# The steel framing partner for builders and architects > We frame the walls, floor joists and roof of homes in light-gauge steel from your plans. A licensed Class B contractor that does one thing: steel framing. Source page: https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/for-builders Publisher: APB Inc. (CSLB #951030) Last updated: 2026-11-01 APB Inc. is a California-licensed light-gauge steel framing contractor, CSLB #951030 · first issued 2010. On your job we work as your steel framing subcontractor: you bring the plan set; we frame the walls, floor joists and roof in cold-formed steel, coordinate the steel engineering and the hold-down and anchor layout, and hand off a straight, square frame to the trades that follow. We frame. We don't build houses. ## What we frame - Load-bearing and non-load-bearing walls - Steel floor joists - Roof framing - Factory-built steel panels, fabricated in Utah to the stamped drawings and delivered numbered - The hold-down and anchor layout, coordinated with your foundation - Electrical and plumbing penetrations, coordinated with your trades ## What stays with your team - Foundation and slab - The floor deck over our steel joists - Mechanical, electrical and plumbing - Insulation and drywall - Windows, doors, roof coverings and finishes ## What we don't do - **Complete homes.** We frame; your general contractor builds the house. - **Engineering services.** A California-licensed engineer stamps the structural drawings and calculations, and we coordinate that work. - **Kits.** We don't sell kits or install other suppliers' kits. We set panels made for your plans. - **Standalone ADU projects.** Our work is framing homes in light-gauge steel. Building a home and an ADU on the same lot? We frame both. - **Studs or catalog homes.** We're a framing contractor, not a factory, a stud manufacturer or a modular-home company. ## How we work with your general contractor and architect ### Engineering A California-licensed engineer stamps the structural drawings and calculations. APB coordinates the engineering: we're the framing contractor, not an engineering firm. Your architect keeps the design. The structure behind it is designed in cold-formed steel, with member sizes and gauges set by the engineer for your project. ### Plan check A wood set converted to steel goes back to the building department as a plan revision, and the structural and energy documents are reviewed again. We help assemble the revision set, coordinate between your architect, the engineer and the energy consultant, and respond to plan-check comments with the engineer. Review time is set by your jurisdiction. ### On site Panels arrive numbered to match the shop drawings, so our crew sets them in order instead of cutting studs on the lot. We coordinate the hold-down and anchor layout with your foundation work and the electrical and plumbing penetrations with your trades. Studs and joists come pre-punched for services. ## What we need to bid - The plan set as PDFs: architectural, structural and Title 24 documents if you have them - Permit status, plus any permit or plan-check number - The site address, which tells us the jurisdiction, fire hazard zone and climate zone - Your schedule: when framing should start and any deadlines - A soils report, existing structural calculations or the foundation plan, if you have them Send them through https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/contact or call +1-888-355-1565. ## What a steel framing quote should list - The scope, line by line: walls, floor joists, roof and anything else - The steel coating - Who stamps the structural drawings and calculations - The code edition the plans are reviewed under - Delivery and unloading - Anything priced separately or excluded We don't publish prices. Every steel frame is engineered for its own plans, so we bid from your set. ## Schedule When a wood plan is converted to steel, panels typically reach the site about 90 days from signing, in our experience. A plan drawn in steel from the start skips the conversion step. Plan check runs on your building department's clock, and your contract sets the schedule. ## Proof This Pacific Palisades home burned in the January 2025 fire and is being rebuilt in steel. The job-site photos show the frame we built: numbered wall panels, braced walls and the steel roof framing. https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/projects/pacific-palisades ## Where we work Los Angeles County, Ventura County, Orange County. Local rebuild guides: [Altadena and Pasadena: Eaton Fire rebuild guide](https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/rebuild/altadena), [Pacific Palisades: City of Los Angeles rebuild guide](https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/rebuild/pacific-palisades), [Malibu: City of Malibu rebuild guide](https://apbmetalstudbuilders.com/rebuild/malibu). ## Common questions ### Can you convert our wood set to steel? Usually, yes. The architecture stays and the structure changes: steel walls, a new hold-down and anchor layout, new connections and updated Title 24 energy documents. The revised set goes back to plan check as a revision. ### Who stamps the steel design? A California-licensed engineer stamps the structural drawings and calculations. APB coordinates the engineering: we're the framing contractor, not an engineering firm. ### Can a Class B contractor be our framing subcontractor? Yes. The Contractors State License Board says a general building contractor may take a prime contract or a subcontract for a framing or carpentry project, under Business and Professions Code section 7057(b). APB holds CSLB #951030 · first issued 2010, Class B. ### Do you work for homeowners too? Yes. We frame for general contractors and builders, and for homeowners who run their own build. ### What gauge and coating do you use? The engineer sets member sizes and gauges for your project. We frame with G90 galvanized steel. ### When do you need the anchor layout? The hold-down and anchor layout comes out of the steel design, so we coordinate it with your foundation work before the pour. If the foundation is already in, send the foundation plan: the engineer decides whether the existing anchors work or what has to be added, subject to the building official. ### How do you handle electrical and plumbing? Studs and joists come pre-punched for services, and we coordinate penetrations with your electrical and plumbing trades. ### Which code edition do you design to? The one your permit is reviewed under. Most applications filed on or after January 1, 2026 follow the 2025 California codes, and some fire rebuilds can use the 2022 code under Executive Order N-29-25. We confirm the edition for each permit. ### Do you publish prices? No. Every steel frame is engineered for its own plans, so we bid from your set. ### Do you take commercial work? Select commercial metal stud framing: interior partitions, demising walls and exterior walls for tenant improvements and small commercial buildings. ## Sources - [CSLB: B, General Building Contractor classification (Business and Professions Code 7057(b))](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/About_us/Library/Licensing_Classifications/Licensing_Classifications_Detail.aspx?Class=B) - [CSLB: License record #951030](https://www.cslb.ca.gov/951030) - [California Building Standards Commission: Codes](https://www.dgs.ca.gov/bsc/codes) - [LA County: Executive Order N-29-25 implementation sheet](https://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/lac/1191301_ExecutiveOrderN-29-25ImplementationSheet.pdf)