Scope of this guide. Published costs, savings and schedules are indicative examples, not a project quotation or guarantee. Compare the same location, specification and scope. Structural supply, civil works, building services, finishes and logistics must be confirmed separately; permit and engineering requirements depend on the site.
In short
- NewCon Steel® recommends vetting a cold-formed steel (CFS) manufacturer on the documents it will put in writing: mill certificate, coating class, tolerance, design standards, and sealed calculations.
- Base steel should conform to ASTM A1003, and the coating should be stated by class and mass, for example Zn-Al-Mg 275 g/m² total across both faces.
- A ±0.5 mm CNC fabrication tolerance and a label on every piece tied to the shop drawing take field cutting and layout off the job site.
- NewCon Steel has a production capacity of 20,000 m² per month, but the lead time of each order is confirmed against that order.
- For export, ask for the Panamanian certificate of origin (HS 72.16); import treatment is decided by the destination customs.
- A manufacturer supplies steel: erection belongs to your contractor or to a separate construction contract with SmartBrix Construction.
NewCon Steel® recommends judging a cold-formed steel (CFS) manufacturer, also called a light-gauge steel (LGS) supplier, by the documents it can deliver before you compare price per metric ton. Ask for the mill certificate (mill test report, MTR) for the lot, the coating class and mass, the fabrication tolerance, the design standards with their editions, and the name of the engineer who will seal the calculations. If a supplier will not put those in writing, you cannot compare its offer with anyone else’s.
This guide lists ten questions for procurement managers, general contractors with their own framing crews, and engineers of record who are vetting CFS framing suppliers for projects in Central America, the Caribbean, Colombia, or Panama. For each one, it states the answer to require, the document that backs it up, and where NewCon Steel publishes its own answer.
Base steel and coating: which certificate to require
A cold-formed member starts with the sheet it is formed from. Start with the base steel. For cold-formed framing members, the reference standard is ASTM A1003/A1003M, which covers coated steel sheet for that use. NewCon Steel uses steel to ASTM A1003 in Type H structural grades.
Next, ask for the coating by class and mass. The word “galvanized” is not a specification. NewCon Steel supplies Zn-Al-Mg 275 g/m² steel (ZM275 to EN 10346 / ZMM275 to ASTM A1046), meaning 275 g/m² total across both faces (0.90 oz/ft²), roughly 137.5 g/m² per face. That is the same coating mass as Z275/G90 galvanized, and more than 50% above the ASTM A1003 G60 structural minimum of 180 g/m² (0.59 oz/ft²).
Require the MTR for the supplied lot, showing chemistry, mechanical properties, and coating mass. The MTR is issued for the lot that actually ships, so it does not exist before the order. Before you buy, you can ask for the data sheet with the base-material standard and coating class. Two red flags: an offer that promises “more coating” than G90 at the same mass, and one that names a trade name instead of a standard coating class. The details are on our engineering and standards page.
Precision and traceability: ±0.5 mm and a label on every piece
Fabrication tolerance decides how much work is left for the job site. NewCon Steel roll-forms every profile, then cuts, punches, marks, and labels it by CNC from the structural model, to a ±0.5 mm (±0.02 in) CNC fabrication tolerance. Each piece arrives at its takeoff length, with service penetrations and connection holes punched, and with an identifier tied to the shop drawing.
Ask the supplier three questions. Does it cut to the takeoff length or ship stock lengths? Are service penetrations punched in the plant? Can each piece be traced back to its originating steel lot? If the answer is “stock lengths,” measuring, cutting, and drilling become your crew’s job, and the cutting waste stays on your site. At our Panama City plant, every frame and panel is checked against the shop drawing before it is bundled.
Engineering: AISI standards and who seals the calculations
An LGS member is not designed to the hot-rolled steel specification. Ask for an offer that cites the cold-formed steel standards by edition:
- AISI S100-16 (R2020) with Supplement 3 (S3-22): design of the structural member.
- AISI S240-20: the framing system, meaning walls, floors, roofs, and trusses.
- AISI S400-20: seismic design, when the project’s seismic design category requires it.
- ASCE/SEI 7-22: design loads and load combinations.
The code of the destination country sits on top of those standards: REP-2021 in Panama, NSR-10 in Colombia, or the IBC in the edition adopted by each Caribbean jurisdiction. Each IBC edition is cited with the ASCE 7 edition it references, and editions that do not reference each other are not mixed. For NewCon Steel members, the PEB Corp Group’s engineering team develops the calculations, and the package is sealed by an engineer licensed in the project’s jurisdiction. When the scope is a structural kit, the sealed calculations are part of the supply.
If you buy loose profiles without an engineering scope, the calculations belong to your engineer of record. In that case, ask for the data sheet with section, thickness, and base-material standard, and confirm that the section properties your engineer is using match what will be fabricated. Handle these documents as submittals for your engineer’s approval before fabrication.
