Tech Note B001-25: How Cold-Formed Steel Framing is Produced
$5.00
Reaffirmed December 2025
Summary: Cold-formed steel seems like a fairly simple product when you are holding it in your hand, but as you can see, there are many production steps involving things like mining iron ore out of the ground, creating molten steel, furnaces above 2,000°F, reduction mills imparting forces in excess of 100,000 pounds per square inch, and hydrochloric acid cleaning baths before it even reaches the roll forming stage. This Tech Note provides a basic outline of the processes involved in producing the products you work with daily, be it manufacturing, drafting, designing, engineering, installing or demolishing a building at the end of its life cycle.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Related Products
Tech Note F101-12: Screws for Cold-Formed Steel-To-Wood and Wood-To-Cold-Formed Steel Attachments
Summary: Screws are often used to attach cold-formed steel (CFS) framing to wood members or wood structural panel decking to CFS joists or rafters. The AISI North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members (AISI S100) provides design equations for screw connection capacity for CFS members. The National Design Specification for Wood Construction (NDS) provides design equations for fastener/connection capacity (nails, wood screws, bolts, etc.) in wood members. The Engineered Wood Association (APA) and the building codes offer several resources for determining the capacity of screw connections attaching wood sheathing. This Tech Note reviews these resources and discusses design and detailing of these fastener connections.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note G100-23: Using Chapter F of the North American Specification for the Design of CFS Structural Members
This Tech Note Updates and Replaces Tech Note G100-07
Summary: The North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members is intended for use throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico and was developed by the American Iron and Steel Institute, Canadian Standards Association, and CANACERO in Mexico. The Specification provides procedures for the design of load bearing cold-formed steel members in buildings and certain other applications.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note L200-09: Roof Framing Anchorage Forces: MWFRS or C&C
Summary: This Technical Note defines the two levels of force and discusses the effects of using Component and Cladding (C&C) loads versus Main Wind Force Resisting System (MWFRS) calculated uplift loads. Design examples are provided to indicate the difference in roof-to-wall anchorage force for either type of load. Mainstream reference standards and quotes from field experts are cited when discussing the appropriate levels for calculating the uplift forces.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note T100-12: Fire Assemblies of Cold-Formed Steel Construction
Summary: Cold-formed steel has been widely used in commercial buildings, especially in non-load bearing (partitions) and curtain wall applications. Cold-formed steel sections are increasingly used as primary structural members, such as beams and columns, or as load-bearing walls or partitions in commercial and residential construction. In most cases, these members are required to be fire resistant where they are part of a compartment’s wall or floor, or where they support other floors. The purpose of this Tech Note is to provide the user with a comprehensive list of resources summarizing available tested fire rated steel assemblies, building code requirements, test methods and applicable
references.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note 558b-1: Lateral Load Resisting Elements: Diaphragm Design Values
Archived with cover page Nov. 2011
Summary: This note was archived November, 2011. The author has developed ASD design tables using an analytical method for wood framing based on the provisions of the 1991 edition of the AFPA National Design Specification for Wood Construction. Additional research is needed to bring the data in line with current codes and standards. The data below is from commentary section D2.1 of American Iron and Steel Institute AISI 213, Standard for Cold-Formed Steel Framing – Lateral Design.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note G801-13: ASTM A1003 – No Cause for Rejection
Summary: Building codes and design standards that reference ASTM International (ASTM) A1003 standard for cold-formed steel framing products have the potential to cause confusion and project delays for those who are unfamiliar with the requirements of this new material standard. This Technical Note, first published in 2008, provides a comparison of the requirements of A1003 with the more familiar standards traditionally used for cold-formed steel framing products, and demonstrates that steel ordered or furnished to the old standards should be no cause for rejection. The 2013 revision references a change to the requirements of ASTM A1003 regarding material thickness when ordering or supplying steel sheet.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note J100-23: Cold-Formed Steel Floor Joist Design
This Tech Note Updates and Replaces Tech Note J100-11
Summary: Cold-formed steel (CFS) joists have become very popular where non-combustible material and long unsupported spans are required in design. The purpose of this Tech Note is to provide a review and summary of the AISI S240, North American Standard for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Framing and S100, North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members design requirements for cold-formed steel floor joists.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Tech Note F102-21: Screw Fastener Selection For Cold-Formed Steel Frame Construction
This Technical Note updates and replaces CFSEI Tech Note F102-11
Summary: Specifying the proper fastener is necessary to assure the proper performance of the connections used in cold-formed steel construction. Cold-formed steel connections primarily utilize externally threaded fasteners, so embedment is not the controlling parameter. Instead, the design of the fastener along with the thickness of the steel govern the value of the connection. This Tech Note provides basic information for determining the appropriate screw type for various applications.
Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.