111-53304 · Parkland County, AB · concept issue 2026-07-01 · concept for P.Eng. review — not for construction
Package A — all-metal
$159,610
Steel shed + steel shop, materials
Package B — wood shed
$151,010
Wood shed + steel shop
All-in Package A
$182,171
+ eng/permit + 10% contingency
Verdict
Shop: steel
Shed: wood is cheaper
Honest headline: for the shed, wood is the cheaper frame — about $18,583 vs $27,183 in materials (steel is ~46% more). Steel's case for the shed is durability, rot/pest/fire immunity, a matching all-galvanized look, demountability, and free welding labour — not upfront cost. For the shop, a 2-ton bridge crane and a crane-capable mezzanine settle it: steel.
1 · What changed from your Master Plan
Same site, loads, and permit path as MASTER-PLAN.md — this is the structures-and-materials layer with your four changes: a new open-front shed, all-galvanized steel, screwpiles + gravel (slab later), and a real 2-ton bridge crane + 150 psf mezzanine (vs the hoist + 40 psf loft).
2 · Design basis (Parkland County)
Parameter
Value
Ground snow Ss / rain Sr
1.6 / 0.1 kPa (~33 psf roof)
1/50 hourly wind q
0.45 kPa
Seismic Sa(0.2)
~0.1 g (low)
Frost depth
1.5 m
Mezzanine live load
150 psf
On "2-inch galvanized studs": perfect as wall girts/infill, but they can't carry a 24- or 40-ft roof under snow. The frame uses HSS tube + W-sections; the 2" studs hang cladding.
3 · Steel vs wood — the comparison
Cladding is identical in both options, so this isolates the frame. Materials only, DIY erection, editable estimate.
Factor
Steel (welded HSS)
Wood (post-frame)
Shed material cost
$27,183
$18,583 (~46% less)
Rot / pest / mould
immune
PT posts + care
Fire
non-combustible
combustible
Your labour
welding (free, slower)
carpentry (free, faster)
Galvanized look / demountable
uniform · yes
clad on wood · no
Recommendation.Shop → steel (crane + mezzanine + demountability). Shed → your call: wood saves ~$8,600; the steel shed is that much of a durability/uniformity premium — reasonable if your welding time is free and you want one all-galvanized, take-apart system.
4 · The Shed 40×24 · sliding barn doors
Six welded clear-span portal bents at 8 ft o.c., 24-ft clear span, gable roof, 12-ft eave, three sides clad, on 12 light screwpiles. The 24-ft front is deliberately kept to just the two corner columns so four sliding barn doors on a header track close it against the weather and slide wide open for drive-in access.
Scheme
Steel wt
Materials
Shed — Steel (HSS, welded)
4,832 lb
$27,183
Shed — Wood (6×6 posts + trusses)
—
$18,583
5 · The Shop 40×40 · 2-ton crane · mezzanine
Screwpiles?
Yes. Below frost, no excavation, ideal for a bolted/demountable gravel-floor building. Crane columns take vertical + lateral + uplift, so those piles are the one item to confirm with a geotech — I've kept their unit cost editable.
Mezzanine strong enough for a crane?
A bridge crane that reaches "anywhere" runs on the building columns, not on a floor. So: the 2-ton bridge crane runs on runway beams on the columns and covers the open floor; the mezzanine is a separate 150 psf platform (vs 40 psf residential) set at 9 ft so there's clear height above it for perimeter shelving.
Move anywhere, including onto the mezzanine?
The bridge covers the open bay and can set loads on top of the mezzanine deck — exactly the "lift heavy things to the top level" use (see the 3D model). It can't lower a hook under the deck; for that zone add a ½-ton jib/monorail hung off the mezzanine steel (option).
Weld some, bolt others, demountable?
Yes. Weld sub-assemblies in a jig and hot-dip galvanize them, then bolt everything in the field — un-boltable and relocatable, no cutting welds.
Per your latest layout: two overhead doors, three man doors, an oil-change pit in the drive-through bay, perimeter shelving on the 9-ft mezzanine, and a workbench.
Two flags: a 15'×15' overhead door won't fit under the 14' eave — either raise the shop eave to ~16', or put the tall door on a gable end where the ridge gives the height (shown at 14×12 on the long wall for now). And the oil-change pit is a concrete structure in the ground, so it needs a local slab/pit poured now (not just gravel) plus a mechanical vent — pits collect heavier-than-air fuel vapours.
Option: under-mezzanine ½-ton jib $3,500 (lifts under the loft where the bridge can't reach).
6 · Buying at Metal Supermarkets (West Edmonton)
They cut to length and drill/punch holes per action, so you order a cut-and-drilled kit and assemble. The cost model carries explicit Cuts and Holes lines — drop in their per-action rate.
Galvanizing + welding: best durability = weld black steel then hot-dip galvanize sub-assemblies, then bolt in the field. Faster = pre-galv, weld, grind + cold-galv the welds. Ventilate (zinc fumes). Galvanized/stainless bolts; isolate dissimilar metals.
7 · Cost summary
Scenario
Materials
Shed — Steel (incl. barn doors)
$27,183
Shed — Wood (incl. barn doors)
$18,583
Shop — Steel (structure)
$114,377
Shop — Fitout (doors, oil pit, shelving)
$18,050
Package A — steel shed + shop + fitout
$159,610
Package B — wood shed + shop + fitout
$151,010
+ Engineering stamp + permits
$6,000
+ Contingency 10%
$16,561
Package A — all-in
$182,171
Not included (see Master Plan): site prep & gravel pad, future concrete slab, electrical, doors, windows, and your erection labour. Screwpile & cladding unit costs set to your local figures — all editable in the cost model.