7 Businesses That Profited From Their Steel Building

Choosing the right building for your growing business can be quite a daunting task.

There are so many factors to consider before you even start the building process. You have to research the proper location, make sure the building is sturdy enough, calculate the maintenance costs, make sure it’s energy efficient, aesthetically pleasing, and affordable to construct.

Seven different businesses in different industries found a way to meet these demands and more when they invested in a Quonset Hut steel building design.

1. True North

If you’re an architecture aficionado, you’ve probably heard of the “True North” development in Detroit, Michigan.

But if you’re unfamiliar, True North is an award-winning real estate project in the Core City neighborhood of Detroit made from eight SteelMaster Quonset huts.

Chan teamed up with developer Philip Kafka to create this unique steel Quonset Hut village through his real estate company called Prince Concepts.

The village consists of nine prefabricated Quonset huts designed at different angles and in different shapes and sizes to create open, outdoor spaces to enhance the community feel of the area.

This has become the perfect spot for artists, designers, and small business owners. The social spaces are being used in a variety of ways. There are rental units inside a few of the buildings that range from 475 to 1,600 square feet, an Airbnb, a small coffee shop, and even a yoga studio.

2. Los Milics Vineyards

Los Milics Vineyard uses their SteelMaster Quonset hut as a production facility and tasting room. The owners of the winery hired Tharmarit Suchart of Suchart + Chen Studio to design the building.

Suchart says the Quonset hut’s column-free interior was a major advantage when designing the facility.

“The biggest thing we found about it was it provided us with the ability to span, in this case, 55 feet, unincumbered so we could have a free plan and do whatever we need to for the interiors,” he said. “The idea of a production facility, because we also have a tasting room, is to have the most economical way to get a large amount of space.”

Suchart also noted that practicality and cost-effectiveness are two of the things that make a Quonset hut most appealing.

“The idea in finding beauty in [the Quonset hut’s] utility and the idea that it’s a 55-foot arch that can span that distance and give us the flexibility that we needed for the building—all of those things have its inherent beauty in all sense of that word to be able to achieve what we did for the budget. All of those things are very important and work well together.”

3. Congaree and Penn

Congaree and Penn, a farm in Jacksonville, Florida, initially used their SteelMaster building for agricultural storage. Over the last six years, Congaree and Penn worked to include a restaurant and dining area in their SteelMaster building.

Farmer and founder Scott Meyer found SteelMaster through an online web search and saw photos of the projects designed by our building specialists and like the unique architectural aesthetic of Quonset huts.

4. Carpenter Ranches

Carpenter Ranches is a hops farm that uses two large SteelMaster buildings as processing facilities. As the craft brewing industry started to grow and the demand higher quality products increased, the Carpenters decided to replace their older hop drying facilities with brand new SteelMaster Quonset huts.

One is a kiln building (X-Q65 x 29 x 343) that helps the company heat and dry their hop harvest. The second is a cooling/bale building: XQ-100 x 36 x 255 to transfer hops from the kiln building to this one for cooling and baling the product.

According to Rick Rinehold with Carpenter Ranches, the new Quonset Hut facilities have proven to be very efficient at drying hops quickly.

5. Big Texan Steak Ranch and Brewery/Starlight Ranch Event Center

You’ll certainly want to bring your appetite to this Texas Steak Ranch House in Amarillo. It’s the home of the monster 72oz steak and the amazing Starlight Ranch that hosts big musical acts under the arches of a SteelMaster stage. You can enjoy a delicious meal and then dance the night away under the stars.

6. Pua’a Lani (Hog Heaven) Coffee Company

Mike M. doesn’t have to go far to get a delicious cup of Hawaiian dark roast in the morning. Just a few steps from his front door is the site of his own coffee production company, Pua’a Lani (Hog Heaven), which was created using a SteelMaster metal shipping container cover and two salvaged shipping containers.

Mike, who moved from California to Hawaii, purchased his new property from a couple who had already started the process. They originally planted about 600 coffee plants on the premises, and now Mike has big plans to expand it.

7. Brewery Emperial

If you’re looking for a cool, urban atmosphere and amazing brew, this is the place for you. This Kansas City brewery incorporated a SteelMaster arch into its overall design. They combined the steel arches with the cinder blocks to create the perfect aesthetic blend.

The prefabricated steel arch houses the brewhouse cellar and fermentation tanks on the north side of the business. On the south side, there’s an open-air Biergarten that is enclosed by metal shipping containers. This is certainly the perfect place to hang out, kick back, and enjoy the breeze.

Are you ready to take your business to the next level? Invest in your own steel Quonset Hut. Our talented Commercial Team is ready to help you!