The tiny house movement is demonstrating the trend of living and maintaining a minimalist lifestyle for those who want simpler ways of living. This trend is picking up pace across generations and countries for financial and environmental reasons. With thoughtful and innovative designs, tiny home owners can enjoy a greener lifestyle and the satisfaction of building their own refuge while freeing themselves from mortgages and expensive energy bills.

Read on to find out about these beautiful, portable and tiny houses that maximize both function and style as well as why steel is gaining popularity as the choice over wood for such homes.

Less is More

A tiny house is a shelter that is less than 400 square feet, sometimes built on wheels, that encourages a simpler lifestyle and more efficient energy consumption. Tiny homes are environmentally-friendly in multiple ways from their small ecological footprint to minimal utility consumption.

The materials selected to build tiny homes can further contribute to the sustainability factor. According to Tiny House Build’s infographic, the average house (2,598 square feet on average) emits 28,000 pounds of CO2 per year while a tiny house (186 square feet on average) emits only 2,000 pounds of CO2 per year.

Tiny homes made with steel can be lighter, stronger and more durable. Here are a few reasons why you should choose steel for sustainable living :

1. Steel is the most recycled material in the world – anything made of steel in your home can be recycled and made into new products.
2. Steel’s longevity means your house will remain for a lifetime without having to use up tremendous amounts of time, money and resources for fixing or rebuilding.
3. Light-weight steel allows thinner and larger window frames which let in more natural light to brighten up your home.
(H/T to World Steel Association)

Thanks to steel’s many benefits, 21st century housing needs can be met in both sustainable and aesthetically pleasant ways.

ÖÖD Hotel Rooms in Estonia

Meet ÖÖD, gorgeous steel-framed rooms that are delivered to anywhere in Estonia as a complete set. ÖÖD offers all the living essentials built into a compact 200-square-meter footprint. Designed for use as pop-up hotel rooms for the fast growing Airbnb and Booking.com markets in Estonia, it can be installed anywhere in only 8 hours without a building permit.

An exterior view of OOD (Source: ÖÖD)

Each unit, made from steel, insulated glass and thermally treated wood, costs around USD 36,000. This sleek tiny home offers heated floors, LED lighting and a Bose sound system, and it is even under development for off-grid solutions.

An interior view of OOD hotel rooms (Source: ÖÖD)

Smartdome in Slovenia

Another growing trend in the tiny house movement is dome-shaped houses. Dome homes are durable, efficient and most importantly, very fun to live in. The balanced shape of dome homes allows homeowners to minimize their vulnerability to natural disasters.

The Slovenian-designed abodes from Smartdome can be assembled, disassembled and moved anywhere across the nation and is only around 270 square feet. The base features adjustable steel legs which can accommodate uneven terrain and the frames are made of galvanized steel and timber.

An exterior view of Smartdome (Source: Smartdome)

An interior view of Smartdome (Source: Smartdome)

Thanks to these beautiful and innovative designs, living small just got a whole lot sweeter. With strong, durable and eco-friendly steel-framed homes, homeowners can enjoy a simplistic lifestyle with financial and emotional freedom.

*Cover photo source: David Hillegas

Thought to have its origins in 12th century France where hands were used to hit the ball, tennis changed in the 16th century when rackets were introduced, and then again in 1967 when steel rackets were popularized and the game began to resemble what we know today.

50 Years Ago, Steel Changed Tennis

The Wilson T-2000 (above) revolutionized tennis with its iconic stainless steel design. Tennis pro Jimmy Connors used the racket until it went out of production, and Billie Jean King once said, “We made an absolute sensation of that racket.”

For centuries, rackets were made of wood with only small advancements made to the design. But in 1967 Wilson released the T-2000 and the metal racket forever changed tennis. Other steel rackets had come out before 1967. In 1922, the Dayton Steel Racket was designed by 7 time US Open champ, William Larned, and the T-2000 itself was a licensed version of the one designed by French tennis player and fashion designer René Lacoste. The BBC noted that “The most dramatic change in tennis racquet tech over the years was that initial transition from wood to steel.” The T-2000 was not the first, but it was the one that grabbed the public’s and the professionals’ attention.

