Cold-Formed Steel Takeoff: SSMA Designations, Sizes, and the Estimator's Guide

Cold-formed steel (CFS) is everywhere in modern North American construction, and most steel takeoff software pretends it doesn't exist. If you estimate self-storage, mid-rise multifamily (5-over-1), light commercial, or panelized framing, you're probably tracking studs and tracks in spreadsheets while your hot-rolled work runs through automated software. This guide explains the SSMA section system, how to read CFS designations, where cold-formed shows up, and how to estimate it without the manual work.

Steelflo now supports cold-formed steel detection and pricing alongside AISC, EN, BS/IS, AS/NZS, and GB hot-rolled standards — 496 SSMA sections including every published structural and nonstructural stud, joist, and track.

What Is Cold-Formed Steel?

Cold-formed steel is thin-sheet steel — typically 25-gauge to 10-gauge — that's bent at room temperature into structural shapes. Unlike hot-rolled steel (which is shaped at high temperatures from molten ingots), cold-formed sections are roll-formed from coil stock. The result: lighter sections, tighter dimensional tolerances, faster manufacturing, and significantly lower material cost per linear foot.

The dominant standardization body in North America is the Steel Stud Manufacturers Association (SSMA), which publishes the SSMA Product Technical Guide (3064P) — the authoritative free reference for designations, dimensions, and section properties. Design follows the AISI S100 specification for cold-formed steel structural members and AISI S240 for nonstructural framing.

How to Read an SSMA Designation

Every SSMA section has a four-part identifier: {depth}{type}{flange}-{mil}

   600S162-54
   │  │  │   │
   │  │  │   └── Mil thickness (1/1000")  → 0.054" base steel = 16 ga
   │  │  └────── Flange width (1/100")    → 1.625" flange
   │  └───────── Section type letter      → S = stud / joist (with lip)
   └──────────── Web depth (1/100")       → 6.00" web

So 600S162-54 is a 6-inch deep stud with a 1-5/8" flange in 16 gauge. That's the most common heavy structural stud you'll see called out on shop drawings.

Section Type Letters

| Letter | Section | Has Stiffening Lip? | Common Use | |---|---|---|---| | S | C-Stud / Joist | Yes | Wall studs, floor joists, roof joists | | T | Track | No | Top and bottom plates of stud walls | | U | Channel (U-shape) | No | Furring, blocking, accessories | | F | Furring Channel | No | Drywall furring on masonry | | H | Hat Channel | No | Resilient channel, soffits |

Standard Mil Thicknesses (Gauges)

The "mil" suffix in the designation is the minimum base steel thickness in 1/1000-inch increments. SSMA standardizes nine values:

| Mil | Decimal (in) | Reference Gauge | Common Use | |---|---|---|---| | 18 | 0.0179 | 25 ga | Nonstructural drywall studs | | 27 | 0.0269 | 22 ga | Nonstructural / interior partitions | | 30 | 0.0296 | 20 ga drywall | Nonstructural studs | | 33 | 0.0329 | 20 ga structural | Light structural (load-bearing partitions) | | 43 | 0.0428 | 18 ga | Standard structural studs | | 54 | 0.0538 | 16 ga | Structural studs (most common) | | 68 | 0.0677 | 14 ga | Heavy structural / curtain walls | | 97 | 0.0966 | 12 ga | Joists, beams, headers | | 118 | 0.1180 | 10 ga | Heavy joists, structural columns |

If a designation ends in something other than these nine values, it's not a real SSMA section — it's almost certainly a typo or a footnote mark glued to the number during PDF text extraction.

Common SSMA Sizes by Application

Wall Studs (Load-Bearing and Curtain Wall)

| Section | Use | Weight (lb/ft) | |---|---|---| | 362S162-33 | Interior partition, load-bearing | 0.84 | | 600S162-43 | Standard exterior wall stud | 1.49 | | 600S162-54 | Heavy exterior wall stud (most common) | 1.89 | | 600S162-68 | Curtain wall, tall wall heights | 2.36 | | 800S162-54 | Tall wall, mid-rise | 2.32 | | 800S162-68 | Tall heavy wall | 2.91 |

Joists (Floor and Roof)

| Section | Use | Weight (lb/ft) | |---|---|---| | 1000S162-54 | Light floor joist | 2.66 | | 1000S200-68 | Standard floor joist | 3.57 | | 1200S250-97 | Heavy floor joist | 6.05 | | 1200S250-118 | Long-span joist | 7.25 | | 1600S200-68 | Roof joist, long span | 4.78 |

Tracks (Top and Bottom Plates)

| Section | Use | Weight (lb/ft) | |---|---|---| | 362T125-43 | Interior partition track | 0.69 | | 600T125-43 | Standard wall track | 1.07 | | 600T125-54 | Heavy wall track | 1.32 | | 1200T200-97 | Joist track | 4.39 |

The full database has 496 SSMA sections — 283 C-stud/joists and 213 tracks across every depth × flange × thickness combination.

