From sketch to steel: how a staircase gets built

A staircase is the one piece of metalwork people touch every single day — and the one with zero tolerance for “close enough.” Whether it's a feature entry stair in blackened steel or an egress stair on a commercial job, here is what happens between the first call and the day you walk up it.

i. The conversation

Every project starts with what you're picturing: a floating straight flight, an L-shape with a landing, a spiral for a tight loft, a monumental switchback. We'll talk metal (mild steel for most, stainless or aluminum where it earns its keep), tread material — steel pan for concrete or tile, wood treads on steel stringers, checker plate for shop and mezzanine stairs — and finish. Photos of the space and a rough rise measurement are enough for a realistic budget number at this stage.

ii. Field measurement

This is where custom work separates from catalog kits. We measure the total rise (finished floor to finished floor — not subfloor), available run, headroom against the code minimum of 6'-8", and the walls and framing we'll anchor to. A quarter inch of error in total rise becomes an uneven bottom step you will feel every day forever, so we measure after finished flooring is decided, not before.

iii. Shop drawings

Our in-house detailers draw the staircase — stringer profiles, tread layout, landing framing, baluster spacing, anchor points — and send it for your approval, connection by connection. This is the moment to move a newel, widen a tread, or swap the rail infill. Changes on paper are free; changes after steel is cut are not. On permitted jobs, these drawings are also what the inspector and the EOR review. It's the same discipline our structural work runs on: drawn before it's cut.

iv. Fabrication

In the shop, stringers are cut and jigged flat, treads and risers are fit, and everything is welded square on the table — to AWS-qualified procedures, not improvised in your stairwell. Building the full assembly in a controlled shop is why a custom steel staircase goes in straight, tight, and quiet: no squeaks, no flex, no shimming games. Where a piece is too large to transport whole, we design bolted field splices that disappear into the finished work.

v. Finish

Interior staircases typically get blasted and powder coated — or blackened and waxed where the design calls for it. Exterior stairs get the system the exposure demands (see powder coating vs. galvanizing). Wood treads are templated off the actual steel, not the drawings, so they land perfectly.

vi. Set day

Most residential staircases install in one to two days — by our own crew, the same people who fabricated it. We set and anchor the stringers, level everything, install treads and railing, and touch up the finish. You'll walk it with us before we leave: every weld, every fastener, every tread.

What drives the price

• Shape: a straight flight is the baseline; L- and U-shapes add landings; spirals and floating designs are the top of the range.
• Rail infill: straight bar is economical; cable, glass, and ornamental infill add material and labor.
• Tread material: steel pan is cost-effective; hardwood treads add warmth and cost.
• Site conditions: tight access, tall rises, and occupied-home logistics all show up in the number.