The Wilson T-2000 was made of lightweight stainless steel with a tiny head and coiled hooks at the edges. Tennis legend Billie Jean King began using it and in 1967 became the first player to ever win a Grand Slam with a metal racket. Several years later Jimmy Connors adopted the steel racket and “couldn’t put it down.” Connors continued using it until Wilson stopped manufacturing them in the 1980s – winning three Grand Slams with it along the way.

(Left) Jimmy Connors with the Wilson T-2000 (1978). (Wikimedia) / (Right) Billie Jean King defeats Fay Moore in the fourth round of Wimbledon in 1968. She would later go on to win the tournament using the Wilson T2000. (Thirteen)

While the tennis world moved on to lighter materials like aluminum, graphite, and now graphene, the impact of the T-2000 cannot be overstated. In a sport that used wooden rackets for hundreds of years; the T-2000 can be seen as a singular turning point for modern tennis as players began to realize how their games could improve with lighter, stronger rackets. As writer Jon Reiner said, “[The T-2000] more than any other would rally the cultural boom of modern tennis…”

When Wilson released its first steel racket 50 years ago, it pushed the game of tennis into a new era. Players were able to use rackets that were lighter and stronger allowing them to have greater control over their game. The progression of tennis rackets continues today but it was steel that started the revolution back in 1967.

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Early scaffolding usually consisted of wood and rope – even today in parts of the world, bamboo is still used, even for high rises. But a much more common material for making stronger and safer scaffolding is steel.

Steel Transforms an Old Idea

At first, steel was used as coupling devices, replacing the rope used for joining together the wooden poles. One of the first uses of steel couplings? A renovation of Buckingham Palace in 1913. Then steel pipes arose, taking the place of wood poles in the 1920s.

Today, steel is the most common material for scaffolding in most of the world, with couplers, clips and clamps joining together standards, ledgers, braces, and transoms, to create elaborate frames that can completely encompass buildings, going up even more than 100 meters high.

However, creating gigantic scaffolding structures have weight. They take up space and need to be transported to and from the construction site. And workers need to put up that steel staging and take it down again.

A Better Solution

Which is why POSCO has created a major step forward in scaffolding technology – Ultra Light (UL) 700, a stronger, thinner, and lighter type of support structure.

Due to UL700 having 40-percent higher tensile strength than conventional steel scaffolding, POSCO has been able to reduce the thickness of scaffolding pipes from 2.3mm to 1.8mm. That makes UL700 25 percent lighter than conventional scaffolding, which in turn helps reduce transportation costs by 25 percent and gas emissions by 25 percent.

In addition, the lighter weight is less dangerous for workers, and reduces worker transportation time by 23.5 percent. UL700 is also more resistant to bending and has lower deformation, which also makes it more efficient. Despite all those advantages, UL700 is also very cost competitive, so companies can enjoy the scaffolding’s wide range of benefits and still come out ahead.

Check out this video to get an in-depth look at the many advantages that POSCO’s new UL700 steel scaffolding has to offer.

POSCO’s High Manganese Steel Floor Plate Wins the Jang Young Sil Award for Its Vibration-Resistant Qualities

PosCoZy Floor Plates Creates Quieter Apartments

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Steel has become a crucial ingredient for our effort towards a greener future, and we can see it becoming more popular as eco-friendly methods gain momentum over conventional building techniques in the construction industry.

So what makes steel such a valuable material for energy-saving homes? Several reasons can explain to the prospective homeowner as to why the metal should be highly considered for a more sustainable future.

Recyclable and Durable

Steel is one of the most recyclable materials in the construction industry – and this is due to its reusability. It does not wear down after years of use, and can easily be repurposed for other uses without losing any of its original properties. The metal is considered 98% recyclable, which is more than almost every other material used for building.

Building frames are one of the core construction elements that developers like to use steel for, since reliability is an appealing characteristic for composing structural foundations.

When steel is used for a project, each piece is manufactured for a specific purpose and custom designed to fit the structure. Wood and other materials usually come to the construction site in freeform, so when it becomes tailored to fit its designated place, the excess parts produce waste when discarded.

