There is indeed no unified standard for determining whether a structure is made of heavy steel or light steel, and many experienced designers or project managers often cannot fully explain it.
1. The lifting weight of the factory crane: greater than or equal to 25 tons, it can be considered as a heavy steel structure.
2. Steel consumption per square meter: greater than or equal to 50KG/M2, it can be considered as a heavy steel structure.
3. Main component steel plate thickness: greater than or equal to 10MM, less commonly used for light steel structures.
In addition, there are some reference values such as cost per square meter, maximum component weight, maximum span, structural form, eave height, etc. These can provide empirical data when determining whether a factory building is made of heavy steel or light steel. Of course, many buildings now use both light and heavy steel.
But there are some things we can confidently say are heavy steel, such as petrochemical plant facilities, power plant buildings, large-span sports venues, exhibition centers, and high-rise or super high-rise steel structures.
