An Economic Comparison between Using Concrete and Steel Frames in a Medium MultiStory Building in Iraq

Abstract

Building materials have always played essential roles in construction assessment, and cost calculation is important in selecting appropriate materials. Reinforced concrete and steel materials are usually used to construct multistory building structures. This study aims to evaluate and analyze using reinforced concrete and steel, frequently used as alternative structural building materials within the Iraqi construction sector, to determine which is cost-effective for building beams, columns, and slabs. In the present research, two multistory building models were designed with different concrete and steel raw materials, considering similar functions. Then, an economic comparison was made between them. The total height of the building was 16 meters at the top. The building was designed using a computer program (ETABS 2018). The designed building was adapted for several uses, such as a commercial center, offices, and service center. According to the study’s results, the reinforced concrete frame was 57.8% more economical than the steel frame in Iraq, according to the work activities quantitative analysis. While the time savings for the steel frame was 66 % better than the concrete frame.

Keywords

• Economic comparison
• ETABS
• Multistory building
• Quantitative analysis
• Reinforced concrete frame