Conservation Practices

Since it’s considered one of the strongest materials on the market, steel can also support thicker layers of insulation without affecting its overall structure. Thicker insulation lets homes maintain ideal temperatures in hot or cold weather, which ultimately cuts costs on energy bills.

Steel’s high strength to weight ratio also lets it require less material than traditional building technologies, which could result in saving 30 to 70% more in natural resources. The lighter structures contribute to a 30% reduction of CO₂ emissions during construction.

Solar panels are another way that steel frames are able to reduce energy and cut costs. Steel is strong enough to support solar panels, and, also, a typical return on investment for a solar panel is 15-20%.

Environmentally Sound

One of the greatest characteristics of steel is that it is impervious to mold and termites. Unlike wood or other natural materials, it does not require any special management to prevent mold, decay or insect infestation – excellent for buildings that can stand the test of time.

Steel is also resistant to natural occurrences, such as snowstorms, earthquakes and floods. In current times, where earthquakes have become more frequent in different parts of the world, it’s reassuring to know that steel homes can resist earthquakes up to 7.9 on the Richter scale.

Water damage is also not a problem for steel, hence contamination from mold and insect infestations are not common issues for building owners.

Modular Convenience

There are two green building techniques that have spearheaded trends outside the traditional methods of building, and steel plays a primary part in both processes.

Prefabricated homes, or homes that are manufactured off-site, are structures that come in standard sections that can be easily shipped and put together. They save a lot of time and money, especially since less specialized workers are needed and the frames are created for immediate assembly.

Many prefab parts are made from steel, due to its flexibility to be formed into interesting and customizable designs. Some of the more advanced steel frame systems are made to be extremely lightweight and precise – they are often laser cut to produce a prefab foundation that is modern while eco-friendly.

Raised metal frames also have a low carbon footprint and are less intrusive to the surrounding ecosystem, since modular homes do not require a lot of site modification.

Zero Waste

Another type of building, zero-energy buildings, have also caught steam in modern sustainable construction.

Zero-energy buildings (ZEB), or net-zero energy buildings (NZEB) are defined as buildings with zero net energy consumption – meaning the annual amount of energy used per year is almost equal to the energy produced on site.

They’re specially designed to use renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, allowing them to operate independent of the electric grid that chains traditional homes. Steel’s role in zero-energy buildings begins in the steel beams that form the skeleton, attributing to these homes’ high ceilings and large interiors, which also help save energy.

Also, as people started to realize the negative environmental effects buildings can have, governments are developing codes and standards to make them more sustainable. Long-lasting steel not only supports green building, but also reduces costs – another important reason zero-energy buildings are gaining interest.

Steel for the Long Run

As more and more people become interested in green building, the use of steel for these purposes has steadily grown steadily. Cold-formed steel is considered to be the highest in terms of sustainability, and has even become recognized in major green building programs.

With people and even local governments becoming more interested in prefabricated homes and zero-energy buildings, we are bound to see the usage of steel develop in the years to come.

By the early 1960’s, skateboarding had achieved mass popularity. Downhill competitions were held by the largest surf companies in the area, and a few stand-out names in the blossoming sport were made. However, as quickly as the sport grew, it began to fade just as fast. The dangers brought on by the clay wheels that were then being used led to fewer skaters and thrill-seekers willing to take the risk of serious injury. By 1965, the sport seemed to have completely faded away, with only a few disciples true to the sport remaining.

Skateboards, comprised of a wood deck, steel trucks, bolts, bearings, and clay wheels, desperately needed an upgrade that would improve stability and safety. While hanging out in friend’s backyard one day in 1970, Frank Nasworthy took notice to some urethane roller-skate wheels that were being tested. Immediately, Frank new that this is exactly what skateboarding needed to revive the sport and take it to the next level.

