The cost of building a factory

Start with the production line, not the building

A factory is a shell around a process. The machines decide the clear height, the span, the crane capacity and the floor loading, and those four numbers drive most of the cost. Sizing the shell before the process is the most expensive mistake in industrial projects.

The layout drawing

Ask the machinery supplier for a layout with minimum space requirements and the sequence of operations. Mark the raw material store, the production floor, the finished goods area, the packing line and the shipping dock. This drawing is what turns a vague brief into a quotable building.

What moves the steel price

• Clear span — every extra metre costs more per square metre
• Eaves height, which drives column size and wind load
• Crane capacity and hook height
• Wind and snow loads at the location
• Cladding type, insulated panel or single skin sheet

What is usually forgotten

Foundations and the floor slab, which are local costs and often exceed the steel package; the electrical supply and its transformer; ventilation and daylight; and the fire strategy. A quotation for the structure alone is not the cost of the factory.

How we work on these projects

We can be involved from machinery layout through structural design to the erection of the steel frame, or only in the part you need. Either way the offer states the steel weight, the cladding area and what stays on your side.