We sat down with Stanley Adwell, President & Co-Founder of Intellisteel, a groundbreaking, vertically integrated structural design, engineering, and manufacturing company that helped pioneer cold-formed steel (CFS) structures in America. Through its proprietary technology and methodology, Intellisteel provides precise, rapidly built structural framing via its off-site cold-formed steel factories and panelized superstructure framing components for almost any project type. We learned how this industry innovator has integrated NEXGEN MAXTERRA® as an ideal companion to its CFS offering to create an industry-changing solution.
I had my own design engineering company prior and was introduced to steel framing technology in 2013 by a mutual friend who was working internationally.
After visiting the technology manufacturer in New Zealand, to me, it just screamed, “This is the solution the U.S. needs, because we’ve been building the same way for 100+ years.” I traveled the world to see this CFS technology and project installations, and it just kept getting bigger in scale. I spent four years educating the U.S. market about CFS and that’s when I realized it could really take off.
I started Intellisteel in 2016, bringing top CFS design, engineering, and manufacturing professionals together, which allowed us to separate ourselves from competitors. Today we design, engineer, and manufacture everything in house and are in more than a dozen states, with two factories, going on three.
We haven’t focused on one specific market, but in 2021 and 2022, we really began to understand how we could compete with wood. Wood prices went to historic highs, and certain construction couldn’t be done with concrete. So, traditionally wood jobs started coming to us.
One by one, we addressed different markets with cold-formed steel. Multifamily was first, then hotels and senior living opened up. Now, we’re in affordable housing, student housing, build-to-rent, and more. Anything that stacks, we do it.
More owners, developers, and architects would build without wood if they could because they’re taking massive risks with wood construction today. Availability is less predictable, and costs are volatile. Then it’s the insurance costs. Premiums have gone through the roof because of wood and its challenges.
In the end, with all these variables, they can end up losing money at a time when they’re trying to get away from unpredictable methodologies. They now come to us when they see we can do it cheaper, better, and more predictably.
MgO was coming out 13 or 14 years ago, and manufacturers had different ways of making it. I met Scott, the owner of NEXGEN, and understood the quality they were delivering at the manufacturing level. I was impressed. They tested their products at levels that were unlike anything else I had seen. After I met the team, I was even more intrigued.
It all made sense to me, I believed in the product, and the material was a natural pairing for our CFS systems. We’re noncombustible, and so is MAXTERRA®. It was a fantastic product even before its recent UL H531 certification for a two-hour fire-rated floor/ceiling assembly with only one layer of drywall – truly an installation cost and speed game changer. But now...wow...it’s a no-brainer.
The bottom line is that MAXTERRA® MgO cement panels perform incredibly well, so it became an easy decision for us.
Its durable tongue-and-groove system is engineered to be very rigid and consistent, whereas alternative products can crumble and peel. MAXTERRA®’s system is exceptionally tight. The top face layer provides easier installation and has a great surface for installing an overlay finish product. It contains no organic material, which is important for creating an overall better structure without the potential for mold growth as compared to OSB or plywood decking. We’ve got millions of square feet in the works already using this product on upcoming projects.
At the end of the day, it impacts the projects overall. The positive impact comes when we present it and demonstrate its effectiveness, then it gets used and the overall project benefits with lower costs and greater speed. Owners can immediately recognize the insurance savings, installation is better and faster because it’s a strong cement board, and it helps everyone throughout the process.
It’s the ultimate final product for the installer, owner, and even the occupant. It’s such a superior product, and that’s very exciting for us.
We’ve introduced NEXGEN to many project design and construction teams and have converted projects from standard materials to MAXTERRA® by working together. Because Intellisteel is part of the design and engineering process as the delegate of the Structural Engineer of Record (SEOR), we can spec it into the project alongside the architect and general contractor. We are frequently brought in as a prototype developer for many owners, and have four separate developers that have prototyped with Intellisteel and MAXTERRA®. One is doing four to six projects per year, another is doing three per year, another is doing four per year, and so on. So, there’s a large pipeline of projects for Intellisteel and MAXTERRA® working together.
It’s exciting to have a partner like NEXGEN. Only a few companies are even qualified to make this kind of product, and NEXGEN is in a completely different universe. With the UL H531 two-hour fire-rated floor/ceiling assembly using a one-layer drywall, it’s a construction game changer...an industry changer. The excitement for me is watching this product be so well-served in the marketplace because it helps everyone involved.
Thank you, Stanley.
My pleasure.
Learn more about Intellisteel and advanced cold-formed steel solutions at intellisteelgroup.com
See five ways cold-formed steel and MAXTERRA® can reduce building costs.