After demoing the urethane wheels on a skateboard, Nasworthy realized that he was on to something huge. The jarring motion caused by steel wheels, and the instability from clay wheels were replaced by an incredibly smooth, almost liquid motion. Properly calling his newly created skateboard wheels ‘Cadillacs,’ Nasworthy took to the streets and began spreading the news. Tim Piumarta, one of skateboarding’s pioneers of innovation, says that the urethane wheels took skateboarding “from a funky, surfing activity, what you would do when the waves were down, into a real bonafide sport.”

With urethane wheels now in mass production, skateboarding resumed where it had left off. Competitions started back up, and skateboarding’s style and direction began to evolve once again.

The Steel Mechanics of the Skateboard

The construction and materials used to build skateboards have gone through many evolutions with advancing technology and factory capabilities. However, key components and materials have remained true to their original form and function, although upgraded quite a bit over time. Primarily, the skateboard deck is still made of wood, but is now infused with composite materials and produced with state-of-the-art pressing techniques to maximize durability and flexibility.

Other key components which make up a complete skateboard, are the trucks, bearings, wheels and hardware – most of which are comprised of steel, minus the wheels.

The skateboard trucks are the metal T-shaped pieces that mount onto the underside of the skateboard deck. Warehouse Skateboards, a leading authority in skateboards and parts, explains that “there are several parts that make up the skateboard trucks. The axle is the spine that runs through the trucks to which the wheels will attach. The hanger, usually made of [steel], is the largest part of the skateboard truck that is somewhat triangular in shape. The axle runs through the hanger. The kingpin, also made of steel, is the large bolt that holds these parts together and fits inside the skateboard bushings.”

A skateboard’s bearings are used to mount the wheels to the skateboard axle, and are what controls how well the wheels rotate. Recreational, non-professional bearings are made of steel. All bearings are circular with flat sides, and house seven to nine lubricated steel balls used to disperse the weight of the skateboard rider, as well as ease the tension between the wheels and the axle. Bearings have a 9-point rating system that is used to determine quality, and are tested and rated by the Annular Bearing Engineering Committee, more commonly referred to as ABEC. Steel bearings typically come in at an ABEC 7-point rating, where their ceramic, more expense counterpart, rate at ABEC 9 because the ceramic can withstand heat and friction better, but are also quite a bit more expensive.

Lastly, the nuts, bolts, locknuts, and screws that hold all of the pieces together, called mounting hardware, are made from steel. Each skateboard hardware set includes 8 bolts and 8 locknuts that attach the trucks and wheels to the skateboard deck. Now, skaters can get colored hardware sets to match their deck art, or to show off their style while triple-flipping down a flight of stairs.

Skateboarders, it’s Time to Thank Steel

Looking back at the very beginning, if were not for steel roller skate wheels, skateboarding might not have ever been invented – or at least until sometime later. Even with the progression of materials used to build skateboards today, wood and steel remain the two of the biggest components needed.

Strength and durability are certain criteria that the sport needs to continue to progress into a world-wide, mainstream sport, which it is vastly becoming, and of which steel will always be able to contribute to.

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Each year for a decade, 100 students from universities around Korea have joined Beyond, looking to make a difference in people’s lives. The Beyond home-building program is called “Steel House.” This summer, following their inauguration ceremony at POSCO Center, the volunteers travelled around Korea to build the innovative steel homes. Dividing into teams of 20 people each, they traveled to Yangpyeong, Pohang, Incheon, Yecheon and Gwangyang, building homes for people in need all over Korea.

Previous home-building typically was done with bricks and mortar as well as wood. But these Beyond-built homes use steel throughout the construction, from foundations to finish.

Steel Creates Stronger, Safer Homes

Steel frames allow homes to be more spacious, as less floor space is taken up by the walls, while the frame allows for better heat and sound insulation. Plus, because these steel homes can be built so much faster than regular homes, it minimizes the resources and pollution needed for construction.

Each house uses the POSCO World Premium product PosMAC, specially adapted for construction to improve its durability. For the exterior, multicolor steel technology from POSCO C&C was combined with ribbed profile extruded panels to produce strong, beautiful homes.

Once each house was finished, the volunteers held a completion ceremony, celebrating their hard work, offering energetic performances and plenty of fun.

