What's up with the holes in those beams? - The Building Tradesman
Billy Milligan, vice president of CMC/SMI, wrote in Modern Steel Construction that prior to automated cutting and welding, castellated steel manufacturers used to split the beam apart, manually cut out the steel, then weld the beams back together. He wrote that the labor and expense involved in that process led to the abandonment of that type of processing - until 1999, when his company was able to automate the process.
SmartBeams, he wrote, are manufactured by cutting wide flange beams in a zig-zag pattern along the length of the web of the beam with a computer-controlled plasma torch. The two sections are then welded back together - which makes the beam taller by about 50 percent, and actually increases its strength by about 40 percent. Of course, the process also gives the beam the appearance of having holes or other shapes cut out of its center.