Before and After New Storage Building

Project Profile: Building Fire Provides Chance for a New Start

We’ve been around long enough here at FS Construction Services to know that sometimes, no matter how well you plan and how careful you are, sometimes life just happens. It’s easy to forget and usually unpleasant to remember, but you never really know just what a day will bring. A client of ours had this unfortunate reminder recently, when their storage building caught fire and was destroyed.

New Walters Buildings Storage Facility

The temptation to give up after a setback like this is strong, but our client pushed forward and decided to rebuild what they lost. After having the old, ruined structure torn down, Tom Marcheski and his team came in to construct a brand-new storage building on the existing concrete pad.

The new building, a 45’ x 82’ x 16’ beige and forest green Walters structure, was built in just over a week. The building features a 24’ x 16’ double sliding door and a 12’ x 10’ single sliding door, meaning our client will be able to move and store any amount of equipment and machinery with ease.

While trouble often comes at unexpected times in unexpected ways, it doesn’t always mean that there can’t also be some good to come along with it. And while we’re sure our clients would rather have never had their storage shed burn down to begin with, they have made the best of a bad situation, and now they have a huge, new, sturdy and efficient structure that’s designed to last them for decades to come.

If you are interested in a new building project, or have an old building that could use renovation, contact the professionals at Gateway FS Construction Services now. You can depend on us to provide the best products and services at the best possible price. For more information on your next wood building, pole barn or even steel building, contact us at 866-551-3454. We look forward to providing you with the best customer service experience.

FS Construction Services Walter Buildings

Partner Highlight: Walters Buildings

At FS Construction Services we believe that one of our greatest strengths is in the quality of our partners. We have worked hard over the years to find the right people to work closely with, and one of our closest has been Walters Buildings. Walters Buildings has over 50 years of building experience and has provided structures for a wide variety of projects, everything from residential to commercial to equestrian to agricultural to storage.

Customizable Post-Frame Buildings in Southern Illinois

Over their many decades of work, Walters has perfected their process. Using a computer program they designed, they are able to create accurate, digital versions of any building they are able to build with actual wood and steel. From wainscoting to overhangs, interested clients can view computer-generated printouts of their desired building to the exact detail, while those same files are given to the engineers and builders to ensure constituency across the board.

One of the great benefits of the post-frame buildings that Walters constructs is that they are highly customizable. From colors to doors to windows and more, these buildings are able to look and function exactly the way their clients want. Because Walters has relied on advanced, pre-construction procedures, the manufacturing process is intuitive and designed to avoid problems and complications. Each component of the building is selected and built to fit with the next piece.

For these reasons and many more, Walters Buildings has been our go-to for post-frame buildings, and we have an expansive list of clients who would agree. If you are interested in constructing a new post-frame building or have any questions about other wood or steel buildings, please let Gateway FS Construction Services know. Give us a call at 866-551-3454, and let our specialists help you find exactly what you are looking for. We look forward to providing you the best customer service experience.

FS Construction Services post frame building

Project Profile: A Quick Build for a Long-Lasting Building

At FS Construction Services we know that a lot can happen in a week. Months, even years, can go into thinking about, saving for, and planning a new construction project and it really is amazing how after all that time, it can all come together in just a handful of days. When it comes to constructing post-frame buildings, it’s quite possible that the paperwork required to finalize building permits can take longer than the actual construction of the brand-new building itself (we may be exaggerating a little bit there, but, if you do need help with building permits, please let us know).

Versatile Post-Frame Building in Southern Illinois

One of the ­reasons so many of our clients choose post-frame buildings is not only because they can be constructed quickly, but because they are extremely versatile and customizable structures. This proved helpful this past April when our client was looking for a new storage structure. Mixing wood columns with 28-gauge steel, the 30’ x 40’ x 10’ Walters building went up quickly and efficiently. In addition to the structure itself, we also installed three 10’ x 8’ Raynor Showcase garage doors. These overhead doors are steel backed and insulated for maximum thermal efficiency.