“The steel house activity means a lot to me because I can learn the value of working hard together,” said Beyond volunteer Eunji Hwang. “Having a cold glass of water after a long day’s work really felt good.”

The Beyond volunteers intend to take their good works beyond the borders of Korea, too. They’re going to be gathering in Vietnam in January to continue helping others, this time at Vietnam POSCO Village.

Building Bridges Over Troubled Waters

With significant facilities in Vietnam, POSCO has long been active there in lending a helping hand. For example, with the heavy rains Vietnam experiences for six months of the year, people there often have to deal with flooding.

So POSCO Beyond volunteers, together with volunteers from the local POSCO affiliates like POSCO SS VINA and POSCO E&C and local suppliers, came together earlier this year to build a steel bridge for one community.

Large steel bridges, equipped with steel handrails to hold on to, can span longer distances than existing concrete and wooden bridges and are more stable even in the worst flooding conditions. Thanks to POSCO’s bridge, now local children can get to school safely no matter the weather, and villagers can travel safely, too.

To see why steel bridges can be so important to these Vietnamese villages and how they make a difference in so many lives, check out this video:

At POSCO, our offices all over the world remain focused on improving the communities around them. Whether building homes or bridges, these are just a few more examples of the power steel has to better people lives, offering a more secure and happier future.

Among the latest Masters was Chajin Kim, a man who has earned a legendary reputation for his work in the POSCO furnaces.

From Poverty to POSCO

Master Kim was born in 1958, at a time when Korea was still recovering from a devastating civil war. Growing up in the countryside near Gyeongju, in the southeast of Korea, his family often struggled just to put enough food on the table. His father had gone to Japan at the age of 19 to work in an iron works, and when he returned to Korea he had a hard time readjusting. To help the family out, Kim had to gather firewood when he was in fourth grade, carrying huge bundles of wood to sell during the day, then working late into the night on his school work.

Thanks to his great work ethic, though, Kim was able to go to Gyeongju Technical High School, which helped prepare him for a career where he could use his hands and his endless diligence. He soon began to take notice of one particularly enticing option – POSCO. Then called Pohang Iron & Steel, POSCO was located relatively close to his hometown, and back in the 1960s and ’70s it was one of Korea most prestigious and fast-growing companies.

Upon starting at POSCO, Kim was surprised at more than just the size of the company. The quality of the employee meals were a revelation, too, with plenty of high-quality rice and a rich array of dishes. “When I saw that, I wanted to spend my whole life at POSCO,” he recalls.

Hard Work, Big Machines

Repair and maintenance in a blast furnace can be tough work. It involves huge metal machines, and moving a piece just a few millimeters can require hitting them repeatedly with a big sledgehammer. But Kim was used to working hard from an early age, so he never complained; he just got to work.

Kim told a story that illustrated his focus on always putting 100 percent into his job. “We had a policy that you can get new safety shoes after a certain period of time, but you need to show your worn-out shoes to your supervisor to get approval,” he says. “However, my shoes kept wearing out so quickly, one day my supervisor told me that I was allowed to just change my shoes any time I wanted, without limit.”

That dedication also led to promotions. In fact, he earned so many promotions so much faster than usual, that a manager once had to go to his home during Chuseok (a major autumn holiday in Korea, like Thanksgiving). The manager was tasked with doing a thorough check on Kim, because he was supposed to be too young for that promotion.

Dedicated to Innovating

As Kim rose up the ranks and got better and better at his job, it sometimes led to friction, too. He wanted to make the machines as safe and efficient as possible, rather than just making the same repairs over and over again. For example, with the pig casting machines, the round bar on the safety gap equipment used to need replacing about once every four days because the heat would cause the bar to bend. But Kim got the idea of changing the round bar to a square one, which was about 20 times stronger. He also came up with an easier way of making the change. Kim’s innovation passed a stringent set of tests, and POSCO was so pleased that it sent Kim and his whole family on a special vacation.

Kim also has long been concerned with workplace safety. He used to see about 20 accidents each month at his worksite. But as a result of improving processes and machinery, that rate dropped to just one accident a month. Other proposals and patents earned him a series of awards and certifications. Between 2002 and 2006 along, he earned five third-class improvements and five patents.

