resistant to corrosion.

• Aluminium can flex under loads or impacts giving it additional durability.

• Aluminium weighs considerably less than most other metals, making it easy and economical to transport and handle.

• In the extrusion process aluminium can be made to whatever strength needed by creating different thicknesses and reinforcements.

• Aluminium is a material that can be recycled indefinitely requiring minimal energy for the process and emitting minimal CO2 emissions.

• It looks great and stays looking great.

Although the lightweight qualities don't detract from strength or durability, they do create significant cost savings (up to 70% in some cases) in terms of time; groundworks; manpower; design and equipment.