Reinforcing Bar & Steel Plate
HERMEQ supplies reinforcing bar and steel plate for structural concrete work in construction and infrastructure. Concrete is strong in compression but weak in tension, and steel reinforcement cast into it carries the tensile and flexural loads the concrete alone cannot. The range covers straight high tensile ribbed bar in a choice of diameters and bent bar cut and formed to specification under the CARES scheme to BS 8666, with steel plate plasma cut to customer drawings. The bar is used in foundations, slabs, beams, walls and columns, and every item is made in the UK with in-house steel processing.
Straight rebar, bent rebar and steel plate
The three types differ in who shapes the steel and when: the fixing gang on site, the bending works ahead of the pour, or the cutting table working from a drawing.
Straight reinforcing bar
Straight high tensile ribbed bar is the stock choice for steel fixers who cut and bend on site. HERMEQ holds it in a choice of standard diameters. Choose straight reinforcing bar for footings, ground beams and slabs where most bars run straight or need only simple bends, and where the gang has cutting and bending equipment to hand.
Bent rebar to BS 8666
Bent rebar is cut and formed off site to the engineer's bar bending schedule, in line with BS 8666 and under the CARES accreditation scheme, and it arrives ready to fix. It is the right buy for scheduled cast-in-situ work where shapes repeat or must be exact, such as links, closed ties, cages and shear reinforcement in slabs, beams, walls and columns.
Plasma cut steel plate
Steel plate covers the parts of a reinforcement job that bar cannot, wherever a flat profile has to match a drawing. HERMEQ supplies plasma cut steel plate made to customer drawings and CAD files across a range of gauges and plate formats. Choose plate when the part is a profile, a fixing or a bracket, and bar when the steel has to run through the concrete.
Cut and bent rebar or straight bar
Ordering bar cut and bent to a schedule moves the shaping work off site, while straight stock bar keeps it with the fixing gang. Straight bar suits jobs where most of the steel runs straight, the gang has a bar cutter and bender, and details may change as the work goes on, because stock bar ships quickly and can be cut to suit on the day. The cost of that flexibility is site labour, time at the bending bench and the offcut waste left from each length. Scheduled bent bar arrives cut and shaped, so fixers place it without measuring or bending, there are few offcuts to clear, and the CARES certification gives the engineer or building control inspector a record to check against the schedule. Bent bar is made to order and takes longer to arrive than stock bar, so the schedule needs to go in well ahead of the pour programme. The two are often combined on one job, with bent bar for links and cages and straight bar for main runs, laps and late changes.
Rebar for foundations, slabs and walls
Foundations and footings
Strip footings, pad foundations and ground beams mostly take straight bar laid in mats or tied into simple cages, which suits stock bar cut on site. The steel has to sit at the cover the design specifies, on spacers or chairs, before concrete goes in by chute, pump or concrete skips.
Slabs and beams
Ground-bearing and suspended slabs carry bar in one or two layers, with links in the beams that tie the structure together. Straight bar covers the main runs and bent links come cut to the schedule, while at slab edges, roads and hardstandings road forms hold the edge as the bar is fixed and the concrete poured.
Walls, retaining walls and columns
Walls and columns depend on closed ties and cages that hold the vertical bars in position and resist shear. These shapes repeat and have to match the schedule, which makes bent bar the usual choice, and retaining walls follow the same approach at the junction of base and stem.
Rebar sizes and ordering to a schedule
Bar diameter
The structural design sets the diameter of every bar, and the engineer's drawings give it against each bar mark. The range runs from 8mm upwards in the standard gauges, with the smaller sizes generally used for links and lightly loaded slabs and the larger sizes for main bars in footings, beams and columns.
Bar bending schedules
A bar bending schedule lists every bar to be made, and each line must state the bar mark, the diameter, the BS 8666 shape code, the bending dimensions for that shape and the number required. Before sending it, check that the schedule matches the latest revision of the drawings and that member references are clear, because bent bar is made exactly to what the schedule says.
Drawings for plate cutting
Plasma cut plate needs a dimensioned drawing or a CAD file of each profile, along with the plate thickness, the quantity and the position and size of any holes.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does T12 mean on rebar?
T12 is the trade's shorthand for high tensile bar with a 12mm nominal diameter. The T marks high tensile ribbed steel and the number gives the diameter in millimetres, so T8, T10 and T16 are 8mm, 10mm and 16mm bars of the same type. Schedules drawn to the current BS 8666 may write the same bar as H12. The straight reinforcing bar in the HERMEQ range is high tensile ribbed bar ordered by these marks.
Is rebar the same as reinforcing steel?
Yes. Rebar is short for reinforcing bar, and reinforcing steel, steel reinforcement bar and steel reinforcement are the wider names for steel cast into concrete to carry tension.
Why does reinforcing bar have ribs?
The ribs give the bar a mechanical grip in the concrete, so load passes between steel and concrete without the bar slipping. A smooth bar relies on surface adhesion alone and pulls out at a far lower load, so structural reinforcement is ribbed.
What does CARES approval mean?
CARES is the independent certification body for reinforcing steel, and its approval shows that the steel and its processing, including cutting and bending, are audited against the relevant British Standards. Certified bar can be traced back through the supply chain, which is what engineers and inspectors look for on structural work.
How should rebar be stored on site?
Store bar off the ground on timber bearers, on firm and level ground away from standing water, with each diameter and bar mark in its own stack and the labels left on. Light surface rust does not harm the bond, but mud, oil, loose scale and release agent should be cleaned off before fixing.