The American Institute of Steel Construction has published new editions of two of the standards that govern its certification program for steel fabricators and erectors.

The 2025 editions of AISC's Standard for Certification Programs (AISC 207-25) and Certification Standard for Shop Application of Complex Protective Coating Systems (AISC 420-25/SSPC-QP3) are now both available as free downloads on AISC’s website.

The 2025 edition of AISC 207 will continue as the primary reference for the AISC Certification program. It supersedes the 2023 edition and will take effect for current program participants and applicants for audits on or after February 1, 2026.

Purdue University's first-of-its-kind bridge engineering track is addressing a workforce gap.

Purdue's Lyles School of Civil and Construction Engineering (LSCCE) launched its Bridge Engineering Education Program, the first bridge-focused curriculum in the U.S., this fall in response to increasing industry demands for qualified entry-level bridge engineers.

"There is a significant need among design firms and state DOTs for highly qualified structural engineers with expertise in bridge design," said Brandon Chavel, PE, PhD, AISC vice president of bridges. "Armed with a Purdue education focused on bridge design, fabrication, construction, and inspection, graduates can make an immediate impact when they enter the workforce and help address infrastructure needs in the public and private sectors."

When it comes to reducing the carbon footprint of your projects, getting exactly what you specify is essential. Luckily, there's a powerful new resource available to help you secure low embodied carbon structural steel--consistently and confidently.

The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) has released Specification Strategies for Embodied Carbon Reduction, a concise, authoritative guide available at aisc.org/sustainability-toolbox. It distills the latest and most relevant approaches for procuring low embodied carbon structural steel into clear, actionable specification pathways. The document presents six strategies supported by expert commentary, comparative ratings, and ready-to-use specification language.

The embodied carbon of domestically produced and fabricated structural steel has dropped by more than 10% in the last few years alone.

Two new Smart EPD® Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) covering hot-rolled structural steel section production and the fabrication process for structural steel demonstrate a remarkable change from the last EPD, which was published by the American Institute of Steel Production (AISC) in 2021. John Beath Environmental, LLC, gathered the data that underpins the new EPDs.

The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) is proud to announce the release of its roadmap for structural steel and LEED v5, a powerful new tool designed to help design professionals and project teams navigate the U.S. Green Building Council’s latest green building rating system.

As the construction industry increasingly prioritizes sustainability, material choice has become a critical step for teams pursuing LEED certification. However, deciphering how specific materials align with new frameworks can often be complex and time-consuming. This is even more critical for firms that have committed to the AIA 2030 program.

This new guide, the latest addition to AISC’s Sustainability Designer Toolkit, streamlines that process with a clear roadmap for leveraging structural steel’s inherent benefits to achieve LEED v5 credits.

The architects of Boulder, Colo.'s new Fire Station #3 set out to design a 100-year building that would exceed the city's lofty energy conservation goals and serve as a prototype for future fire stations. What they didn't know then was that the project would end up receiving acclaim as a prototype for the concept of circular design and construction. Instead of demolishing a building at the end of its useful life, the building is carefully deconstructed and the materials are reused in new construction, avoiding landfills and reducing embodied carbon.

The 28,300-sq.-ft fire station was in schematic design when the city's project manager approached Denver's Davis Partnership Architects with the idea of reusing structural steel members salvaged during the deconstruction of the 30-year-old decommissioned Boulder Community Hospital in the new fire station. "They said, 'We have this hospital we've been taking down and we have this ordinance that says we have to reuse a certain percentage of those materials. We'd like to use as much of the structural steel as possible on the fire station,'" said Joe Lear, a principal with Davis. "So we started planning to incorporate it into the design."

AISC has named its newest educator award in honor of a past president and board member who advanced the institute’s efforts to promote steel education.

The H. Louis Gurthet Teaching Faculty Award, announced in August without a namesake, celebrates the contributions and legacy of Lou Gurthet, who served as AISC’s president from 1996 to 2005 and on AISC’s Board of Directors from 1990 to 1996. It honors a teaching-focused faculty member (such as a professor of practice, lecturer, instructor, or adjunct professor) in a university civil engineering, architectural engineering, architecture, construction engineering, or construction management department.