Where Cold-Formed Steel Shows Up

CFS dominates entire building types that hot-rolled-only takeoff software completely misses:

Self-Storage (≈80% CFS by linear footage)

A typical multi-story self-storage facility uses CFS for almost every interior wall and the storage unit panels themselves. Hot-rolled is limited to the perimeter steel braced frame or podium columns. If your takeoff software only catches hot-rolled, you're seeing maybe 10–15% of the actual material on a self-storage job. The self-storage industry has more than 60,000 facilities in the US and growing at over 5% annually — almost all of it framed with CFS.

Mid-Rise Multifamily (5-Over-1)

5-over-1 buildings (five stories of wood or CFS over one story of concrete podium) are the dominant multifamily product in North American urban markets. The upper five floors are typically light-gauge CFS-framed walls and floors. According to NMHC apartment construction data, more than 60% of new mid-rise apartment construction uses some combination of CFS and wood framing.

Light Commercial and Retail

Standalone retail (under 30,000 SF), restaurants, medical office, and tilt-up infill all use CFS for non-load-bearing partitions, ceiling framing, and exterior soffits. The American Iron and Steel Institute reports cold-formed framing in over 40% of new low-rise commercial construction.

Panelized Framing Subs

Wall panelization shops (Madison Door, Schaefer's Cabinets, Premier Framing, etc.) prefab CFS wall panels in shop drawings with every member labeled — 600S162-54 @ 16" O.C. style — and ship them to site. These shops run their entire estimating workflow on CFS.

Why Cold-Formed Estimating Differs from Hot-Rolled

| Aspect | Hot-Rolled (AISC W, HSS, etc.) | Cold-Formed (SSMA) | |---|---|---| | Designation | W12X26 (depth × weight) | 600S162-54 (depth × type × flange × mil) | | Sold by | Linear foot or by piece | Linear foot or by piece | | Priced in | $/lb (most common) | $/lb (rate-equivalent) or $/LF | | Standard mill lengths | 40 ft, 50 ft, 60 ft | 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, 20, 24 ft (more SKU-like) | | Connection | Welds, bolts | Screws, clip angles, proprietary connectors | | Coatings | Primer or galvanized | Almost always G60 or G90 galvanized | | Specifications | AISC 360 / ASTM A992 | AISI S100 / ASTM A1003 / A653 |

Two takeoff implications matter:

CFS estimators often think in linear feet, not pounds. The pricing engine math is identical (weight × $/lb = LF × $/LF), but CFS quotes typically lead with $/LF for studs and $/piece for runs of track. When you display estimates, lead with the right unit for the audience.
Track pairs with stud, always. Every linear foot of stud wall consumes 2 LF of track (top + bottom). CFS BOMs that only count studs miss 50% of the track. Pair them automatically or flag manually.

SSMA vs Manufacturer Catalogs

Every major CFS manufacturer publishes a catalog with the same SSMA designations:

ClarkDietrich Structural Studs — most complete US catalog
CEMCO Steel — California-based, full SSMA + custom
Super Stud Building Products — northeast US
MBA Metals — US east coast
SCAFCO Steel Stud Company
MarinoWARE

If a drawing calls for 600S162-54-CP60 (the CP60 suffix is ClarkDietrich's product code for G60 galvanized + punch pattern), the section is the standard SSMA 600S162-54 — the suffix just locks the manufacturer / coating / punch.

Estimating CFS with Steelflo

Steelflo detects all 496 SSMA sections automatically when you upload a drawing. Mixed drawings — say, a self-storage with hot-rolled W-shape columns at the corners and CFS studs throughout — work on a single pass: every member detected, every weight resolved, every detection priced.

Specifically:

Auto-detection. The pipeline auto-detects whether your drawing uses AISC, SSMA cold-formed, or any mix. No configuration.
Member resolution. Designations like 600S162-54, 1200S250-97, 362T125-43 resolve to actual section weights from the SSMA Product Technical Guide.
Mixed pricing. CFS prices via $/lb × weight-per-foot × length like hot-rolled — same engine, no separate workflow.
No manual setup. Upload your PDF, get a takeoff including every SSMA section detected. Try the free calculator for a priced estimate without uploading a drawing.

