The monumental circular staircase at the Drexel University Integrated Sciences Building
were created by helical steel plate rolling of 68,000 pounds of 2 inch thick, 16 inch deep solid plate stringers. 2 x 16 steel flats were rolled to a 4 feet 4 inch inside radius with a walk-up-turn-left pitch of 33.25 degrees for the inside stair stringers. And 2 x 16 steel flats were rolled to a 9 feet inside radius with a walk-up-turn-left pitch of 16.92 degrees for the outside stair stringers.
The four-story, self-supporting helical stairs have glass guardrails and polished stainless steel handrails.
Suggesting the structure of DNA, the circular staircase overlooks a “biowall” that filters the air in the atrium with live plant material.
Regarding the design and fabrication of circular stairs, please see the Chicago Metal Rolled Products easy-to-use and powerful Stringer Calculator. It’s likely to make your life easier by providing quick and accurate computations, improved communication, and increased quality.