A draft of the next edition of the AISC Code of Standard Practice for Steel Buildings and Bridges (AISC 303) is now available for public review and comment.

The next edition of AISC 303 will supersede the 2022 version and is anticipated to be finalized in 2027.

This draft introduces the term “character of work” and integrates the term throughout the standard. It also proposes updates to clarify the responsibilities for the design of member reinforcement.

Hollie Noveletsky, a former member of the AISC Board of Directors and president/CEO of Novel Iron Works in Greenland, N.H., is making her second run for the Republican nomination for the 1st Congressional District of New Hampshire (for more information, visit her campaign website).

A strong advocate of Buy America initiatives, her platform emphasizes the importance of job growth and strengthening American industry. As a passionate advocate, Noveletsky was instrumental in the 2022 enactment of New Hampshire’s Buy America legislation.

The world is constantly changing, and structural steel isn’t just keeping up--it’s setting the bar (or, shall we say, beam) higher.

AISC and the structural steel industry consider the future a priority today. Investments in research and technology are improving safety and efficiency on jobsites as well as shaving months off project schedules!

Plus, we’re supporting and inspiring the leaders of tomorrow with scholarships, exciting competitions, and opportunities to participate in industry activities.

To close out SteelDays, we’re turning the spotlight on the innovations and initiatives that make us excited for the decades to come.

For more than a century, American structural steel has provided the framework for progress, powering bridges, buildings, and communities across the country.

Since AISC's founding in 1921, we've seen buildings stretch skyward and bridges span once-inconceivable lengths as structural steel continues to revolutionize the built environment.

This SteelDays, we're putting on a record, lighting a match, digging up time capsules, and rummaging through filing cabinets to bring you a shot-blast from the past as we celebrate our timeless industry and its impact on the way Americans live, work, and play.

Along the way, we'll reflect on the lasting legacy of those who built--and continue to build--with steel.

Some materials crack, combust, or decompose in the aftermath of disaster. Steel? It’s made to endure.

Structural steel framing systems are strong enough to withstand hurricane-force winds, seismic vibrations, and surging stormwaters--over and over again. They can be more easily adapted, repaired, and reused than any other building material.

And steel bridges? You might have driven over a century-old bridge today and not even known it.

This SteelDays, we’re bringing out the case studies, timelines, and design resources that show just how resilient steel is.

Celebrate with us while you explore inspiring examples of adaptive reuse, dive deep into the history of steel bridges, learn how our industry comes together in a crisis, and much more.

How do you build a better future, one that’s lighter on the planet’s resources but stronger for tomorrow’s generations? You start with the right materials.

Steel has always been a symbol of strength, but it’s also a model of circularity--melted down, reshaped, and reborn again and again. In honor of SteelDays, we’re spotlighting the innovations and leaders that make steel the ultimate sustainable choice. From cutting-edge mills powered by renewable energy to design strategies that optimize material use, sustainability isn’t just a benefit to structural steel--it’s a core reason to choose it for your next project.

Whether you’re exploring new technical resources, taking a virtual mill tour, or broadening your green design knowledge, you’ll see how the steel industry is reimagining what it means to build responsibly.

How many careers give you the opportunity to point at a structure people use every day and say, “I built that”?

When you work in the structural steel industry, that’s not a hypothetical. It’s the lived reality. Your fingerprints are literally embedded in the structures you create. They’re part of the county bridge that makes your neighbor’s commute faster. They’re tucked behind the walls of the hospital that keeps your community healthy.

That kind of tangible legacy is a rare gift. It’s more than job satisfaction; it’s the pride of turning abstract designs and complex calculations into everyday wonder for thousands (or millions) of people. Celebrate that sense of pride alongside us for SteelDays as we explore the diversity of opportunities available in structural steel!

The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) elected new leadership and a new board member at its Annual Business Meeting in September.

Glenn Tabolt, president of STS Steel in Schenectady, N.Y., was named board chair following two years as vice chair. Dan Kadrmas, president of TrueNorth Steel in West Fargo, N.D., and a board member since 2013, is the new vice chair. Steve Knitter, president of Geiger & Peters, Inc. in Indianapolis and a prior board chair, was named treasurer.

