The Riviera Lane Residence is a 5,948-square-foot, two-story luxury single-family home located in Southlake, Texas. What makes this project remarkable is that cold-formed steel (CFS) serves as the home's primary structural system for both walls and roof framing—no structural steel or traditional wood framing was used. CFS was selected for its dimensional stability, strength-to-weight efficiency, and predictable structural behavior, which allowed complex geometry to be structurally resolved.
The home features highly articulated architecture with high-pitched rooflines, shaped roof profiles, curved and vaulted interior ceilings, and multiple attic configurations. The project required a CFS structural system capable of supporting long-span roof framing, vaulted and stepped ceiling planes, and shaped architectural elements.
Completion Date: August 2025 (CFS framing completion)
The primary architectural element of the residence is a Mansard-style roof characterized by steep slopes, shaped roof planes, and multiple geometric transitions. The roof incorporates a vaulted interior ceiling with usable attic space framed within the truss system, resulting in a clear truss span of approximately 42 feet and an overall truss height approaching 18 feet.
The height-to-span ratio and complex geometry exceeded practical limits for fabrication, transportation, and erection as a single CFS truss assembly. To resolve these constraints while preserving architectural intent, the team engineered the roof framing as a cold-formed steel piggyback truss system—dividing the structure into a lower Mansard truss supporting the vaulted ceiling and attic space, and an upper cap truss completing the roof profile.
This solution maintained the required interior volume and exterior geometry while improving fabrication efficiency, transportation logistics, and erection sequencing. The piggyback configuration established a clear and continuous gravity load path through the bearing wall system, eliminating the need for structural steel transfer elements and maintaining a fully cold-formed steel structural solution. The project demonstrates how cold-formed steel can achieve architecturally expressive residential design while maintaining constructability and structural performance.
Built by Nest-In from the house of Tata Steel, this 1,836-square-foot zero energy home in Bhubaneswar, India, was constructed using Light Gauge Steel Framing (LGSF) technology in just 3.5 months. The home is designed to balance its annual energy consumption through a combination of passive design strategies, efficient systems, and on-site renewable generation.
The building's design is rooted in climate intelligence, crafted specifically for the warm-humid conditions of Bhubaneswar. Extensive climate simulations informed the placement of openings, verandahs, and shading elements, while the architecture leverages controlled daylight, natural ventilation pathways, and climate-responsive massing to minimise cooling demand.
The structure incorporates insulated walls, fibre cement boards, gypsum boards, cool roofs, and high-performance glazing—creating a strong envelope that limits unwanted heat from entering the home. A high-efficiency Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) HVAC system adjusts cooling based on actual usage needs. LED lighting, designed with the potential for daylight-linked dimming, reduces operational demand.
On-site renewable generation is enabled through a rooftop solar and façade-integrated photovoltaics system, which embeds solar cells directly into the structure of the building.
The home produces as much energy as it consumes, reflecting the principles of a zero energy building. LGSF technology enabled faster construction while delivering a strong, durable structure that performs reliably across varying weather conditions. Prefabricated components ensured precision, enabled rapid assembly, and reduced on-site effort and energy use.
In the aftermath of the devastating earthquakes that struck Türkiye, Turkish construction company Karmod completed a village housing project in Adiyaman using a steel frame construction system. The project delivered 60 prefabricated steel houses, including 10 standalone units and 25 twin units accommodating a total of 50 residences.
The houses were designed as horizontally designed houses suitable for earthquake-prone regions. As Karmod Sales Manager Özay Kemal Karakucuk explained: "Our lightweight steel frame prefabricated houses offer a safe model that reduces earthquake risk".
The houses also provide energy efficiency with special insulation applications tailored to different climate zones. Karakucuk highlighted the rapid production and installation advantage of the steel houses, emphasising the company's continued support for earthquake-affected areas through the production and installation of permanent prefabricated steel housing.
The entire installation process was completed within 45 days, providing permanent, safe housing for communities affected by one of the most devastating natural disasters in recent Turkish history.
Developed by a consortium led by Places for People and Balfour Beatty in collaboration with masterplanner Shephard Robson, the East Wick and Sweetwater neighbourhoods represent a landmark affordable housing project in London. Across the two neighbourhoods, approximately 31% of homes are affordable, with Phase 1 providing 130 affordable dwellings, 105 homes for private rent, and 67 market sale homes including townhouses, mews homes, apartments, and studios.
Sustainability and energy efficiency have been key drivers for the developers. The neighbourhood has already won the Sustainable Construction Award at the 2016 London Construction Awards for its groundbreaking, environmentally focused design. East Wick is already achieving a 22.4% reduction in embodied carbon for Phase 1.
Metek's light steel framing system was chosen at the outset to minimise loads on the foundations and because it could achieve the strict fabric efficiency performance requirements. Phase 1 of the project started in 2019 and was completed in 2021, achieving the BREEAM 'Excellent' environmental rating. It provided 302 apartments, townhouses, and duplexes together with commercial and leisure spaces and was valued at approximately £100 million.
Four architectural practices were involved in the design of a variety of building forms up to 6 storeys high. The townhouses were 3 storeys high and had floor spans of up to 6 metres using 250mm deep floor joists that were installed as large cassettes to speed up the construction process. The walls used 100mm deep C sections also installed as large panels.
The self-weight of the lightweight structure was less than 150 kg/m² floor area, which is only 20% of an equivalent concrete structure and meant that piled foundations were not required.
Metek's light steel structure was highly prefabricated, with wall panels delivered in lengths of up to 6 metres and floors supplied as cassettes from the factory. This approach enabled a fast construction programme to be achieved. The construction of the 12 blocks took place in a phased manner, with Block 5.5B starting in July 2019 and completed by the end of September 2019.
Following the 2023 earthquakes, DORÇE implemented a comprehensive post-disaster permanent housing project in the Antakya district of Hatay Province, Türkiye. The project was executed under the EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) model for the General Directorate of Construction Affairs of the Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change of the Republic of Türkiye.
The project was executed simultaneously across 7 different construction sites and represents a large-scale public investment meeting critical post-earthquake reconstruction requirements of speed, structural safety, and quality.
The project utilised the Light Gauge Steel Frame (LGSF) structural system, which offers high seismic resistance. All light steel load-bearing systems and panelized building components were manufactured in a controlled factory environment at DORÇE's production facilities in Ankara.
Following comprehensive quality control procedures, the components were transported to the site and rapidly assembled in a safe and efficient manner. Through this system, the following advantages were achieved:
Following the installation of structural systems, all electrical and sanitary installations were carried out by DORÇE. The external building envelope was completed using high-performance sandwich panel systems, while roofing, façade finishes, and interior architectural works were delivered on a turnkey basis.
DORÇE also managed infrastructure systems, internal roads, landscaping applications, and on-site logistics through an integrated approach. The works carried out simultaneously across 7 different locations were successfully completed under a centralized project management discipline.
The project stands as a strong reference demonstrating engineering strength, production capacity, and site organisation capability in post-disaster permanent housing projects, earthquake-resistant light steel settlements, and serial housing production using LGSF technology.
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