“Even though the machinery is not alive, if you give it your love and attention, it gives you better results,” he says. “You can tell machines recognize the small and warmth of people because the devices that people take care of don’t break down. You may not believe it, but I do. I’m sure of one thing: the equipment never lies.”

Earning the Title ‘Master’

Despite earning the prestigious title of “Master,” Kim remains focused on modestly doing his job. “To be honest, I am not that smart or flexible,” he says. “What I am good at is limited – where I can add value to my job. That’s why I always need to be focused and at my best to perform well, even if that means getting less sleep.”

Kim finds joy in simple luxuries: buying a nice car for his mother, along with a little more farm land for his family. He has also lived in the same villa provided by POSCO for 26 years.

“I have become the POSCO Master of Korea thanks to the help of my coworkers and the equipment of the blast furnace plant. I was lucky to work here. I will keep working hard and never forget the moment I became a Master.”

Now that Chajin Kim is a POSCO Master of Korea, we look forward to learning from his lifetime of expertise. Master Kim’s know-how makes him a mentor that can help lead POSCO into an even brighter future.

Meet the Newest POSCO Masters of Korea

Always Remembering the Big Picture: POSCO Master of Korea Sungnam Kim

Never Afraid of Failure: POSCO Master of Korea Seungcheol Shin

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History

The earliest versions were probably twigs used to retrieve food from cooking pots. As resources became scarce, fuel was conserved by cutting food into small pieces that could be cooked quickly. This made knives at the table unnecessary. The first references of chopsticks in text appear around 250 BCE.

Considering the length of the ancient chopsticks, they were most likely used for cooking, stirring hot liquids and serving food, rather than as eating utensils. During the Ming Dynasty, they became popularized as eating utensils and took on their present shape. 

Materials

Chopsticks are made from a variety of materials, such as bamboo, plastic, wood, bone, metal, jade, porcelain and ivory.

Bamboo and wood chopsticks are relatively inexpensive, do not transfer heat and provide easier gripping for picking up food. They are often lacquered for waterproofing to protect against warping. Almost all cooking and disposable chopsticks are made of bamboo or wood.

Plastic chopsticks are relatively inexpensive and do not transfer heat, but they are not as easy to use. Plastic chopsticks cannot be used for most cooking because high temperatures can damage the chopsticks and produce toxic compounds.

Metal, commonly stainless steel, chopsticks are durable and easy to clean, but metal is slippery and often come with grooved tips for easier gripping. Silver is still used among wealthy families, as well as silver-tipped wooden or bone chopsticks. Other materials such as ivory, jade, gold and silver are used for luxury. 

Styles

In China, chopsticks are typically longer and thicker, with squared or rounded sides and ending in either wide, blunt, flat tips or tapered pointed tips. Plastic or melamine varieties usually have blunt tips, whereas pointed tips are more likely to be used for wood and bamboo varieties. Chopsticks made from almost any material can be found in China, but the most common in modern-day restaurants is melamine plastic for durability and sanitation. The most common type in regular households is lacquered bamboo.

Shorter sticks tapered to a fine point are used in Japan, and are traditionally made of lacquered wood or bamboo. Many Japanese chopsticks have grooves which keeps food from slipping. Early Japanese chopsticks were made from one piece of bamboo, connected at the top and were used strictly for religious ceremonies.

On the Korean peninsula, medium-length chopsticks with a flat rectangular shape, usually made of metal are common. Traditionally, they were made of bronze or silver. Many Korean metal chopsticks are ornately decorated at the grip. They are used simultaneously with a spoon.

In Vietnam, long sticks that taper to a blunt point are also used. They are traditionally made of lacquered wood or bamboo. Contrary to misconception of the west, chopsticks are not commonly used in Thailand. 

Chopstick Etiquette in Korea

In Korea, chopsticks are paired with a spoon. Elders pick up utensils first. Contrary to cultural norms of China and Japan, it is considered uncouth to pick up a dish or a bowl to bring it closer to the mouth. A spoon is used instead. Holding both a spoon and chopsticks in one hand simultaneously or in both hands is also considered poor table manners.