Design has the power to shape lives. The places where we live, work, and learn are never neutral; they either communicate respect, dignity, and care, or they fracture trust and signal indifference.

This belief has guided FIFTEEN Architecture+Design since inception, and over time, it has only deepened our conviction that design's greatest opportunity begins not with the building, but with the process itself: human-centered design.

The Steel Bridge Task Force has recognized Gary Wisch, PE, engineering and business development advisor for DeLong’s, Inc., for his outstanding contributions to the steel bridge industry over the last four decades.

The Alexander D. Wilson Award, presented to Wisch in Lafayette, Ind., on September 24, honors individuals whose work has significantly advanced steel as the material of choice for steel bridge supply, production, design, fabrication, or construction.

A draft of the next edition of the AISC Seismic Provisions for Structural Steel Buildings (AISC 341) is now available for public review and comment.

The next edition of AISC 341 will supersede the 2022 version and is anticipated to be published as a 2027 edition.

Among the proposed changes up for review in this draft of the standard is an updated list of reference standards and materials; updates to the recently proposed rod-braced diaphragms with special seismic detailing; revised analysis requirements; and revisions to the basic member requirements for columns of several seismic force-resisting systems.

The American Institute of Steel Construction will present the 2026 T.R. Higgins Lectureship Award to Caroline Bennett, PE, PhD.

Bennett is the Charles E. & Mary Jane Spahr Professor in and chair of the Department of Civil, Environmental, and Architectural Engineering (CEAE) at the University of Kansas (KU). Her research has addressed some of the most pressing challenges in structural engineering, including fatigue and fracture performance of steel infrastructure, constraint-induced fracture in steel bridges, and innovative structural retrofit strategies for a wide range of structures.

The American Institute of Steel Construction and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) are pleased to announce the winners of the 2025 Steel Design Student Competition.

The 2025 AISC/ACSA Steel Design Student Competition challenged students to explore various design issues related to the use of steel in design and construction. Participating students were offered the opportunity to compete in two separate categories. In Category I, students were challenged to design a library and illustrate its role as an integral part of a community’s civic fabric. Category II presented students with the option to select a site and building program of their choosing, using steel as the primary material.

The thirteen winning projects were selected for their innovative designs using structural steel and their design responses to local contexts. Further details about and photos of each project are available here: acsa-arch.org/competitions/2025-steel-competition/winners/.

The AISC standard Prequalified Connections for Special and Intermediate Steel Moment Frames for Seismic Applications (AISC 358-27) is available for public review from September 15 until November 3, 2025.

Do architects make good business and marketing people? It probably depends on the architect. But we thought we'd ask someone who knows: architect Tyler Suomala, founder of the Growthitect newsletter and podcast.

We've learned a lot from Tyler's newsletter and podcast. So much so that AISC is excited to be a sponsor of the Growthitect podcast, which you can tune into at podcast.growthitect.com.

Kicking off our association, we had the opportunity to ask Tyler about his background, architecture journey, and his thoughts on the business of architecture and the state of the practice. We found the exchange engaging, fun, and surprising at times. Let us know what you think.

The American Institute of Steel Construction is thrilled to welcome Northeastern University Professor Jerome Hajjar, PE, PhD, to its inaugural Innovation Fellowship program, a collaborative research residency at the Institute's Chicago headquarters.

The fellowship, a minimum semester-long iteration of AISC's two-week Innovation Scholar summer program, aims to engage industry leaders with structural steel-focused research and provide avenues for continued collaboration in the process.

Proactive fabricators are partnering with local organizations to tackle the skilled trade labor shortage head-on. Exhibit A: a successful collaboration between Universal Steel and Decide DeKalb.

They'll share what they've learned from working together in the first of a series of free, virtual Insider Shop Talk sessions from the American Institute of Steel Construction, which will take place at 11 a.m. Central on Wednesday, September 10.

A draft of the next edition of the AISC Specification for Structural Steel Buildings (AISC 360) is now available for public review and comment.

