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Feature Staircases for Malls and Sales Galleries: Programme, Interfaces and Shop Pre-assembly
In a sales gallery, show suite or mall atrium, the staircase is usually the piece everyone looks at first. Compared with a house, the opening date is fixed early, so the programme is worked backwards from it, and visitors see the steelwork up close. We have been fabricating steelwork in Dongguan for over 20 years. Here is what is worth settling before fabrication starts.
How a commercial staircase differs from a residential one
More people use it, so stringers, treads and balustrades follow the loads on the design drawings. The finish matters more too: weld grinding, smooth curves and tidy balustrade joints are all on show once the gallery opens. And the programme is tight, because the launch or opening date does not move.
Common forms
The most common is the plate-steel helical staircase with no centre column, where inner and outer curved stringers carry the treads and the middle stays open. Multi-storey stores often use a continuous multi-level helical stair, with the interfaces between floors agreed early. Offices and showrooms also use stringers enclosed with steel side plates, finished afterwards. For the difference between a centre-column spiral and a helical stair, see spiral vs helical staircase.
Interfaces to agree before shop drawings
- Slab openings and embedded plates: connection points at each floor, agreed with the main structure.
- Balustrades: glass, perforated steel or solid steel side plates each need different fixings on the steelwork.
- Tread finishes: stone, timber or a painted steel finish affects tread plate thickness and levels.
With these fixed, our shop drawings can be accurate and nothing needs to be drilled or welded on site later.
How the programme runs
We prepare shop drawings from the construction drawings. Once approved, we cut, curve, roll and weld the steel, then carry out full shop pre-assembly in the factory to check curves, riser heights and section joints. The stair is then match-marked and dismantled into sections, each section receives its surface treatment, and the sections are delivered to site.
How long each stage takes depends on the size of the stair, the number of floors and how quickly drawings are approved, so we do not quote fixed days here. Tell us the opening date and site conditions and we will work out a programme backwards from it, showing which points need sign-off from the designer or client.
Commercial projects we have fabricated
- Sales centre, Nancheng, Dongguan: plate-steel helical staircase
- Show suite, Poly Haiyun Garden, Houjie
- Retail store, Houjie: multi-level helical staircase
- Yang Liping store, Changde: perforated steel balustrade panels
- 37 Interactive office, Guangzhou: helical staircase enclosed with steel side plates
More in projects.
A concept drawing is enough to start
You do not need a full set of drawings. A concept drawing, rendering or reference photo, plus the floor-to-floor height and opening date, is enough for our engineers to tell you whether it can be done, roughly how, and whether the timing works.
Planning a staircase for a sales gallery or atrium?Email your drawings, floor heights and opening date. We reply in English.