Note: PTFE is the generic name for what people often refer to as Teflon®. Genuine Teflon® is a registered trademark of the DuPont Corporation. Most of the slide bearing assemblies that The Steel Supply Company provides are made with Fluorogold®, which is a PTFE and Fiberglass composite. Fluorogold® is a registered trademark of the Saint-Gobain Corporation.

The term S-1 or S-1 Supplement is taken the ASTM Specification, F1554. In Anchor Bolt manufacturing, the F1554 specification is the rulebook. It spells out all the criteria a manufacturer must follow in order to provide a finished product that will perform as the engineer intended. The current version is F1554-07a.

We have seen an increase in demand for slotted steel shims in 2014, no doubt in conjunction with the increase in construction projects in general. Occasionally the requests are urgent, with the customer hoping for next day delivery. Often, these are fabricators who intended on manufacturing their own shims and realized time was running out.

Most often, slide bearings are employed in locations where all surfaces are 100% flat. In these cases, the slide bearing manufacturing and installation process are basic and straightforward.

For most fabricated structural and miscellaneous steel, hot dip galvanizing is a fairly basic process. The galvanizers follow the applicable specification, usually ASTM A123 / A123M, or the corresponding AASTHO spec. As most steel members or finished assemblies are stationary, excess zinc is not a problem.

Here's a quick note regarding Vent Hole Plugs. The large majority of customer requests are for aluminum Vent Hole Plugs. However, they are also available in zinc. There are several reasons a fabricator will request zinc rather than the less expensive and more malleable aluminum. The foremost reason would be potential corrosion. Mind you, we would be talking about corrosion over a very long period, possibly 20 to 30 years... but some jobs will call for the plug to be zinc.

This blog applies to setting threaded studs, handrail posts, anchor bolts, rebar, etc.

Things are changing a bit for both structural and miscellaneous steel fabricators. In the past, they have mostly stayed away from anything to do with concrete and the masonry side of the business, including rebar. Their interaction was often limited to welding masonry anchors onto columns and beams. This applied to items such as the wire tie, the Hohmann & Barnard Gripstay or the slotted channel.

One of the most overlooked factors in anchor bolt manufacturing is the bend in a hooked bolt. We’ve seen them done using a variety of methods, but the one to be careful with is the press brake.

We get a lot of questions about cutting and drilling slide bearings. Under the typical pressure of time constraints, fabricators will frequently purchase our stock sheets and do the cutting and drilling themselves. If time allows, they will often elect to have our professionals at The Steel Supply Company deliver the bearings cut to size with holes and slots already done.