The next edition of AISC 360 will supersede the 2022 version and is anticipated to be published as a 2027 edition.

A draft of the next edition of the AISC Specification for Structural Stainless Steel Buildings (AISC 370) is now available for public review and comment.

The next edition of AISC 370 will supersede the 2021 edition.

Looking for inspiration for your next great building? The five standout buildings recognized in the AISC IDEAS² Award design competition are case studies on innovative solutions to complex challenges—with beautiful, efficient results.

For the architects of Midtown Manhattan's PENN 2 Redevelopment, their project's success turned when they fully integrated architecture and structural problem-solving.

The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) has updated Design Guide 6, the steel industry's cornerstone reference for designing steel-concrete composite columns.

The new edition of Composite Column Design (formerly Load and Resistance Factor Design of W-Shapes Encased in Concrete) adds guidance for square, rectangular, and round filled composite columns, all reflecting the modern requirements from the 2022 AISC Specification for Structural Steel Buildings. The updates also include the latest guidance for encased composite columns and designing connections to composite columns. A new spreadsheet-based tool can help designers calculate available axial, flexural, and shear strengths of composite members.

The AISC Education Foundation is helping 58 students across the U.S. make their higher education dreams a reality, funding $235,000 in scholarships for the 2025-2026 academic year.

These scholarships support juniors, seniors, and master's-level students in civil engineering, architectural engineering, construction engineering, materials/metallurgical engineering, construction management, and architecture programs in the U.S.

"Thanks to the generosity of the industry and the AEC community, we were able to distribute roughly $35,000 more than last year--and we're providing support for three more students," said AISC Director of Foundation Programs Maria Mnookin. "But these students are more than numbers, and the impact of our donors goes far beyond dollar signs. This generation will make a difference in the world, and it’s always an honor to help them get started."

Great professionals start in the classrooms of great teachers. And nowhere is that more true than in AEC, where the most outstanding educators must blend technical knowledge with inspiration.

The American Institute of Steel Construction and the AISC Education Foundation's newest award is designed specifically to recognize the best AEC faculty out there--the ones who give their students a huge boost in understanding structural steel as a sustainable, economic, and resilient building material.

Associations like the American Institute of Steel Construction are always finding new ways to serve their membership--and a much-needed AISC program has earned prestigious honors from the American Society of Association Executives and the International E-Learning Association.

In AISC's case, that element of service means providing an educational supplement specifically designed to help steel fabricators train new or newly promoted employees. The Fabricator Education Training Program is an easy way to introduce basic concepts, helping new hires quickly acquire the necessary skills to feel more involved and supported in their new position, whether it’s their first job in the fabrication industry or a move into a new role on the shop floor.

AISC's online program to provide entry-level shop employees with the knowledge they need to succeed in the fabrication industry has earned international recognition. The Fabricator Education Training Program--and its development partner, Artisan Learning--was a Bronze winner in the 2025 International E-Learning Association (IELA) Awards under the "online learning experience" category. AISC worked with Artisan, an online learning course developer, to create the program and launched its first courses last summer.

The Fabricator Education Training Program aims to supplement in-person training and provide AISC member fabricators with an easy way to introduce basic concepts to new employees. It helps new hires quickly acquire the necessary skills to feel more involved and supported in their new position, whether it’s their first job in the fabrication industry or a move into a new role on the shop floor.

After spending 10 years on active duty in the U.S. Army, living on bases everywhere from Missouri and Colorado to Japan and South Korea, Zachary Shinkle zeroed in on a new mission: coming home. Shinkle, 30, was born and raised in Louisville and has spent the last year and a half building new pieces of its skyline as a press operator at Padgett, Inc.

"I dipped my toes into a program that helps you transition from military to civilian," Shinkle says. "I picked a class on sheet metal fabrication, and it gave me a love for welding. I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Just knowing that I can take a blueprint, do the math, use my brain, and build something--I take pride in what I do. I take pride in what I make."

Five organizations representing the American steel industry today wrote to President Trump to reiterate their strong support for the Section 232 steel tariffs and the program’s expanded coverage and to urge retention of the steel tariffs during ongoing bilateral negotiations on other tariffs.

