A few months ago, The Good Builder stood on the factory floor at Australian Framing Solutions as something pretty significant came off the roll-forming line.
The 50 millionth metre of TRUECORE® steel produced by Australian Framing Solutions (AFS) using Scottsdale Construction Systems state of the art roll forming technology.
At the time, it was a big number worth celebrating. But we also knew the story wasn’t really finished.
That steel still had somewhere to go.
So we decided to follow it.
From the AFS factory, to the frame going up on site, through the months of construction and, finally, to a finished Coral Homes home at Skyridge where a family has now been handed the keys.
It’s probably the best way to put 50 million metres into perspective.
From a number to a home
AFS began with just 2 machines and has since grown to operate 22 roll-forming machines across three facilities, with the ability to produce up to 44,000 metres of steel framing per shift.
Reaching 50 million metres of light gauge steel framing was a significant manufacturing milestone for the business. But when we first spoke to AFS CEO and Founder, Jake Gundry, he was pretty clear that the number represented something bigger.
“This milestone is about more than production, it’s about partnership. Every metre represents a builder who’s trusted us, a project we’ve helped deliver, and a home or building where people will live and work for years to come. That’s what we’re celebrating.”
That became particularly fitting for metre number 50 million.
The steel was manufactured into a frame for a Coral Homes project, erected on site and then gradually disappeared behind everything that turns a frame into a finished home.
And that takes time.
Months after watching the steel being produced, The Good Builder was there again as Coral Homes handed the completed home over to its new owner.
A partnership that had to work beyond the factory
For Coral Homes CEO Steve Foley, the project also demonstrated why the relationship between builder and supplier goes well beyond the product itself.
Coral Homes has worked with steel framing for close to 20 years. As the business expanded, Foley says they went looking for a supplier whose approach aligned with their own.
“We looked for another partner, someone that was aligned with our same values, someone with the professionalism, the quality, all those types of things,” Foley said.
But he makes an important point that will resonate with most builders: quality and price only form part of the equation.
“The price is going to be important, the quality is going to be important, but you’ve got to deliver when you say you’re going to deliver. And these guys do.”
Standing outside the completed home months later gave that comment a little more weight.
As Foley put it:
“It’s great to be back here now at a house that we’re about to hand over. It’s a steel frame, so it’s good that we’ve both said we’re going to do what we intended to do and follow through on that.”
The 50 millionth metre has a homeowner
And ultimately, that is where this particular metre of TRUECORE® steel ended up.
Not sitting on a factory floor or as part of a production statistic, but inside a finished two-storey Coral Homes home belonging to a young family.
For the homeowner, Hannah, it was also her third build with Coral Homes and her third steel-framed home.
This one, however, was different.
Her first was built before having children, the second was an investment property, and this third home is what she describes as the family’s “dream house”.
Receiving the keys while knowing her home contained AFS’s 50 millionth metre added another layer to the occasion.
“Honestly, it just feels so surreal. It’s one thing to be in the planning stage of your build, but then to see it come to life, to get the keys, to walk in and to know that we are part of this huge 50 million thing, it’s fantastic.”
For Foley, the handover was ultimately about seeing the result from the customer’s side.
“We’ve delivered a good product and she’s very happy with that house. Great steel frame, beautiful two-storey home,” he said.
“It’s an exciting time for them to start the journey with their family, and exciting for us that it’s become a very happy part of their life.”
Following the whole journey
When AFS rolled its 50 millionth metre of light gauge steel framing, the original milestone was understandably about manufacturing: 50 million metres produced since the company began.
Following that metre all the way through to handover changes the perspective a little.
Because builders don’t hand over metres of steel.
They hand over homes.
Between those two moments are manufacturers, suppliers, logistics teams, designers, builders, carpenters, supervisors and trades, all doing their part before a homeowner ever gets a key.
For Gundry, that’s what the milestone represented from the beginning.
“This belongs to everyone — the AFS team, our suppliers, and every builder who chose us. It’s not just our milestone; it’s theirs too.”
Now, somewhere inside a new Coral Homes home at Skyridge, AFS’s 50 millionth metre of TRUECORE® steel is doing exactly what it was made to do.
And a family has the keys.
Congratulations to Australian Framing Solutions, Coral Homes and everyone involved in taking 50 million metres of light gauge steel framing from a manufacturing milestone to somebody’s new home.
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