At the 2025 NASCC: The Steel Conference in Louisville, Kentucky, a significant spotlight was placed on cold-formed steel (CFS), both in education and in standards development. Hosted by the American Institute of Steel Construction, the event featured a dedicated CFS track — marking a new era for steel framing industry engagement.
Watch the BuildSteel interview with Charlie Carter, AISC president.
Another Venue for CFS Education
AISC welcomed more than 6,500 in-person attendees to NASCC: The Steel Conference in Louisville, according to its Weekly Bulletin newsletter. The addition of the CFS track at NASCC, pioneered by Dr. Kara Peterman of the University of Massachusetts Amherst, came at a pivotal time with large CFS research projects underway, CFS standards management in transition and more engineers demanding CFS design education.
“There were things that were going to happen that were no longer going to happen, and one of those was a cold-formed conference,” said Carter. “We, of course, looked at the things that we already have in motion, and one of the options that the group heard and decided to take was to just put a track at NASCC.”
He explained that NASCC has evolved significantly. “There’s a quality track, there’s a detailing track, there’s an SSRC track. Well now there’s a cold formed track, and it’s exciting to see the growth of the tracks.”
Carter shared a positive outlook, saying the NASCC’s new CFS education track has a promising future. “We’ll build it from this year to the next and the next,” Carter said.
For the first time, NASCC 2025 featured a cold-formed steel (CFS) education track — six sessions organized by Dr. Kara Peterman, University of Massachusetts Amherst. Credit: Marco Johnson
SAC Responds to Changes in Standards Management
At an NASCC press luncheon, Marco Johnson, BuildSteel.org editor, and other journalists queried Carter and other AISC staffers on a variety of topics. Johnson touched on a significant shift in the steel framing world: the transition of standards development from the American Iron and Steel Institute to other steel industry groups.
“This was a big surprise when it happened. AISI decided to exit the standards arena,” said Carter. “There was a lot of coordination that had always happened. We’re very collaborative with AISI and all the other organizations, too.”
As such, AISC quickly convened the steel framing stakeholders, which included the Steel Framing Industry Association (SFIA), now ANSI-accredited, the Steel Stud Manufacturers Association, the Steel Deck Institute and others. Out of those discussions, a new entity emerged: the Steel Associations Council, currently hosted by AISC.
“SAC is a forum for everybody to communicate and coordinate,” Carter explained. “A number of different approaches were considered for how to move forward as an industry, and the one that was chosen became more complex the more we talked about it.”
SDI picked up changes to the AISI S100 standard already in motion and published an S100 update. “That sets us up for the next couple of years,” Carter said.
As for the future, the possibility of a merged or integrated standard remains open. Carter said the S100 is “most closely linked with the AISC specification — not in topic, but in form.” He added that AISC is “looking at a process to incorporate [the S100] into our standard as a solution going forward.”
NASCC 2025 attendees enjoy an education session. Photo courtesy of AISC
Introducing ‘Clark’: AISC’s New AI Tool
At the conference’s keynote, AISC introduced “Clark,” its new artificial intelligence-powered assistant. Christopher Raebel, SE, PE, PhD, AISC vice president and director of engineering, explained that Clark is “the first outwardly looking presentation of our AI initiative.”
“Clark will be able to give you information on any of our codes and standards, design guides and technical information,” Raebel said.
Unlike general AI models, Clark is purpose-built: “It’s not just going out to the internet, finding anything anywhere that could be nonsense,” Raebel said. “This gives real data based on what we have from our publications, our archives.”
Raebel emphasized Clark’s ability to prompt users with clarifying questions and provide verifiable references. “Our standard, AISC 360, is a free download for anyone on our website. So, you can actually see what our AI tool is referencing.”
Clark AI Supports Cold-Formed Steel (CFS) Conversions
During the discussion, Johnson raised a question about whether AISC’s new AI tool, Clark, could assist engineers in converting wood-framed buildings to steel framing — an increasingly common challenge in mid-rise construction.
While Clark is not a design tool, it can still play a valuable role in such a process. “It does not do design for you,” said Raebel. “It helps give you resources based on our specifications manuals.”
Raebel clarified that Clark can provide helpful direction on wood to steel conversions in early design considerations. “If their overall question is, ‘Do I want to convert a building to a steel building?’ Yes. They could ask, ‘What are the member sizes? What is the preferred layout?’ Something like that. Those are questions that it could answer and get them on the right path, for sure. We still expect engineers to use their brains.”
Charlie Carter echoed this sentiment, emphasizing that Clark is a tool to enhance — not replace — professional judgment. “It’s never going to replace the person,” Carter said. “The person is still doing, thinking and using the information. It’s just bringing more information to you quicker.”
As for continual improvement, Raebel confirmed, “It’s only going to get better. When we roll it out next week [the week of April 7, 2025], that’ll be the ‘worst’ it will be, because the next day, it’ll get better.”
The Engineer Remains at the Center
Whether through expanded education tracks, a new collaborative council for standards, or advanced AI tools, AISC is setting the pace for structural steel and CFS steel design professionals. And while AI technology is evolving, the message is clear: the engineer remains at the center, now supported by smarter tools and stronger industry collaboration.
Several SFIA members and their parent companies showcased their innovations at NASCC 2025. Check out these scenes from the exhibit floor.
Kim Olson, Nucor director of construction solutions, visits with an NASCC attendee at the Nucor booth.
MiTek at NASCC 2025.
ArcelorMittal at NASCC 2025.
Steel Dynamics, Inc. at NASCC 2025.
Simpson Strong-Tie at NASCC 2025.