The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), Committee on Pipe and Tube Imports (CPTI), Specialty Steel Industry of North America (SSINA) and American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) this morning sent a joint letter to the president applauding “bold action to increase the tariffs to 50 percent” and requesting that the administration not grant special arrangements “to foreign countries that would eliminate or reduce steel Section 232 tariff coverage” as negotiations on the administration’s proposed reciprocal tariffs continue.

While it seems obvious that a new Iron Workers Local training center would be built with steel, the actual reason was more practical. The project’s architect, Gensler, and the structural engineer, Nayyar & Nayyar International, chose steel because it was the best choice to meet the project's design requirements.

The 12,000-sq.-ft. facility opened in June 2024 as the new training center home for Iron Workers Local 63 in Broadview, Ill., about 12 miles west of Chicago. The building is nicknamed "Glass Box" and showcases steel to anyone who steps inside or looks through the glass exterior. Its concave shape is an architectural nod to the shape of a perfect weld bead.

A draft of the next edition of the AISC Code of Standard Practice for Structural Stainless Steel Buildings (AISC 313) is now available for public review and comment.

The next edition of AISC 313 will supersede the 2021 edition.

Architect Daniel Libeskind once said, "Architecture is not based on concrete and steel and the elements of the soil--it's based on wonder." A visit to Boston's The Hub on Causeway, a monumental mixed-use district built atop a major underground multi-modal transit station and four levels of underground parking and abutting a critical roadway artery, sparks just that: wonder.

In the case of The Hub, co-developers BXP and Delaware North and the design team of Gensler architects and LeMessurier structural engineers transformed a long-vacant site, once home to the historic Boston Garden arena, into a vibrant live-work-play environment and the new grand entrance to the TD Garden arena.

How does a design team approach such a large and complex project? "Like you did when you drafted by hand, you realize the vision one line at a time," said Todd Staples, AIA, CPHC, northeast regional realization leader for Gensler.

This past September, Hurricane Helene and its resulting floods damaged or destroyed more than 13 miles of track on a Norfolk Southern Railway line between Newport, Tenn., and Asheville, N.C., forcing the line to close. About a month after the storm, though, another problem arose. A steel bridge over the Pigeon River near Newport collapsed, adding a rapid bridge replacement project to a lengthy list of fixes on the line. Originally, the existing two-span bridge appeared to need only a pier repair.

Structural steel designers with technical questions can now go straight to the authoritative information they need at lightning speed thanks to Clark, a new AI chatbot from the American Institute of Steel Construction.

"AISC literally wrote the book on structural steel--and has for more than a century," said AISC Director of Technology Integration Luke Faulkner. "AISC has hundreds of thousands of pages of go-to, trusted publications like the Steel Construction Manual. Clark is designed to cut straight through that vast library to find the answer to a designer's specific technical question."

The Steel Erectors Association of America (SEAA) recognized four AISC members and AISC-certified erection companies with a 2025 Project of the Year award.

Hodges Erectors, Inc. won in the Structural Class I (up to $500,000) for its role in the Kaseya Center renovation project in Miami. The arena is home to the NBA’s Miami Heat and recently underwent a $50 million renovation.

Hodges Erectors was responsible for demolishing existing steel structures and installing new framework to accommodate four corner scoreboards, a center scoreboard, and a catwalk. The arena was not closed for construction, and work revolved around concert and game schedules. On multiple occasions, Hodges Erectors’ crew had to completely demobilize--removing the crane, equipment, tools, and materials offsite—and remobilize a short time later.

The National Steel Bridge Alliance, a division of the American Institute of Steel Construction, is looking for the country’s most innovative steel bridges.

The 2026 Prize Bridge Awards will honor outstanding bridges of all sizes and scopes, along with the most innovative owner in the country. Winning projects get a national spotlight in a variety of media, including Modern Steel Construction magazine, over the course of the following two years.

The Steel Design Student Competition--with $20,000 in cash prizes and a spotlight on student work--is once again challenging tomorrow's great designers to come up with something great.

