The handrails and railings on a staircase are necessary safety features that help avoid falls and injuries. These staircase parts can be made of different materials to achieve visual effects, such as metal, wood, or glass. The kind of stair railing and handrail utilized will also affect the presence of the staircase.

Handrail & Railing

Handrail and railing are two stairway components that are being misunderstood. A handrail, also known as a banister, is the part of a staircase that people use for assistance when heading up and down the stairs. It should provide stability and a constant guide along the stairwell. It can be constructed from different materials. It can be connected to a wall, broad from the side of the stair rail, or rest on top of the balusters (lateral posts) on a staircase’s open side.

A railing is a protective barrier that keeps people from falling off the stairwell. If anyone falls or pushes against it, it must be strong enough not to break. It can be made of many components and styles, ranging from simple balusters or vertical posts to advanced cable railing.

What Material Helps to Manufacture Stair Handrails & Railings?

The finest material for stair handrails and railings is determined by the staircase’s environment and the desired look. Metals such as steel, aluminum, and wrought iron are popular in commercial and industrial settings and contemporaneous environments, where wood has a more traditional appearance.

Steel:

Stair guardrails and railings for commercial escape routes, stairs, and industrial staircases are constructed of steel. Stair stringers should also be made of steel. Incited or alloy steels steel is frequently used to prevent rusting. Zinc is applied to galvanized steel to prevent corrosive materials from harming the steel beneath.

Aluminum:

Aluminum is a naturally occurring element with a lesser density than other metals, making it lighter than steel. Aluminum has a silvery appearance and is highly reflective. Without any additional treatment, aluminum is naturally corrosion-resistant. We can find handrails made of aluminum in a wide variety of places. They are used inside and outside homes, businesses, and industrial buildings. Aluminum stair railings are used on the main deck and entrance steps outside. Aluminum is simple to install and much more suitable for DIY projects than steel because it is considerably lighter. 

Wrought Iron:

Wrought iron is a type of iron alloy with low carbon content. In the mid-nineteenth century, the desire for this malleable material, which was used to achieve a highly decorative impact, peaked. Wrought iron is no longer mass-produced, but it is used for the reconstruction and replication of historical buildings as well as reinforced gratings. Most modern products that resemble wrought iron and are characterized as such are made of mild steel with small carbon content. Interior and exterior staircases in residential and commercial buildings can benefit from wrought iron handrails. Simple and curved stairs can both benefit from wrought iron handrails. Private properties and office buildings both have décor wrought iron stair railings. To accomplish an advanced and dramatic effect, wrought iron balusters are frequently used in conjunction with wood handrails. 

Wood:

For handrails and railings, wood is perhaps the most traditional look material. Red oak, which is simple to stain, sand, and finish, and white oak, which is tougher and more water-resistant, are both popular woods. Stairways handrails and railings can be made of mahogany, ash, cypress, cherry, and a variety of other woods. Handrails made of wood are encountered in houses. Decks, garage stairs, and magnificent staircases in old houses all feature wooden handrails. Wooden handrails, on the other hand, can be combined with much more advanced railing materials like metal or glass to create a unique look.

Glass:

While glass may appear to be a risky material to use in stair design, it is far more durable than it appears. Clear, semi-transparent, tinted, frosted, and etched glass are just some of the options. Stair handrails are rarely made of glass. Handrails with glass railings are usually made of other materials, such as wood or metal. Glass railings can be found in both interiors and exteriors of modern commercial and residential buildings. The stair railing glass panels can be permanently or temporarily framed in stainless steel or aluminum, or they can be completely frameless.

What are the Different Types of Railings for Stairs?

Metal, wood, and glass are some of the materials used to construct stair railings. There are a variety of stair railing designs available, ranging from the traditional picket railing to much more advanced cable railing or panels. 

Picket Stair Railing:

The handrail is supported by vertical posts in the picket railing. The posts are connected to the ground rail or stair treads at the bottom. Wooden or metal pickets are available. They can be plain or ornately designed posts. 

