Metal stud education and training allows you and your employees to provide more effective service to your customers. Many people now select metal studs over the traditional wooden studs for economic and structural reasons. Allowing your customers the option of metal studs may boost your company ahead of your competitors. Providing employees metal stud education and training is the first step to moving your company forward.

There are three basic ways to provide metal stud education and training for employees. Many contractors choose to utilize training centers and seminars because they provide a hands-on approach. Books, videos and manuals are also available for companies that may not have the funds for seminars or training centers. Online courses are also available to train one or two employees in metal framing.

1. Find seminars and training centers for education in steel studs.

2. Buy books, videos and manuals about metal framing studs.

3. Enroll in online courses that focus on metal stud framing.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Locate seminars and training centers that educate about steel studs

Training centers and seminars offer classroom-like training led by professional instructors. These training courses are scheduled for weekends so that employers can send employees to the seminars without interfering with the employee's work schedule.

I recommend: Visit the Steel Framing Alliance to find metal stud framing training centers. Locate steel stud framing seminars and training centers through the National Frame Building Association.

Purchase books, videos and manuals about metal framing studs

Providing your employees with books, videos and manuals allows them to study at night or on the weekend. It also allows them another option to help solve any problems that come up every day. This type of training is good for companies that need to train multiple people but who do not have the funds to enroll them in online courses or send them to seminars.

I recommend: Find instructional articles and videos at DesignAndBuildWithMetal.com. CSC Software provides books and guides about metal wall studs and metal stud tools. Visit Contractor-Books.com for books about all aspects of metal framing and studs.

Take online courses that train in metal stud framing

Online courses allow employees to receive training anywhere they have computer and Internet access. These courses do not have a set class time, so employees can take the courses in 30 minute installments or a few hours at a time. Online training also offers a help desk for students' questions.

I recommend: Browse the wide selection of metal stud wall online courses at eLearners.com. The Cerro Coso Community College offers online information about framing with metal studs.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  There are many metal stud and framing conventions and expos that offer training and allow you to interact with metal stud suppliers.

Metal stud wall framing provides an excellent building solution for innovative projects, contemporary designs and structural stability. Metal stud construction offers improved durability over time and against natural forces, and helps builders improve safeguards against fire and other damages.

You can get metal framing studs from a number of suppliers, each offering a range of steel and other metal products. Cold-formed steel is one of the most common types of metal stud, while suppliers also offer curved studs, steel panels, and metal stud tools for on-site framing with metal studs.

When planning to build with metal studs, follow this blueprint:

1. Do business with general metal framing suppliers for studs and panels;

2. Build innovative projects with curved studs and panels;

3. Get improved fire resistance with specialized metal studs.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get joists, studs and panels from a metal stud supplier

Metal stud suppliers sell not only metal studs for framing, but also floor and ceiling joists and complete framing systems for easier on-site assembly. Metal stud framing is known for ease of access for pass-through systems and cables, and metal panels provide quick assembly once frames are in place.

I recommend: Aegis sells cold-formed steel stud and joist systems and wall panels. Marino\WARE also offers several metal frame systems, including JoistRite, StudRite and TrussRite, depending on your metal stud framing needs.

Use metal framing studs for curved design projects

Metal stud wall design is a preferred solution for builders creating innovative design projects, including curved walls and domed ceilings. A metal stud supplier can provide you with flexible track studs and joists, as well as panels and tools to assemble any curved building project.

I recommend: Flex-C offers flexible and curved joists and frames that flex on segmented joints, as well as flexible wall panels. Radius Track also sells curved studs, as well as dome framing and tool kits for on-site forming of metal framing studs.

Use metal stud construction for simple and improved fire safety

One of the preferred features of steel stud construction is the improved natural fire resistance of metal framing. Some metal stud and panel systems, however, have been developed with angles and specifications that offer even greater improvements on fire safety and address building codes without the need for coatings and chemicals.

I recommend: While all metal stud construction is fire resistant to a degree, Cemco manufactures head of wall fire stopping steel construction specifically designed to minimize fire damage. ClarkWestern also has a dimpled steel framing product known as UltraSTEEL, a distinctive metal stud with improved durability and fire resistance in comparison to other metal studs.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  When building with metal framing studs, advertise your construction design decisions to make customers and other builders aware of innovative designs and enhanced safety measures. Contemporary steel designs are popular not only for their unique aesthetic, but also for their functionality and durability.

A hot water boiler is useful in industrial as well as residential applications. Hot water boilers have applications in various industries, such as textile, medical and food processing. In addition, you can install a hot water boiler to maintain a comfortable temperature inside a residential complex.

If you want to buy, rent or repair a hot water boiler, you will need to be conversant with certain terms that you will hear from the boiler industry professionals. This guide attempts to familiarize you with important key terms, such as hydronics, hard water and AFUE.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Hydronics

Hydronics or hydronic heating is the process of using hot water to transfer heat from one location to another. A hot water boiler is an important component of a hydronic heating system.

I recommend: Hydromatic Technologies Corporation, a provider of cloth drying equipment, offers basic information about hydronics. To learn more about the hydronic heating process, read through information at Appropriate Designs.

Hard water

Hard water contains mineral salts that deposit on the internal surface of boiler components. This affects the performance of a hot water boiler and it is necessary to soften the hard water before passing it through a hot water boiler.

I recommend: P.C. McKenzie Company, a supplier of boiler parts, offers a glossary for important boiler terms, including hard water and gauge glass.

Gauge glass

For the safe operation of a hot water boiler, its water level must be maintained within certain limits. A gauge glass is a glass-enclosed visible indicator of the water level in a boiler.

I recommend: Johnston Boiler Company, a reputable supplier of marine boilers, provides a glossary of boiler terms, including gauge glass.

Boiler controllers

Boiler controllers are electronic devices that monitor and control the system variables, such as steam (or water) temperature and pressure.

I recommend: You can read through information on boiler controllers at GlobalSpec, an information resources for industrial products.

Pressure relief valve

A pressure relief valve is an important device for the safe operation of a hot water boiler. These valves operate if the system pressure exceeds the pre-defined pressure value.

I recommend: Anderson Radiant Heating, a supplier of residential and commercial hydronic heating systems, provides a glossary of technical terms, including boiler and pressure relief valve.

BTU (British Thermal Unit)

This is the British unit for measurement of heat. One BTU is the amount of heat needed to raise one pound of water 1°F from a starting point of 39.2°F.

I recommend: To learn more about BTU and its relation with other units, read through the glossary of wood heating terms at Greenwood Technologies, a provider of renewable heating solutions. Alternative Energy Solutions also provides a glossary of biomass boiler terms, including BTU.

AFUE (Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency)

AFUE is the unit of heating efficiency of a heating device. To compare different heating devices, you must know their AFUE.

I recommend: For the definition of AFUE, you can refer to the glossary at GasNetworks. Moose Heating & Air Conditioning, a HVAC (heating, ventilation and air-conditioning) company, offers basic information about AFUE.