How to Choose a Structural Steel Fabricator in Ontario

The right structural steel fabricator in Ontario is one that is CWB certified to CSA W47.1, can produce shop drawings for your job, has the capacity and schedule to meet your dates, and quotes a clearly defined scope. Check those four things first. After that, the choice comes down to communication, logistics and whether you want the same company to deliver and install. This guide walks through what to ask.

What a structural steel fabricator actually does

It helps to know who does what, because "steel supplier", "fabricator" and "erector" are sometimes used loosely:

• Steel supplier or service centre: sells steel shapes, plate and tube, usually cut to length. Little or no fabrication.
• Fabricator: works from the structural drawings to produce finished pieces. That includes shop drawings, cutting, drilling, fitting, welding and marking every piece to match the drawings.
• Erector: lifts the fabricated pieces into place on site, plumbs and connects them. Erection also covers field welding and bolting.

Many Ontario fabricators supply, fabricate and install, which gives you one point of responsibility. Others fabricate only and leave erection to a separate contractor. Neither model is wrong, but you need to know which you're getting so nothing falls into the gap between trades.

1. Certification: CWB and CSA W47.1

Start here, because it's the easiest to verify and the hardest to fix later. In Canada, steel design is governed by CSA S16, and the Ontario Building Code references that standard for structural steel. CSA S16 requires fabricators and erectors who weld structures under it to be certified by the Canadian Welding Bureau (CWB) to CSA W47.1.

What to ask:

• Is the shop certified to CSA W47.1, and in which division?
• Is the erector (if different) certified for field welding?
• If any rebar needs welding, is the company doing it certified by the CWB to CSA W186, the standard for welding reinforcing bars?

You can confirm a company's certification yourself through the certified company search on the CWB Group website. Our separate post on why to hire a CWB-certified fabricator explains the divisions and what certification involves.

2. Shop drawings, detailing and engineering

Structural drawings show what the building needs. Shop drawings show exactly how each piece will be made: dimensions, holes, plates, welds and piece marks. Good shop drawings are the difference between steel that bolts up on the first try and steel that gets cut and re-welded on site.

Ask:

• Are shop drawings done in-house or subcontracted?
• Who designs the connections? On many projects the drawings delegate connection design to the fabricator, which then needs an engineer to design and seal them.
• How are shop drawings submitted for review, and how are changes tracked?
• Can the fabricator provide engineering if your project needs it, for example for a residential beam replacement that has no engineered design yet?

3. Capacity, equipment and the size of your job

A shop that is ideal for a ten-storey frame may not want a single basement beam, and a small shop may not have the crane capacity or floor space for large girders. Ask:

• What size and type of projects does the shop typically handle?
• Can it handle the heaviest piece on your job, including any camber, curving or large welded assemblies?
• What is the current backlog, and when could shop drawings and fabrication realistically start?
• Does it supply other items you need, such as rebar, lintels, stairs or railings, so you can deal with one supplier?

There's no single right answer. You want a fabricator for whom your job is a normal job.

4. Quality control and marking

Every structural piece should leave the shop checked against the shop drawings and clearly marked so the erector knows where it goes. Ask how the shop checks dimensions, hole locations and welds, who signs off, and how pieces are marked and bundled. Ask whether mill test certificates can be supplied for the steel if your engineer or inspector needs them.

5. Delivery, phasing and installation

Steel that arrives early clogs the site; steel that arrives late stops it. Ask:

• Does the fabricator deliver with its own trucks, and to which areas?
• Can deliveries be phased to match your schedule, such as foundations, then the first floor, then the roof?
• Will pieces be loaded in erection sequence?
• If the fabricator also installs, is that crew in-house? Who supplies cranes or lifting equipment?
• How does the company handle winter work in Ontario?

6. Safety, insurance and paperwork

On commercial sites these are table stakes, and they matter on residential jobs too:

• WSIB clearance. In Ontario, a WSIB clearance certificate relieves the person or company hiring a contractor of liability for that contractor's unpaid WSIB premiums for the period it covers, and WSIB has specific clearance rules for construction work. Ask for a current clearance before work starts and check WSIB's rules for your situation.
• Liability insurance, with a certificate naming your company if required.
• Site safety practices and training for the installation crew.
• Willingness to work with your engineer, inspector and building department, and to answer RFIs promptly.

How to compare fabricator quotes

Steel quotes are easy to misread because the scope varies so much. Before comparing, check that every quote addresses:

When two quotes look far apart, the difference is usually in this table, not in the shop. Our guide to buying structural steel in Ontario covers the buying side in more detail, including suppliers and lead times.

Red flags

• No CWB certification, or vague answers about it.
• No shop drawings offered for anything beyond simple cut-to-length pieces.
• A quote with no exclusions or assumptions listed at all.
• Pressure to change member sizes without the engineer's approval.
• No clear contact person for questions during fabrication.

Working with Procut Steel

Procut Steel Inc. is based at 7 Erin Park Dr in Erin, Ontario, and supplies, fabricates and installs structural steel and rebar for residential, commercial and industrial projects across the GTA and Ontario. Our team brings over 30 years of metal manufacturing experience. Here's how we line up against the list above:

• CWB certified shop welding.
• Shop drawings produced for fabrication, with engineering services available for projects that need them.
• Free take-offs and estimates from your structural or architectural drawings.
• Beams, columns, posts, lintels, connections, cambering, stairs, railings, gates and ladders, plus rebar detailing, cut and bend from the same shop.
• Delivery across the GTA and Ontario, with phased deliveries to match your schedule, and installation from basement beams to larger commercial and high-rise projects, year-round.

Ask us about our certification, schedule and scope the same way you'd ask anyone else. If you're buying beams for a smaller job, our guide on where to buy steel beams in Ontario may help.

Send us your drawings for a free take-off and quote, or see the full list of our services.