With a large, clear span and wide, tall doors, our client will be able to use this new building for a huge variety of purposes and functions. Additionally, the structural integrity and weatherproofing of the building will provide twelve months of use – rain, snow, or shine.

If you are interested in a new building project, or have an old building that could use renovation, contact the professionals at Gateway FS Construction Services now. You can depend on us to provide the best products and services at the best possible price. For more information on your next wood building, pole barn or even steel building, contact us at 866-551-3454. We look forward to providing you with the best customer service experience.

Metal Buildings in Southern Illinois

Buildings: Large Buildings Bring Options and Space

A building can be a lot of things: a place to live, a place to relax, or a place to work. And while we at FS Construction Services have spent many years building almost every type of building you can imagine, we also understand that sometimes the single most important feature of any building is that it’s simply big enough. You can’t park a combine in a two-car garage, after all.

Post-Frame, Steel Buildings or Wood Building Options

Luckily, we have experience building structures of almost any size to fit any need. And when it comes to large buildings, there are a number of options available to guarantee the form fits the function. We talked at length last month about post-frame buildings, which can range from medium-sized to quite large, so we’ll spend more time this month talking about our steel building options made possible through our long-term partnerships with Walters Building, Butler Manufacturing and Sukup Manufacturing.

One of the major benefits of post-frame and steel buildings is their ability to support huge, wide clear spans. This uninterrupted space means ease of storage and no fears of cramped equipment or navigating around support beams. While this makes them particularly well suited for agricultural use, they are just as often used for industrial or commercial purposes. Apart from their strength, our buildings have many features and advantages for color, siding, roofing, porches doors and more.

In either instance, whether steel or wood, our large buildings are extremely strong and highly customizable. Recently, we built a 42’ W x 80’ L x 16’ H Walters Buildings post-frame building for a client after their previous building burnt down. One of the benefits of this type of building is how quickly they can be constructed, within the schedule we provided, the client had a new, huge space to store their equipment.

If you are in the market for any kind of large building, whether wood or steel, please let Gateway FS Construction Services know. Give us a call at 866-551-3454, and let our specialists help you find exactly what you are looking for. We look forward to providing you the best customer service experience.

Walters Buildings FS Construction Services

Buildings: Medium-Sized Storage Buildings (and Why You Need One)

The word “storage” can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people, and the level of anxiety you feel when you hear that word will depend on which type of person you are. But the fact remains, whether you need a little bit of it or a lot of it, almost everyone has some kind of storage need in their life. While some things, like baseball cards, are pretty easy to store, other things, like lawnmowers, campers, ATV’s, boats, or your prized vintage muscle car can be a bit more difficult.

Post-Frame Buildings or Pole Barns

Here at FS Construction Services, we understand the dilemma, and we’re here to help. There are a seemingly infinite number of storage options and buildings, so we’ve done our best to break them down into three broad categories: small, medium, and large. Today, we’re going to talk about medium-sized storage buildings.

The most common of these you’ll come across is the post-frame building (or, as it’s often called, the pole barn). They are versatile and cost effective but most importantly, they can be designed to meet your needs and store almost anything you can think of.

Surely you have seen different shapes and sizes, but the general features remain the same: wood construction with steel siding. However, for the FS Construction Services team of building professionals, that is just the start to providing you a great, medium sized storage building. With patented STP (Shear Transfer Plate) columns that provide incredible load carrying capacity, multiple color, window, door, porch, wainscotings and roof options, your finished project can look exactly as you envision.

One of the great benefits of this type of building is just how versatile and customizable they are. Usually varying from 30-70’ in width and length, these multi-purpose buildings are sometimes used as garages, storage buildings, workshops, leisure space, or some combination of all of them. Additionally, thanks to our partners at Walters Buildings, we can also construct actual storage units. Again, these are highly customizable buildings that can be built to fit specific needs and purposes.

With any of these types of buildings, a variety of insulating materials and weather protection can be added to increase comfort and the safety of what’s inside. If you are in need of any kind of storage building, please let Gateway FS Construction Services know. Give us a call at 866-551-3454, and let our specialists help you find exactly what you are looking for. We look forward to providing you the best customer service experience.

