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Steel Beams for Knock-Throughs & Open-Plan Living

Turn two rooms into one open-plan space, with a steel beam carrying the opening where the wall was. Sized by your engineer, made and fitted by us to BS EN 1090 Execution Class 2 and UKCA marked.

30 +
Years Experience
1k +
Projects
EXC 2
BS EN 1090
- Spec In-house Design → Install
Certified & compliance-audited
About this service

Two rooms, opened into one.

Knocking two rooms into one, or opening a kitchen into a diner, means taking out the wall between them, and if that wall is load-bearing a steel beam has to take its place. The beam carries the floor and wall above across the new opening, bearing onto padstones or posts at each end. Your structural engineer sizes it from the span and the loads; we produce the fabrication drawings and make the beam in our own workshop to BS EN 1090 Execution Class 2. Our own team props the opening, sets the beam, and ties it in, then hands over the paperwork building control needs, ready for your builder to make good around it.

Two rooms, opened into one.
- 30yrs Since 1994 Rotherham · In-house
What we do

The beam that carries the opening, made and fitted.

Steel for knock-throughs and kitchen-diners, sized by your engineer and fitted by our own team.

01

Working to your engineer's design

Your structural engineer sizes the beam and bearings for the opening you want. If you have not appointed one, we can point you in the right direction.

02

The beam and bearings

We make the universal beam or RSJ and its padstones, sized to carry the floor and wall above across the new span.

03

Propping the opening

Our own team props and needles the wall so the load is held while the opening is formed.

04

Setting the beam

The beam is lifted in, seated on its bearings, pinned and packed, and tied into the structure so it carries cleanly.

05

Paperwork for building control

You get the drawings, weld records and declaration of performance, so the opening can be inspected and signed off.

Why UIS

One room where two used to be.

Open-plan living usually means a load-bearing wall has to go, and a steel beam takes over the job it was doing. We make the beam to your engineer's design under BS EN 1090 Execution Class 2 and fit it with our own team, with the drawings and declaration of performance for building control. Your builder makes good around it.

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Examples

Project & sample images.

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Why choose UIS

Why the beam is the heart of an open-plan job.

It carries everything the old wall did, so it is made to the calculations and fitted properly.

About UIS
  • 01

    Made to your engineer's calculations

    The beam is fabricated to the size and grade your structural engineer specifies for the span and the loads above.

  • 02

    Flush or downstand, as designed

    Whether the beam sits below the ceiling as a downstand or is raised flush into the floor above, we fabricate it to your engineer's detail.

  • 03

    BS EN 1090 Execution Class 2, UKCA marked

    Fabricated to the execution class domestic structural steel is specified against, with the declaration of performance supplied.

  • 04

    Fitted by our own team

    The people who make the beam fit it, so the steel goes in as drawn and your builder can make good around it.

In their own words
Sir Robert McAlpine logo

"I've worked with UIS for several years on some high profile and very complex projects. Their attitude and work ethic are second to none - providing high quality services and products which are delivered safely and on time every time. Overall they are a pleasure to do business with and wouldn't hesitate recommending UIS for any steelwork or metalwork packages."

Stuart Bale
Sir Robert McAlpine
large structural steel project grp large background customer zig zag walkway from steel balustrade
Common questions

Questions clients ask us.

Yes, if the wall is load-bearing. A structural engineer sizes the beam and building control will want the calculations. If you have not appointed one, we can point you in the right direction, then fabricate and fit to their design.

That is your engineer's call. Some beams sit below the ceiling line as a downstand; others can be raised flush into the floor above so the ceiling runs through. We fabricate whichever the design specifies.

A structural engineer or surveyor can confirm it. If the wall carries a floor, a roof or the wall above, it is load-bearing and needs a beam. We make and fit the steel once the design is set.

We prop the opening and set the beam with our own team. Taking the wall down and making good is usually your builder's work, and we coordinate so the steel goes in at the right stage.

We are based in South Yorkshire and fabricate and install across the UK with our own teams.