EN10219 Square Hollow Section(SHS) Sizes and Material Grades

EN 10219 is an important standard for cold-formed welded structural hollow profiles developed by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN), which specifically regulates the technical requirements and production specifications for square tube, rectangular tube and round steel tubes. As a steel product widely used in the fields of construction and machinery manufacturing, square tubes (square hollow profiles) under the EN 10219 standard occupy an important position in the global steel structure market due to their precise dimensional tolerances, excellent mechanical properties and high cost performance.

EN 10219 Standard Overview and Core Definition

The full name of the EN 10219 standard is "Non-alloy and fine-grained steel cold-formed welded hollow structural profiles". It was first published by the European Committee for Standardization in 2006 and is the core technical document for standardizing cold-formed welded steel pipes for building and engineering structures. The standard is divided into two parts: EN 10219-1 specifies the delivery technical requirements, including material grade, chemical composition and mechanical properties; EN 10219-2 focuses on the specific requirements for tolerances, dimensions and cross-sectional characteristics. Unlike steel pipes produced by hot forming processes, the EN 10219 standard is specifically for square, rectangular and circular hollow section structural steels manufactured by cold bending and welding processes at room temperature. This process difference gives it unique performance characteristics and application advantages.

Cold Forming Process

Cold forming improves the grain structure and surface finish of steel. It increases material strength and enhances dimensional accuracy. Unlike hot-formed tubes, cold-formed sections deliver a smoother finish and tighter tolerances. The process begins with steel strip feeding into forming rolls, which shape the strip into a circular profile. A continuous longitudinal weld is applied, followed by reshaping into square sections and cutting to custom or standard lengths.
Weld quality is ensured by electromagnetic non-destructive testing (NDT), which verifies weld integrity without damaging the tube.

Dimensions and Material Grades

EN10219 square hollow sections are available in a broad range of sizes. Outer dimensions vary from 20x20 mm to 400x400 mm, and wall thicknesses range between 2 mm and 40 mm. These products are ideal for projects requiring light to heavy structural support.
Common steel grades used include:
S235JRH
S275J0H, S275J2H
S355J0H, S355J2H, S355K2H
The S355 series offers high yield strength of 355 MPa and excellent weldability. It also performs well under impact, even in cold climates.

Applications of EN10219 Square Hollow Sections

These square steel tubes serve a wide variety of structural and mechanical applications. They are frequently used in the construction of buildings, bridges, and transport infrastructure. Due to their uniform geometry and load-bearing capacity, they are also suitable for:
Agricultural machinery
Structural frameworks
Architectural steelwork
Mechanical systems
Urban infrastructure and public installations

Square hollow sections provide strength with minimal weight. They are easy to fabricate and allow for fast, secure connections.

EN 10219 Square Hollow Section – Size and Steel Grade Summary

Category	Dimension Range (mm)	Wall Thickness (mm)	Typical Applications
Small Size Sections	30 × 30, 35 × 35, 50 × 50, up to < 100 × 100	1.0 – 5.0	Lightweight structures, decorative purposes
Medium Size Sections	100 × 100 to 300 × 300	3.0 – 15.0	Building frameworks, mechanical structures
Large Size Sections	300 × 300 to 600 × 600	8.0 – 50.0	Long-span structures, heavy-duty load-bearing applications
Custom Sections	e.g. 500 × 500 × 8, 600 × 600 × 50	Customized	Special projects, made with dual-weld technology for high structural strength

EN 10219-1 S235/S275/S355 Chemical Analysis:

Steel grade		Type of de-oxidation a	% by mass, maximum
Steel name	Steel number	C	C	Si	Mn	P	S	Nb
S235JRH	1.0039	FF	0,17	—	1,40	0,040	0,040	0.009
S275J0H	1.0149	FF	0,20	—	1,50	0,035	0,035	0,009
S275J2H	1.0138	FF	0,20	—	1,50	0,030	0,030	—
S355J0H	1.0547	FF	0,22	0,55	1,60	0,035	0,035	0,009
S355J2H	1.0576	FF	0,22	0,55	1,60	0,030	0,030	—
S355K2H	1.0512	FF	0,22	0,55	1,60	0,030	0,030	—
a. The deoxidation method is designated as follows:
FF: Fully killed steel containing nitrogen binding elements in amounts sufficient to bind available nitrogen (e.g. min. 0,020 % total Al or 0,015 % soluble Al).
b. The maximum value for nitrogen does not apply if the chemical composition shows a minimum total Al content of 0,020 % with a minimum Al/N ratio of 2:1, or if sufficient other N-binding elements are present. The N-binding elements shall be recorded in the Inspection Document.