CFS support shipped May 2026 alongside our existing five hot-rolled standards (AISC, EN, BS/IS, AS/NZS, GB). The full feature is documented in the Cold-Formed Steel reference.

Common CFS Estimating Mistakes

Counting studs without tracks. Track is 25–30% of the CFS BOM by weight. Always pair.
Using gauge instead of mil. "16 gauge" is approximate; 54 mil is the actual thickness used for design and pricing. The reference column in the SSMA thickness table explicitly says gauge is "for reference only."
Confusing flange code with lip. S162 flange always pairs with a 0.500" stiffening lip; S200 always with 0.625"; S350 always with 1.000". The lip is implied by the flange code, not separately specified.
Ignoring the punch pattern. Most CFS studs ship punched (knockouts at standard intervals for utilities). Add -P suffix or treat as default depending on supplier — it doesn't affect the structural section but does affect the manufacturer code.
Hot-rolled mill lengths. CFS is generally cut to length at the factory or from short stock (8–24 ft). Don't apply 40–60 ft mill lengths from hot-rolled nesting.

FAQ

Q: What's the difference between cold-formed steel and hot-rolled steel?

Cold-formed steel is roll-formed at room temperature from thin-sheet coil stock (typically 25-gauge to 10-gauge). Hot-rolled is shaped at high temperatures from molten ingots into thick structural shapes (W-beams, HSS, channels, angles). Cold-formed is lighter and cheaper per linear foot but has lower load capacity per piece. The two are often used together: hot-rolled for heavy columns and beams, cold-formed for wall framing, partitions, joists, and trusses.

Q: What does the designation 600S162-54 mean?

600 = 6.00" web depth (1/100" units), S = C-stud or joist (with stiffening lip), 162 = 1.625" flange width (1/100" units), 54 = 0.054" minimum base steel thickness (1/1000" units, equivalent to 16 gauge). It's the most common heavy structural wall stud in North American mid-rise construction.

Q: Where can I download SSMA section properties?

The SSMA Product Technical Guide (3064P) is free from ssma.com and contains every published structural and nonstructural section. The ICC-ES ESR-3064P evaluation report covers the same data in code-compliance format. Manufacturer catalogs (ClarkDietrich, CEMCO, Super Stud) publish the same designations.

Q: How do I price cold-formed steel?

Most CFS estimators price by linear foot for studs and track ($/LF × LF) and by piece for joists/headers. The math is equivalent to hot-rolled $/lb × weight × LF, but the unit display matters to fabricators. Steelflo's pricing engine handles both — you can configure rate type per category. Try the free calculator for instant pricing.

Q: Does cold-formed steel detection work on architectural drawings?

Partially. Architectural drawings tag walls by wall type (C4 = 4" METAL STUD WALL) referenced to a legend, not by individual member designations. Steelflo detects 600S162-54-style member callouts on structural details and shop drawings (where every member is labeled). Wall-type-LF takeoff (length-of-wall × studs at 16" O.C.) is a separate workflow Steelflo handles in v1.5 — currently you'd take off the wall lengths manually and multiply.

Q: What gauge is 54 mil cold-formed steel?

54 mil is the SSMA designation for what most US builders call "16 gauge" cold-formed steel. The actual minimum base steel thickness is 0.054 inches. The "16 gauge" label is a reference-only legacy term — design calculations and SSMA designations always use mil thickness, never gauge.

Q: Can SSMA sections be welded?

Cold-formed sections can be welded, but bolted and screwed connections are the industry default. Welding thin-gauge material is challenging because the heat-affected zone consumes a significant portion of the section. AWS D1.3 covers structural welding of sheet steel for jobs that genuinely need welded CFS connections.

Q: How do I know if a building uses CFS?

Look at the structural drawing index. Sheets labeled "TYPICAL CFS FRAMING DETAILS" (S1.3, S1.4, etc.), "WALL PLAN" sheets (S3.3A, S3.4A), and metal stud wall type legends on architectural sheets are giveaways. Self-storage, mid-rise multifamily (5-over-1), and light commercial almost always use CFS.

Authority sources: SSMA Product Technical Guide · AISI Standards · American Iron and Steel Institute · Self Storage Association · National Multifamily Housing Council

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