Any steel material that is open at both ends and has a hollow section, and whose length is larger than the perimeter of the section, can be called a steel pipe. When the length is smaller than the perimeter of the section, it can be called a pipe segment or a pipe fitting. They all belong to the category of pipe products.
For more than six decades, architects have chosen stainless steel to build cost-effective permanent buildings. Many existing buildings fully illustrate the correctness of this choice. Some are very ornamental, such as the Chrysler Building in New York City. But in many other applications, the role of stainless steel is less dramatic, but it plays an important role in the aesthetics and performance of buildings. For example, because stainless steel is more resistant to abrasion and indentation than other metal materials of the same thickness, it is the material of choice for designers when building sidewalks in areas with large population movements.
Stainless steel has been used as a structural material for the construction of new buildings and for the restoration of historical sites for more than 70 years. Early designs were calculated according to basic principles. Today, design codes, such as the American Society of Civil Engineers' standard ANSI / ASCE-8-90 "Cold Formed Stainless Steel Structural Design Code" and NiDI and Euro Inox's "Structural Stainless Steel Design Manual" have simplified long life. Design of structural components with good integrity.