Spiral external staircases for Green Park

Spiral Construction has designed and installed three external staircases at Green Park in Reading.

Green Park is home to a range of individually-designed landmark buildings, offering high-quality accommodation to suit the needs of a wide range of businesses.

As one of the keynote architects for this landmark development, Tate and Hindle Design took responsibility for two phases of work, covering the amenity buildings for the park and two new office buildings.

Both office buildings were developed to provide flexible and highly efficient office space.

The design relocated core services, such as lifts and internal staircases, from the heart of the building to ensure maximum space utilisation.

Most services were removed to an adjoining, 'wedge-shaped' building, however the escape staircases were located externally.

Tate and Hindle Design specified a spiral staircase, designed and manufactured by Spiral Construction.

Sarah Brown, Associate Director at Tate and Hindle Design, explained: "Siting the staircases outside the building meant that internal space which would have been needed for a staircase and lobby was retained as lettable office space.

Locating the spiral staircases externally allowed them to be a strong design feature and to animate the facades.

"Incorporating pale concrete treads together with galvanised mild steel balustrades and hand rail, the staircase provides a really striking and elegant contrast to the monolith form of the anthracite-coloured glass facade".

To proceed with an external staircase and in order to meet building control requirements, the design team had to ensure that the metal handrail would never be cold to the touch.

After extensive research, the team identified a high-technology solution - a coating that had originally been developed by NASA for its space programme, which was applied to the handrails.

Each concrete tread was installed with an anti-slip contrast strip to highlight the edge.

Spiral's range of helical and spiral staircase offers a wide range of material and finish options, giving architects great design flexibility.

The high quality range includes natural stone, wood, steel and glass, with accompanying balustrade systems and the option of curved or facetted infill panels in glass or perforated steel.

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