Metal Stair Design

If you’re searching for metal stair design you’re likely building a new property or improving an existing one.  Stairs can be made from wood and a variety of metals.  Metal stairs offer business owners and homeowners some very enticing advantages.  They are getting installed in more and more homes all over the world for their visually stunning presentation and incredible durability.

Types of Metal Stair Designs

Stairs come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.  The path a stairway takes is a big part of the design.  They can be straight, angled, spiral, curved, and wind.  Each design fits difference spaces and offers property owners a certain look.

• Parallel Stairs – These type of stair designs have successive flights that are parallel to each other.  They are separated only by one or more platforms.
• Straight Run Stairs – A straight run staircase is straight forward.  It is a style which simply runs straight without turning.  There can be a landing near the mid area or simply run the distance.
• Angled Stairs – This design of stairs is one that changes direction either diagonally or has successive flights where they are placed at angles other than 180°.
• Scissor Stairs – This stair design is one where you have two opposite straight running stairways running in the same area of the building with a wall separating them.
• Spiral Stairs – Spiral stairs are those where the stairs are set in a circular uniform pattern with uniform sector shape treads.  All of the stairs come out from a center column.
• Curved Stairs – These stairs are those that have two or more curvature centers.  This design ends up looking elliptical, oval, or other curved shapes. They can have platforms.
• Winder Stairs – This style of stair design at first glance seems like a simple parallel stair design.  The difference is there are not landings at the angles, just angled stair treads.

Metal Stair Advantages

Homeowners, commercial property owners, contractors, and architects have choices of several stair materials when designing buildings.  In metal or concrete construction metal is always chosen for its advantages.  Even in structures made from wood metal stairs are selected for their appearance and durability. Some of the most compelling advantages of metal stairs are:

Excellent Strength To Weight

While the density of metal is considerably higher than other materials so is the strength.  For this reason, the section members of the stairs can be made much smaller and still give superior strength and durability. This element of metal stairs is very useful when there is limited space or when the priority is to offer maximum space under the stairway.  For larger structures the impressive weight to strength ratio also is useful for high rise buildings.  It means saving weight and not needing to have addition framing or foundation work to support unnecessary weight.

Versatile Design

Metal is an excellent stair material as it can be formed in many different fashions and many finishes can be applied.  This means that it can fit into virtually any style or property and compliment any other type of construction materials installed around it. Due to its design flexibility it can fit into properties that need a simple functional stairway or something more elaborate.  Due to metal’s versatility virtually, any design an architect can dream up can be brought to life in your choice of metal.

Integrated Stair Railings

One of the biggest and most important features of a stairway is the dependability and safety of the design.  Metal already offers superior durability, but it also offers the benefit of having an integrated stair railing.  Depending on the design the railing provides a hand hold and safety barrier from falls.  Metal stairs are custom fitted and designed as a seamless system.  Many times, the stair railings can be installed at the shop and the whole system can be delivered as a unit.  Larger or more complex stairways are designed, and custom fitted at the shop and then delivered separated then assembled onsite.

Quality Accurate Dimension

Safety is the primary concern when designing anything, and stairs are no exception.  Stair safety relies on the uniformity of the tread and riser dimensions along with the way the railing is designed.  The dimensions are carefully controlled and laid out in advance to ensure the stairs are safe.  The height of risers, size of treads, and height of the railing is all well thought out to ensure user safety.  As stairs are fabricated quality control systems are put in place to ensure the actual product is true to the design dimensions.

Early Installation & Utility

As metal stairs are fabricated off the job site their progress isn’t tied to the work on the site.  They can be made well in advance of construction and be delivered as soon as they are needed.  A big advantage of this is as soon as a building is complete enough to install the stairs they can be quickly installed so workers will be able to put away ladders.  This keeps the site safer and increases productivity.

Quick Installation

As the stairs are assembled as large sections or just a single unit there is much less time involved in installing them in the building.  They are delivered, carried into the building, and set in place.  Once a few fasteners are set the stairs are ready to use.  Other stair construction methods require the installation of a stringer and individually making each riser, tread, and stair railing.  The time savings alone is a huge advantage for both the construction process and the cost of building.

Salvage Advantages

In some applications the value of salvaging the stairs may influence your decision.  If your company may move to new locations the stairs can be dismantled and moved to a new location.  Then they can be reassembled and installed again.  This will keep the cost of construction down and get stairs install in a hurry anywhere you go.  Further than that if you plan on demolishing a building where you have metal stairs the metal itself will have significant scrap value!

Return On Investment

If you are comparing materials for stairs you must take into account not just the price of the product, but costs affected from using a product.  In the case of metal stairs, the cost is very competitive when compared with other materials.  While the costs might be similar the incidental costs associated with other materials can add up fast. For example when using wood it is common to need to install a temporary stairway for workers and then spend time tearing it out and spending time building a stairway on site.  Metal stairs simply show up ready to install and don’t need to be replaced once construction is complete.