UVine Staircase

Press Kit

Unique Properties

This project is about a spiral staircase that is self-supporting without the requirement for a center pole or perimeter support. U- and V-shaped box profiles are interlocked together in an alternating way to create the rise height and the winder depth of the staircase, respectively. The angle of the V-shaped pieces further defines stair diameter and turning angle of the stair. Through its modular and versatile structure, the design eliminates many constraints in designing and installing a spiral stair and brings easiness throughout manufacturing, packaging, transportation and installation.

Dimensions & Packaging

Tread: 3cm thickness (for wood),
Riser Height: 16cm,
Stair stinger: 5cmx5cm (steel square box profile).

Tags

Stair, staircase, spiral, modular, self-support

Production Technology

Stair stringer will be made of steel square box profiles and treads of wood. Glass, aluminum or other metals like mesh can be used for tread as well.

Design Challenge

The challenge at the beginning of every design is to find the one that is not found.

Project Duration

The project started in December 2017 and ended in February 2018.

Operation Flow

The object is a self-supporting spiral staircase that requires fixing only to the ceiling and the floor. Several U and V shaped profiles of different sizes are interlocked to form the stair. Self-support is achieved by alternating the interlocking of the u-v-shaped pieces in horizontal and vertical arrangement. Components of the stair are made out of flat and small parts as a result of which transport and on-site installation are simplified.

Research

Stairs of various designs and applications are investigated during the design phase of the project. It has been observed that most of the time a stair needs on-site production due to structural constraints and in order to ensure that the staircase will fit and function as desired. This results in loss of time. The project aims to minimize the time loss by a design that is made up of modular parts that can be manufactured in advance, and thus, assembly is the only process required on site.

Inspiration

As much as spiral stairs create a unique decorative atmosphere in spaces while being functional, they require elaborate designs to comply with building codes and ergonomic requirements to fit to spaces during installation and are generally hard to install due to unique dimensional and structural constraints of spaces. A more versatile spiral stair is created by focusing on simplicity and ease by using just three components that are easy to manufacture and assemble, which eliminates many space- and support-related requirements.

Colors of UVine Staircase