Volunteers Reminisce About Building Steel Shed

…A Look Back to 2003

Terry Redman, President of the "Volunteer Friends of Shamrock Park", a chapter of the 501{c}3 group, "Friends of Sarasota County Parks" organization, recently touched base with SteelMaster to reflect upon his good memories of building their storage facility. He also commented on how happy he has been since he made the decision and chose the SteelMaster steel and metal arched pre-fabricated structure for their volunteer tools, vehicles and supplies.

"Oh my goodness, I remember constructing the building like it was yesterday," Terry said. "Using the plans and instructions SteelMaster supplied, it took us maybe a week to construct the building. The plans and specifications we received were clear and easy. Building it was actually a lot of fun!"

Terry Redman said he would be remiss if he did not mention how great the SteelMaster team has been and cannot speak highly enough about SteelMaster and each one of his fellow volunteers.

"We had about a dozen volunteers, including the assistance of one amazing lady in particular whom I cannot leave out of the story," said Terry. "This lady does not mind the Florida heat, getting her hands dirty, and is no stranger to hard work. She was there every day, on a ladder tightening bolts or holding ropes to keep sections in place."

By the way, this remarkable woman, Bessie Kofsky weighs all of 90 pounds and is 89 years young. Bessie was Shamrock Park's first volunteer has been there from the time it was built in 1994 and is still there almost every day. She serves on several volunteer beautification committees, does park maintenance/weeding, worked on bird banding projects, and participates in garden clubs, (and, let's not forget –helped build a SteelMaster Storage Shed!) She's a hard-worker to say the least, and although she never complains, she's usually sporting a band-aide or two. Bessie leaves her younger counter-parts in her dust – often scratching their head in amazement. She is a dedicated volunteer and according to Terry, Bessie inspires everyone who meets her.

"I also want you know our shed is a beautiful addition to the Shamrock Park," says Roger. "It is situated right beside the community center in a high profile area, not tucked away somewhere out of sight on the premises. Since it is not like most sheds that end up looking faded and rusty, it blends in beautifully with the rest of the park, and allows our volunteers easy access to the building and supplies within it."

Whether it's a need for residential or commercial storage, SteelMaster pre-fabricated sheds provide storage buildings to meet every application," touts Michelle Wickum, SteelMaster's Director of Marketing.
"SteelMaster prefabricated sheds feature a flexible clear span design, allowing maximum space efficiency. Our metal building sheds are easy to assemble and provide years of maintenance free use."

Many of us envy those living in Florida and dream of retiring there someday and living the good life. The vast array of beaches, swaying palm trees, and gorgeous weather, does hold a certain allure. But just like anywhere one chooses to live in the United States, along with the good, comes some form of precarious weather. And for Florida, that means tropical storms and hurricanes.

Roger added, "Since 2003, we had to deal with Hurricane Charlie, and other storms – either directly or indirectly. Either way, it is never fun. Our SteelMaster Building has already proved its worth. It looks as good as the day we finished putting it up and is definitely serving its purpose."

"SteelMaster buildings are engineered for life," said Wickum. "Our Steel Arched Buildings are designed to meet the wind loads of their destination. Our buildings are made with consideration given to climatological factors in order to provide protection from water, freezing temperatures, fire, and even hurricane-force winds."

SteelMaster's steel and metal pre-engineered buildings are designed for a broad range of residential and commercial applications including homes, farm buildings, garages, workshops, agricultural storage, Quonsets, airplane hangars, RV storage, roofing systems, carports, 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.

"Would I recommend a SteelMaster Building to others? Absolutely!" said Roger. Only thing is, they cannot have our Bessie to help them build it. Sorry, but she's ours!"

SteelMaster Hangar Kit Delivery

Rocky Take-Off Leads to Smooth Landing

Roger Edwards of Anchor, Florida has quite the story regarding his SteelMaster experience. Thankfully, Roger Edwards also has a great sense of humor and realizes sometimes things do not always go as planned.