Small sheds

Small Storage Sheds in Illinois

In the next several months, FS Construction Services is going to take a deeper look at our Buildings services. We’ll talk about a different type of building each month. This month our focus will be on smaller buildings or sheds.

Most often in our blogs we talk about our large, commercial and agricultural buildings, and we will get to those later on in this series, but to start with, we wanted to focus on something a little more humble. It’s all too easy to overlook a small shed. They’re utilitarian buildings that are meant to be tucked away not stand out. However, we and our partners at Walters Buildings see no reason why a shed can’t be attractive as well as functional.

Customized Small Buildings

With FS Construction Services you can customize your small shed to fix your exact needs. Whether you need a mancave, lawn and tool storage to drive your lawnmower into or you simply need some extra storage room that enhances the appearance of your backyard, we can do it. From your choice of color to where and how you want your door to open, work with us to guarantee a long-lasting, functional shed.

Our team of experts work quickly yet maintain expert craftsmanship and we are careful to choose partners who only use the highest quality lumber and material. So while we do love talking about huge steel buildings with impressive clear spans, we also love reminding folks that we’re here for the small, unassuming, practical everyday help that a well-built shed provides.

If you are in need of a new building, residential, commercial, or agricultural, please let Gateway FS Construction Services know. Give us a call at 866-551-3454, and let our specialists help you find exactly what you are looking for. We look forward to providing you the best customer service experience.

FS Construction Services Walters Storage Building

Project Profile: 48’ x 56’ Dual-Purpose Building

At FS Construction Services, we understand the necessity of being versatile. In many ways, a willingness to be versatile is what has allowed us to keep growing and serving our community for over 40 years. So we enjoy every chance we get to help someone else find and utilize every ounce of potential and functionality that their new structure or equipment offers.

This was exactly the case when a client wanted to make the most out of their new Walters building. This highly functional structure, which was placed on a pre-existing concrete slab, would not only serve as much needed storage space, but it would also double as the site of our client’s waterjet cutting and metal fabrication business. The 48’ x 56’ x 12’ building’s size and durability will help our client’s business to grow while still providing its function as a storage unit. We also installed a 10’ x 10’ Raynor ShowCase garage door which will allow our client to get plenty of material in and out of the building. Offering more than just size though, the garage door is steel backed and features thick insulation to increase thermal efficiency and prevent drafts and moisture.

This particular project was completed in just 10 days and met all the features and benefits that we emphasize on each of our construction projects. Recently, we got the chance to work with this client again recently when they decided to make modifications and functional updates. These changes allowed us to meet the client’s needs by installing three more 40” x 30” windows on the building, increasing the structure’s overall light intake and further reducing utility costs.

Whether you are looking to build a new building or improve upon an existing structure, let Gateway FS Construction Services know. With both steel and wood buildings for a wide variety of commercial, residential, and agricultural applications, we are happy to help our clients find the best possible building for their needs. You can give us a call at 866-551-3454, and let our specialists help you find exactly what you are looking for. We look forward to providing you the best customer service experience.

Costly Building Flaws

At FS Construction Services, we’re advocates of “doing things right” and believe that a little bit can go a long way. When it comes to engineering your agricultural building, that philosophy holds the utmost importance. In an article from David Bohnoff for Hoard’s Dairyman, agricultural buildings fail in large numbers simply because they are either not engineered or are only partially engineered. We agree. And that’s why we assure you our building practices and experience is our reputation – and something that won’t ever be compromised.

As we indicated in a previous blog about our NFBA standards (found here), we look to provide our customers worthwhile – and structurally sound – investment. As Bohnoff indicates, there are multiple aspects that play into the credibility of an engineered building, including the roof’s ability to withstand different loads (wind, snow, severe storms), the topography of the land, as well as the size, shape and orientation of attached or surrounding structures.