Capacity versus lead time: a figure is not a promise
Plant capacity tells you scale. It does not give you a delivery date. NewCon Steel publishes a production capacity of 20,000 m² per month (about 215,000 sq ft per month) of cold-formed steel structure at its Las Mañanitas plant. Published monthly plant capacity is not a delivery promise for an individual order.
The lead time of each order depends on the design, the quantities, drawing approval, the production schedule, and destination logistics. Ask for four separate dates: drawing approval, production, dispatch, and arrival on site. Be wary of a generic lead time that mentions neither your takeoff nor your destination.
Ten questions to ask before you buy CFS profiles
The table summarizes what to ask, which answer to require, and which document proves it. The last column shows where NewCon Steel publishes its answer.
Table 1. Questions for vetting an LGS/CFS profile manufacturer.
| Question | Answer to require | Documentary evidence | Where NewCon Steel publishes it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. What base steel do you use? | Material standard and grade | Mill certificate (MTR) for each lot | LGS/CFS profiles: ASTM A1003, Type H |
| 2. What coating, and what mass? | Standard class and mass, stating total or per side | MTR showing coating mass | Engineering and standards: ZM275 / ZMM275 |
| 3. What thicknesses do you make? | Sheet thickness in millimeters rather than a gauge number | Project data sheet | LGS/CFS profiles: 0.85–2.5 mm (0.033–0.098 in) |
| 4. What fabrication tolerance do you hold? | A numeric value, checked piece by piece | Dimensional check against the shop drawing | Plant: ±0.5 mm |
| 5. How is each piece identified and traced? | A label per piece and traceability to the steel lot | Cut list and shop drawings | Plant |
| 6. Which standards do you design to? | AISI standards by edition, plus the local code | Design standards declaration | Engineering and standards |
| 7. Who seals the calculations? | An engineer licensed in the project’s jurisdiction | Sealed calculations; sample package to review the format | Technical documentation |
| 8. Whose ISO certifications are they? | The holder and scope of each certificate | The entity named as the certificate holder | Plant: PEB Corp Group certifications |
| 9. Is there a minimum order? | The minimum for your takeoff, in writing | Formal quote | FAQ: no full-container MOQ |
| 10. What origin documents do you issue? | Certificate of origin and tariff heading | Certificate of origin from the country of manufacture | Coverage: certifiable Panamanian origin |
On question 8: ISO 9001 · 14001 · 45001 · 37001 — PEB Corp Group certifications. They are not certifications of NewCon Steel as an independent entity, and we are not going to present them as such. An ISO certification covers a management system. It does not cover a steel member or a building.
How to compare two quotes
Compare offers against the same bill of materials. A price per metric ton (1,000 kg) and a price per linear meter (3.28 ft) are not interchangeable: for the same steel mass, a thinner profile yields more length. Ask every bidder for the family and section, thickness in mm, coating class and mass, tolerance, included documents, Incoterm, and exclusions. NewCon Steel publishes no prices. It quotes by scope: loose profiles by linear meter or metric ton, pre-assembled panels by m² of panel, bolted structural steel by metric ton, and the structural kit per project as a single scope. Our buying guide lists what your request should include.
Export: certificate of origin and destination customs
When steel crosses a border, the manufacturer documents origin and the importing country sets the duty. NewCon Steel issues a Panamanian certificate of origin (HS 72.16); import treatment is decided by the destination customs. Origin rests on the cold forming done in Panama, which changes the product’s tariff heading from flat-rolled product to structural section. The coating does not confer origin.
Be wary of any offer that promises zero duty at destination. That decision belongs to your customs authority, based on its national tariff schedule, the applicable agreement, and the classification of the goods. Ask for the quote under the Incoterm you want to compare, such as EXW plant (Panama) or FOB Panama, and review classification with your customs broker. From Panama, transit to Central America and the Caribbean is measured in days. Our coverage and delivery page summarizes the agreements by country.
What a manufacturer does not do, and who does
A profile manufacturer supplies steel; it does not build the building. NewCon Steel manufactures, supplies, and ships LGS/CFS profiles, structural panels, structural kits, and bolted structural steel. A structural kit does not include foundations, envelope, MEP systems, finishes, or erection.
Erection is performed by the buyer’s appointed contractor or under a separate construction contract with SmartBrix Construction. Confirm in writing who is responsible for foundations, anchors, unloading, and lifting. If you need the finished building, talk to SmartBrix Construction, the PEB Corp Group’s construction company, about its Steel Framing line. If you are also vetting the builder, the PEB Corp guide to questions to ask a steel building company complements this list.
For a comparable quote, send drawings, the structural model, or a takeoff; profile family and thickness within 0.85–2.5 mm; destination country, city, and port; the applicable design code; and the date you need the steel on site. If you do not have a takeoff yet, send the building area and type, and NewCon Steel will prepare the takeoff.
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