A spoon should be used to eat soup, stew, liquid side dishes and rice, and chopsticks to eat solid side dishes. Eating rice with chopstick is acceptable, but was traditionally considered to be uncultured. Traditionally, chopsticks are used to serve side dishes into a rice bowl, and then the spoon is used to eat rice or soup.

Chopsticks should always be placed to the right of the spoon. Chopsticks are only laid to the left during the food preparation for a funeral or memorial service for deceased family members, in a ceremony known as jesa. 

Folklore

During the Chinese dynastic times, silver-tipped chopsticks were often used as a precautionary measure by wealthy families, as it was believed that the silver would turn black upon contact with poison. It is now known that silver has no reaction to arsenic or cyanide, but can change color if it comes into contact with garlic, onions or rotten eggs, all of which release hydrogen sulfide.

According to some ancient folklore, it is believed if you’re given an uneven pair, you will miss a boat or plane. An old Korean superstition says that the closer to the end one holds a pair of chopsticks, the longer one will stay unmarried.

 
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On Track to Globalization

The track, one of the most fundamental parts of railway infrastructure, has evolved from an ancient design of vehicle guidance, which some say date back to the Sumerian culture of 2000 BCE. Just before the Industrial Revolution, the majority of tracks consisted of horse-drawn wagonways that incorporated wooden rails. In the mid-eighteenth century, iron rails became more widely used, but could only be produced in short lengths, and were brittle, fragile and quickly became uneven under heavy loads, making them quite costly to maintain.

It wasn’t until 1857 that the first durable steel rails were made by British metallurgist and businessman Robert Forester Mushet, who provided the foundation for the development of rail transportation throughout the world. The first of Mushet’s rails were laid at an especially heavily trafficked part of the Derby Midland Railway Station in England, where previous rails had to be renewed at least every six months. Yet, after six years, Mushet’s rails seemed as good as new, despite the fact that over 700 trains had passed over them on a daily basis.

As a stronger material, steel steadily replaced iron for use on railways and allowed considerably longer lengths of rails to be rolled. Today, there are high speed trains that use steel wheels on steel tracks that can travel at ridiculously high speeds. The Shanghai Maglev in China, for example, can transport commuters at a whopping top speed of 430 kilometers per hour (about 267 miles an hour). Furthermore, advancements such as personal rapid transit vehicles such as Suncheon City’s SkyCube developed by POSCO, are changing the concept of rail travel altogether.

Sky-High Steel

Wood was the primary material used for most early airplanes, though there had been an all-metal plane as early as World War I. At this time, the useful load—crew, fuel, and weapons, for example—had to increase significantly, and the speed, altitude ceiling and range had to become much greater for planes to function as military instruments. As such, aircraft designers had to transition from the wood-and-fabric biplane to the all-metal, streamline monoplane.

The Junkers J-1 was the first cantilevered wing all-metal airplane and was developed for low-level, front-line observation and attack. Although heavy, cumbersome and slow to take off, it proved to be efficient and provided effective protection against ground-fire.

Planes have since been constructed from metal, though mostly aluminum, thanks to its light weight and strength. Yet, because steel can be up to four times stronger and three times stiffer, it is still utilized for certain aircraft components such as landing gear, where strength and hardness are especially important. It has also been used for the skin of some high-speed airplanes, because it holds its strength at higher temperatures better than aluminum.

Mind the Ash to Mind the Gap

The world’s first underground train, on the world’s first metro system (now known as the London Underground), traveled three-and-a-half miles from Paddington to Farringdon on January 9, 1863. Another 29 years passed before Chicago became the second city to boast a metro, while New York began operation of its rapid transit system in 1904. Before it went underground, the latter was initially an elevated railway that was served by steam engines that spilled ash and cinder on pedestrians below. Yet, with advancements in steel innovation, electrified trains allowed the operators of the lines to introduce cleaner locomotives.