Perhaps being a seasoned pilot and owning his own plane may have a little something to do with his attitude. Pilots realize weather can change on a dime. They know turbulent departures can lead to clear, blue skies and a smooth and safe landing. In a metaphorical sense, that sums up Roger's building delivery, assembly and ultimate pride and satisfaction with his 40'x45' SteelMaster airplane hangar.

His decision to buy a SteelMaster buildings was not part of the glitch. During his tenure as a pilot, he came across and admired several SteelMaster hangars and storage facilities. Roger met a SteelMaster rep during an Air Show in Lakeland, Florida where SteelMaster had an exhibit booth. Roger enjoyed talking to the rep, describing him as "friendly, yet professional". That was where he decided to get straight to the brass tacks and purchase his own pre-fabricated steel, Quonset-styled hangar.

The 18-wheeler semi that delivered his SteelMaster kit was right on schedule. Getting the materials to the area Roger wanted them to be unloaded on his property was a different story. Roger's neighbor saw the truck coming and warned him, "I'm telling you now Roger, that driver is not going to make it all the way down this driveway in that 18-wheeler!"

The driver looked over the situation and said, "I think I can manage this."

And he did.

Roger seems reasonable and said upfront, "I'm sure they (SteelMaster) told me I would need to have help to unload the materials, but I probably forgot and consequently, I did not have any help available – other than my tractor."

Again, the driver of the 18-wheeler lamented a moment and then said, "Well, actually I'm not supposed to help with unloading materials, but I see you are alone here, so I will make an exception and help you out."

As fate would have it, a few minutes later, the driver endured a cut on his leg worthy of bragging rights, but not bad enough for these two men to stop unloading the precious cargo onto Roger's tractor. The driver simply applied a big piece of duct tape over the cut and proceeded.

After Roger's SteelMaster kit was completely unloaded, the driver reviewed the damage to his leg. It was still bleeding. At that point, Roger insisted on returning the favor and took him to an urgent care facility, with the result being several stitches.

The driver had one more delivery scheduled for the day. It was another SteelMaster pre-fabricated steel building kit going to its new home in Tampa. He had already called the customer to advise he would be later than anticipated, and would stay in touch. Roger and the driver shook hands thanking each other for their respective help, and the driver started back down the driveway in his big rig.

But the driver did not get very far.

He got stuck in the thick, sand of the Floridian driveway – just like Roger's neighbor said would happen.

After many, many attempts and help from others to assist the driver to get on the road, the sun was setting and the situation was not looking so good. The driver called the customer again and said to expect him first thing in the morning.

The driver spent the night in the driveway in his rig, and it took two tractors and a truck to get the driver on the road the next morning. Unfortunately, we do not have the name of the truck driver to sing his praises – yet.

Fortunately for Roger, he enlisted the help of a neighbor (another proud SteelMaster Building owner), a contractor and helper to assemble his hangar. The contractor poured a slab foundation and secured bolts into the slab. Roger admits to struggling a bit with the roof and when their man-made scaffolding did not cut it, they ended up renting a one-person lift to get the first segments of the arches in place. The rest was a snap.

Although many SteelMaster customers do not find a lift as a necessity when building their buildings, Roger recommends one. He also advises that customers need to be aware they need help to unload their kit from the delivery truck, a point he says he may have missed when talking to his sales rep. "And…, said Roger, Keep in mind some of the edges are very sharp!"

Even though Roger's delivery day did not go as expected, he is ultimately thrilled with his hangar. He said he appreciates the support and follow up he has received from the SteelMaster team. Roger emphasized, "Hey, don't get me wrong – I love my hangar! It is a nice-looking building too, and it should last forever! And I would definitely recommend SteelMaster to others!"

SteelMaster's steel and metal pre-engineered buildings are designed for a broad range of residential and commercial applications including homes, farm buildings, garages, workshops, agricultural storage, Quonsets, airplane hangars, RV storage, roofing systems, carports, 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.

SteelMaster is celebrating its 30-year Anniversary this month. This milestone marks over 40,000 satisfied customers with SteelMaster buildings constructed worldwide on six continents, in over 50 countries, and throughout the United States.