Administered by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and sponsored by the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC), the program is intended to challenge undergraduate and graduate students, working individually or in teams, to explore a variety of design issues related to the use of steel in design and construction. Winning designs are featured on both ACSA and AISC's websites as well as displayed to 6,000+ architects, engineers, steel fabricators, and the rest of the AEC industry at NASCC: The Steel Conference (April 22 to 24, 2026, in Atlanta).

The competition accepts entries in two categories each year: one that sets a specific challenge, and one open to all design ideas.

The American Institute of Steel Construction's Fabricator Education Training Program has developed and released new resources to help fabrication shops boost employee familiarity with the layout and fitup of columns.

AISC's award-winning online Fabricator Education Training Program is a supplement to in-person instruction. It helps new hires acquire necessary skills as quickly as possible, which will, in turn, help them progress into more specialized career paths that become available with experience. They're also an excellent way for a steel fabricator to demonstrate investment in the potential of individual employees, which is key for retention.

For a record-breaking fifth consecutive year, student engineers at the University of Florida were crowned the John M. Parucki National Champions in the 2025 Student Steel Bridge Competition, placing in five categories and taking home $8,000 in scholarships.

This year's national finals at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, brought together 43 qualifying teams from colleges and universities across North America. The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) and the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) offer the Student Steel Bridge Competition to give future engineers hands-on steel design knowledge beyond the classroom.

Amid an ongoing nationwide labor shortage, American steel fabricators are finding creative ways to inspire—and recruit—a new generation of skilled tradespeople. The Steel Fabricators of New England’s (SFNE) win-win solution: a welding competition partnership that gives high school students exposure to careers in steel and gives local employers a chance to connect with their future workforce.

On May 16, more than two dozen students from nine high schools across New Hampshire competed in the fifth annual New Hampshire State Welding Competition, a collaborative effort between SFNE, AISC, and sponsoring organizations. Held at Manchester Community College, this year’s competition raised more than $21,000 benefiting the career and technical education (CTE) programs that have helped each competitor hone their skills—and introduced them to potential employers and mentors in the process.

Innovative projects come from innovative ideas, which come from innovative people--and the 2026 IDEAS Awards are looking for all of the above!

The structural steel industry's flagship design awards, presented by the American Institute of Steel Construction and Building Design+Construction, are now accepting entries! IDEAS Award-winning projects stay in the spotlight for a full year in national publications, online, and at NASCC: The Steel Conference.

As always, the goal is to showcase the steel projects that demonstrate excellence in adaptive reuse, architecture, constructability, engineering, and sustainable design and construction.

The American Institute of Steel Construction is now accepting nominations for the prestigious T.R. Higgins Lectureship Award, which includes a $15,000 cash prize.

Nominations are due July 1, 2025.

Presented annually by AISC, the award recognizes a lecturer-author whose technical paper(s) are considered an outstanding contribution to engineering literature on fabricated structural steel. The Higgins lecturer will deliver a keynote at the 2026 NASCC: The Steel Conference, April 22-24, in Atlanta, and will also present their lecture, upon request, at various professional association events throughout the year.

Want to learn more about steel bridge design fundamentals with the help of an AISC award winner and veteran bridge industry expert with over 30 years of bridge engineering experience?

AISC/NSBA has added a new three-part series of self-paced learning modules to its steel bridge engineering curriculum, all led by Francesco Russo, PE, PhD, founder and principal of Russo Structural Services.

The American Institute of Steel Construction's Fabricator Education Training Program has developed and released new resources to help fabrication shops boost employee familiarity with welding as well as the layout and fitup of more complex beams.

AISC's award-winning online Fabricator Education Training Program is a supplement to in-person instruction. It helps new hires acquire necessary skills as quickly as possible, which will, in turn, help them progress into more specialized career paths that become available with experience. They're also an excellent way for a steel fabricator to demonstrate investment in the potential of individual employees, which is key for retention.

Three of the six new courses lay the foundation for the Fabricator Education Training Program's welding curriculum. These courses cover welding symbols and procedures--a perfect complement to hands-on training.