Metro-building accelerated from the 1960s, in reaction to the growth of increasing urbanization and sprawling mega-metropolises around the world. At that time, train cars that were once built with wood were replaced by stainless steel cars, which saved operators money, as the sturdier, longer-lasting material reduced the overall weight of each car and lowered the amount of electrical power to move them. As it turns out, these same steel cars still provide unintended benefits, as they are helping breathe new life into the world’s oceans.

Now, most rapid transit trains operate on a conventional steel wheel/steel rail system, in which power is commonly delivered by a third rail or by overhead wires. These days, almost 190 cities have metros, with more to come amid a fresh spurt of construction in developing, congested countries.

As technology quickly accelerates and transportation continues to better connect our world, it is certain steel will remain to play a major role in how we get around.

The images that cross your mind may seem apocalyptic, or even impossible to fathom. There is barely a part of our lives today that is not influenced by the metal, and it is not an exaggeration to say that steel is perhaps the most significant component of the modern world. Without it, civilization as we know it would cease to exist. Let’s take a look at a few ways the world would be a different place without steel.

Skylines would be incredibly boring.

Structures such as skyscrapers and towers would be inconceivable without steel supports and cables. Therefore, buildings would be low-rise at their tallest, making densely populated cities devastatingly uncomfortable. It’s hard to imagine a world without the likes of the Burj Khalifa, the Eiffel Tower or the Empire State Building, all of which utilize steel as a main construction component.

We’d have very few options for dinner.

The food we eat today has been refined in factories with steel tools, processed with steel equipment, baked in steel ovens and preserved in steel cans. It is delivered to us via steel trains on steel rails, or by steel trucks over steel-reinforced roads. As such, in a world without steel, our food sources would be limited to what could be cultivated locally and the possibility of faminewould be persistent.

Getting in touch would take for-ev-er.

(Image source: http://bit.ly/1dgLFuc)

Without steel to manufacture telephones, computers or even mail trucks, we would be stuck relying on less than efficient carrier pigeons (which were actually a thing a few thousandyears ago) or the pony express. So much for instant connection.

Reading material would be extremely limited.

(Image source: http://bit.ly/1tNFW6q)

Newspapers, magazines and books we read today are mostly printed on a steel press. Even the paper is made from wood which is cut with steel implements and processed in steel machines. Mind you, there wouldn’t be any steel-plated pens, either, so quills would be used to write and copy the material. Of course, there might be bronze movable type printing, but it would still take a very long time and amount of patience to carry out.

Disease would run rampant.

Stainless steel has contributed greatly to improved sanitation in hospitals, restaurants and other public environments, and has helped to save the lives of millions. Easy to clean, it is more hygienic, impervious to corrosion and scratch-resistant, and is capable of standing up to harsh sterilizers, heat and heavy use, preventing deadly bacteria from surviving on its surface. Without it, the constant threat of diseases such as Ebola and measles would be very real.

Unemployment would rise and the economy would crumble.

Crude steel production reached 1.66 billion tons worldwide in 2014 which only says one thing about our world… it’s growing. It’s estimated that more than 95 countries are producing steel today, with more than two million employees worldwide, and a further two million contractors and four million people in supporting fields. Without this vital industry, the world economy would suffer and many people would be without jobs.

A glimpse into the world of steel

Fortunately, we do live in a modern world where steel does exist and its importance is clear. Yet few people tend to notice it, or understand how it works. Which is why TenarisUniversity, in conjunction with the World Steel Association’s steeluniversity, has launched the massive open online course (MOOC), “Introduction to Steel.”

This lively online learning program will feature the basics of steel melting, steel’s historical and cultural context, its relationship with society and the sustainability of a world supported by steel by utilizing everyday examples, demonstrations and film footage of steel making. Additionally, it will encourage community interactions between students and the professor.

“We believe in the highest standards of education to develop people all around the world,” Rolando Lange, Director of TenarisUniversity noted. “With this MOOC, we hope students will get passionate about steel as a material and learn about the critical role it plays in our society.”

Comprised of a four-hour framework, the course is open to all free of charge. It starts on June 2 and will run for two weeks. Registration is now open. Click here to enroll in the class, or for more information.