SteelMaster Buildings

SteelMaster Building is a Star at Arecibo Observatory

Virginia Beach—September 23, 2009—Nestled in the cracked and rocky karst landscape that lines the north coast of Puerto Rico sits the Arecibo Observatory—one of the most important national centers for research in radio astronomy, planetary radar, and terrestrial aeronomy. The Arecibo Observatory is part of the National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center, operated by Cornell University under a cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation.

The observatory boasts the world’s largest curved single-dish radio telescope, which is what makes Arecibo so special to scientists. But it was a much smaller curved structure that momentarily drew the attention of the site’s Telescope Maintenance Engineer Felipe Soberal away from the upkeep of this technical wonder toward SteelMaster Buildings in Virginia Beach, VA.

Soberal was on the market for a building to house six transmitters to be used as part of an important project of the Arecibo Observatory called the Ionospheric Heating Facility. “The transmitters will send their signal to six dipole antennas that will be installed protruding vertically from our Primary Reflector, and then the signal will go to the space,” says Soberal. “With this system we will expand our capabilities as a radio telescope to study the layers of our atmosphere and mainly the Ionosphere.”

He found what he was looking for in a Quonset-style SteelMaster building. With five steel building models to choose from, the company was able to design a steel building that met the functional and aesthetic needs for Soberal and the Arecibo Observatory.

“SteelMaster Buildings is proud to contribute to the important scientific work being done by Cornell University in Puerto Rico,” says Michelle Wickum, the director of marketing for SteelMaster. “Arecibo Observatory selected SteelMaster due to the high quality of our steel building systems to withstand local conditions, as well as for the simplicity and versatility of our steel Quonset building to support their project needs.”

SteelMaster steel buildings, metal buildings, and prefabricated buildings are designed for a broad range of residential and commercial applications, and feature:

·         Lifetime engineering and a 30- year warranty backed by its factory and the ArcelorMittal Dofasco steel mill;

·         Clean, dry “Maintenance Free” coating that keeps the building cool in the summer and easy to heat in the winter;

·         One hundred percent usable space, with no beams or trusses; and

·         Ease of construction. Each building is accurately pre-cut and pre-drilled using only one size nut and bolt.

Through common ownership, SteelMaster owns the factory where its buildings are engineered, designed, and manufactured which allows the company to set the highest quality standards for Steel Buildings in the industry.

SteelMaster’s steel and metal pre-engineered buildings are designed for a broad range of residential and commercial applications including garages, workshops, carports, agricultural storage, quonsets, airplane hangars, RV storage, roofing systems, military buildings, commercial warehousing, and industrial storage. As well as a wide variety of custom building applications including athletic facilities, retail stores, churches, bus stops, smoke shacks, doggie dorms, and correctional facilities.