Short answer: factory demolition scrap in Abu Dhabi is bought by weight, and the rate depends on how thick the sections are, how clean they are and whether they arrive cut to a size a mill can melt. Heavy columns and beams pay the most, thin cladding and mixed debris the least. Sorting on site decides most of the money.
We buy this kind of steel every week at our yard in Musaffah M42, from factory clear outs, warehouse handovers and plant rooms that are being stripped. When a steel-frame building comes down, the steel is usually the biggest single source of value on the job, and also the easiest one to waste. This is what we look at, and what you can do to get a better number.
What actually comes out of a steel-frame building?
A typical pre-engineered building in Musaffah, ICAD or KIZAD gives you four kinds of metal, and each one is priced differently.
Heavy and light sections
- Heavy sections. Columns, rafters, beams, crane runway girders and base plates. Thick, clean steel that a mill can use with little handling.
- Light sections. Purlins, girts, bracing rods, handrails, stair stringers. Thinner, often galvanised, still good scrap.
Sheet, cladding and everything else
- Sheet and cladding. Roof decking and wall sheets, and the steel skins of sandwich panels. Light for its size, so it is worth less for its weight and costs more to move.
- Everything else. Cast iron machine beds, old racking, ducting, cable trays, doors and frames. Some of it pays well, some of it is mixed and has to be sorted first.
Copper and aluminium turn up too: cable runs, busbar in the main panel, aluminium window frames and louvres. Keep them out of the steel. Non-ferrous metal thrown into a steel skip is paid at the steel rate, and that is the most expensive mistake we see on demolition jobs. Our guide to how copper grades change the rate explains why a few drums of stripped cable can matter more than a whole skip of sheet, and the same logic applies to aluminium frames and cladding from the site.
How is factory demolition scrap graded in Abu Dhabi?
Every load is weighed at our yard and each kind of steel is rated on its own. The table shows how the main streams from a steel-frame building usually rank against each other. It is a guide to the order, not a price list.
| Stream | Typical items | Relative rate | What pulls it down |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy melting steel | Columns, rafters, beams, base plates, runway girders | Highest of the steel | Uncut long lengths, concrete on base plates |
| Light sections | Purlins, girts, bracing, handrails, stairs | Middle | Fixings, timber, mixed with sheet |
| Cast iron | Machine beds, old pump and valve bodies | Middle | Steel and non-ferrous parts left attached |
| Sheet and cladding | Roof decking, wall sheets, panel skins | Lower | Insulation, foam, plastic film still bonded |
| Mixed demolition steel | Ducting, trays, doors and debris together | Lowest | Rubbish, concrete and non-metal in the load |
What decides your rate
Thickness comes first. Heavy steel melts efficiently and needs no extra preparation, so it sits at the top. Light gauge material has more surface and more coating for the same weight, so it sits lower.
Then cleanliness. Concrete left on base plates, insulation stuck to sheets, timber, plastic and rubbish in the load all get deducted, because someone has to remove them before the steel can be used. A load that is clean when it reaches the weighbridge is a load nobody argues about.
Then size. Long beams have to be cut before a furnace will take them. If the cutting is done on your site, the steel arrives ready. If it is not, the cost of cutting comes off the price somewhere.
Finally the market. Steel scrap follows the global price and the local demand from mills, and it moves. The London Metal Exchange publishes the reference prices that most of the trade watches. We quote on the day, and the rate we quote is the rate we pay, with nothing quietly taken off at the weighbridge.
Who does what on a demolition job?
On most factory jobs there is a demolition contractor who holds the permits, manages the site and takes the building down safely. Our part is the metal: we agree what goes where, cut and lift steel where that is part of the job, load it and take it away.
When our crew is cutting or lifting on your site, the hazard assessment and the working method are agreed before the truck arrives. That is part of our ISO 45001 system, and it is what most site inductions ask to see. Services such as power, gas and refrigerant lines have to be isolated and made safe by the people responsible for them before any cutting starts. Hazardous material such as asbestos sheet, oil in machinery and refrigerant in plant has to be removed by licensed handlers under Abu Dhabi's waste rules, with Tadweer as the Abu Dhabi waste authority. We buy the metal once that is done.
A short sorting plan agreed at the start saves a lot of trouble later. It usually covers:
- where heavy steel, light steel and sheet will be stacked;
- a separate, covered spot for copper, aluminium and cable;
- who cuts what, and to which length;
- how often trucks come, so the site never fills up.
Getting the steel off site, and where it goes
Trucks and paperwork
Eight trucks run out of the yard, two of them hydraulic skip trucks and two fitted with hiabs. Skips suit a steady flow of light sections and offcuts over the weeks of a strip out. The hiab trucks are for the heavy pieces that have to be lifted rather than carried by hand. Every load is weighed, and you get the weight, the grade and the rate on paper for each trip. On a long job that record is what lets your finance team close the account without chasing anyone.
Back into UAE steel making
Sorted structural steel goes back into UAE steel making. The mills we supply include Emirates Steel (EMSTEEL), Arabian Gulf Steel Industries and Jindal SAW Gulf, so a beam from a building in Musaffah can come back as reinforcing bar for the next one. That is also why clean, well sized steel is worth more: it is closer to what the furnace wants.
A demolition rarely produces only structural steel. Bar ends and plate from the production floor are covered in our piece on offcuts and turnings from the factory floor, and if you want to see how a collection runs from first call to weighbridge, read how we work with factories in Abu Dhabi.
What to send us for a quote
A few photos of the building and the steel, the location, a rough idea of the size (floor area, or the number of bays and their span), and your timeline. Tell us whether the steel will be cut and stacked by your contractor or whether you want us to do it, and whether any cranes, racking or machinery are coming out at the same time. With that we can give you a working number and plan the trucks around your programme.
Our office is open Monday to Friday, 7 am to 4 pm. Call or WhatsApp +971 55 229 2646, ring the landline on +971 2 622 4258, or use the form on this page.
Common questions
Do you buy steel from a factory that is still standing?
Yes. Most jobs start that way. We look at the building and the steel with you, agree what will be sorted and how, and give you a working rate before anything is taken down. The final payment follows the weighed loads.
Is it worth sorting heavy steel from light steel?
Yes, on any job of real size. Heavy columns and beams are paid at a better rate than purlins and sheet. If they are mixed in one skip the whole load is usually valued at the lower grade.
Do you handle the demolition permit?
No. The permit and the overall demolition sit with the building owner and their demolition contractor. We work alongside them on the metal: sorting, cutting and lifting where agreed, loading and transport.
Can you collect from outside Musaffah?
Yes. We collect from industrial areas around Abu Dhabi, including ICAD and KIZAD. Tell us the location and the rough size of the building and we will plan the trucks.
What paperwork do we get for each load?
Every load is weighed, and you get the weight, the grade and the rate on paper for each trip. On a long job that gives your finance team a clear record to close the account against.