Each element of the structure needs to work hand-in-hand in order to obtain maximum efficiency and safety. Trusses alone do not support a building. Each component serves a purpose and is essential to withstand the elements previously discussed. Bohnoff is a professional engineer who visits the sites of nonengineered building accidents.  He believes the dishonestly of companies telling consumers their building is exempt from certain codes because of its agricultural purposes is no different than telling someone it’s ok to not wear a seat belt or bike helmet if law doesn’t require it.

FS Construction Services is open with our customers when it comes to the step-by-step process of engineering their structures. You’ll find the detailed steps of our building process here.

So we’d like to stress once again the importance of recruiting a builder that takes the safety of customers and integrity of their work to heart. With FS Construction Services, you’ll receive the utmost professionalism and sound product.

Call us today at 866-551-3454 to discuss your building goals.

 

Choosing Your Building Contractor

When it comes to building a commercial or ag structure, it often involves a well-thought out plan, especially since you’re making such a sound investment. FS Construction Services wants to make sure you’re covering certain aspects to ensure you’re selecting a building contractor fit for the job. We’ve compiled some of the most important items to note.

Reputation

It’s best to do business with a contractor who is established in the area and has experience in the depth of work you’re hoping to achieve. It’s our guarantee that FS Construction Services can uphold that reputation. Look at completed projects, similar to those that you’re planning. If a company is confident and credible in their work, they’ll be happy to provide references. If you have the chance, ask those references certain questions such as:

  • Were you pleased with the overall quality and care of the contractor?
  • Did the job start and end as scheduled?
  • Was the job completed in line with the proposed budget?
  • How was the communication with the contractor throughout the process?
  • Would you use the contractor again?

Professional Association Membership

nfba_logo_noborder1

It’s wise to choose a contractor that offers continuing education and promotes research. For example, FS Construction Services is a member of the notable National Frame Building Association (NFBA). NFBA members are pledged to observe the highest standard of honesty, integrity and responsibility. Being part of the association is the mark of a professional.

Engineering Design

At FS Construction Services, we guarantee that we don’t just put up “pre-fab” projects. We provide a tailored design specific to your design needs and wants. Working with such credible companies such as Walters Buildings, we ensure that our customers have a solid understanding of the step-by-step process it entails to construct an ag, commercial or residential building. Our contractors serve as engineers who have years of experiences delivering top-notch professionalism.

FS Construction Services cannot stress enough the importance of using a credible contractor when it comes to erecting a building. As stressed by Dr. David Bohnhoff, on behalf of Jim Austin of Frame Building News, the argument for fully engineered post-frame buildings is crucial. Dr. Bohnhoff’s personal experience and interviews explain how costly it came be to go with the inexperienced. We encourage you to read and take note the importance.

If you’re still curious about whether FS Construction Services is the right fit as your building contractor, we invite you to contact us for a chat. We’re here to provide the information necessary to make such a decision. Call us today at 866-551-3454 to get the answers you need, or visit us at 3631 Old State Route 3 in Red Bud.

Knowing Your Building Process

At FS Construction Services, we think it’s important that you’re aware of the entire building process for the structure you choose. Having a thorough understanding of the building’s progression gives the customer a stronger involvement in the building process. Knowing the progression of their particular structure provides a comfort, especially when it comes to expected completion date and assurance that all aspects of the structure’s integrity will be intact.

FS Construction Services follows a strict start-to-finish building process set forth by Walters Buildings. This process is in place so no step is overlooked and each aspect gets the appropriate attention. Whether you’re looking into a suburban, commercial or ag structure, the following steps are taken towards project completion.

For an expanded, detailed view, please click the image to download.

Buildings_cutaway

  1. Footings and Anchorage
  2. Laminated Columns
  3. Roof Trusses
  4. Splashboards
  5. Framing
  6. Roofing and Siding Panels
  7. Bracing
  8. Gutters
  9. Trim
  10. Sliding Doors
  11. Ridge Venting

 

If you’re considering a suburban, commercial or ag structure, please contact Tom Marcheski in our Buildings and Construction Department at 866-551-3454.