Multi-Line Stair Railing:

Horizontal rods or tubes enlarge from railing post to railing post in multi-line stair railings. To achieve the desired look, the rods or tubes can be of various styles, sizes, and materials. For escape routes stairs and equipment access stairs, multi-line railings are widely used in commercial as well as industrial buildings.

Cable Stair Staircase Railing:

To have a barrier on the side of the stairs, cable stair railings utilize tensile stress, up or down metal cables rather than pickets or panels. Steel, aluminum, and wood are all acceptable materials for handrails and newel posts when using cable railing.

Wire Mesh Infill Stair Railing:

Wire mesh infill railings are made up of four-sided wire panels welded to a frame. The railing system is then attached to these panels. Metals such as stainless steel and aluminum can be used to create wire mesh infill railings. The mesh or opening size, wire diameter, and panel size are usually customs manufactured for this type of railing. In industrial settings and high-traffic commercial areas like stadiums, colleges, and shopping malls, wire mesh infill railings are used. Residential deck stairs can also benefit from wire mesh infill.

Panel Stair Railing:

In the same way that wire mesh infill railing is placed into the railing system, panel stair railing is installed in sections. Glass is commonly used for panel railing, but open metal bars can also be used. It is commonly used outside, but it can also be used inside. Metal panel railing can be used in both residential and commercial settings.

Conclusion:

Staircase railings and handrails focus on providing safety and help prevent accidents and falls for those using the staircase. Even so, these stair parts have a significant impact on the staircase’s appearance. Metal, wood, and glass are some of the materials used for stair railing and handrails. To accomplish a variety of visually attractive and interesting styles, raw items are used for each component.

Stairs And Handrails In Industries:

Stairways and handrails are very commonly seen things in any official premise. Nearly all buildings have various stairways so that people can use them instead of the lift service. But in stairways, we have noticed many slips, trips, and falls. It is not that stairways and handrails are not in a good condition and that’s why these unwanted incidents take place. Most of the time, people don’t pay attention, think about other things, and face slips and related incidents. 

We can say that the safe we are doing our activities that more we can prevent ourselves from such risks. Rushing via the stairways, not using the handrails, not looking down, etc leads us towards slips, trips, and falls. And these can bring serious injury to us. 

A general stairway generally consists of 3 parts such as landing platform, stair rail system or handrail, and steps. 

Maybe you are building a new building for your office or planning to renovate the existing one. You should pay extra attention to stairways. Stairways are expensive, require a lot of time for proper development, and it is directly related to the safety of all employees and other people who will come to your office building. Before placing any stairways, you should take a tour of all types of stairways railing so that you can select the best one based on the pattern, theme, and requirements of your building. 

Types Of Stairs Railing:

• Steel
• Aluminum
• Wrought Iron
• Wood
• Glass
• Picket stair railing
• Multi-line stair railing
• Cable stair railing
• Wire mesh infill stair railing
• Panel stair railing

Types Of Handrails:

• Guardrail-mounted handrail
• Integrated handrail

Importance of Stairs And Handrails In Indian Industries:

Highly durable:
For complete safety, it is important to use a highly durable material. According to experts, structural steel can be a good fit here because of its robustness and long-lasting power. You can make it rust-proof and simply enhance its durability. Rustproof iron can resist all weather and it is also a good outdoor option. 

Safety:
When the material is robust and has the strength of protection against any fall and slip, we can say that it is quite a good option if you are thinking about the safety of users. It looks appealing and gives a complete appearance to the stairways. 

Easy to maintain:
These handrails are very easy to maintain. They rarely demand any extra attention and care from us. On a regular basis or just once a week, you should wipe them. You can use a damp cloth. After 5 to 10 years, you can repaint them to maintain the glow. 

Extremely affordable:
Yes, they are extremely affordable. Once you buy such handrails you can be sure that for next 10 years, you don’t have to reinvest here, even for any maintenance. Both the initial purchase cost and maintenance cost are low and that’s why they have become a good choice for many. 

Aesthetically appealing:
They come in a variety of types and designs. We literally have a wider choice variety. According to the theme and stairways design, we can easily pick the most suitable one and enable a complete look. If stairways look good, people will automatically understand how much sincere you are even about such stuff. 

Variety of designs:
One of the main benefits of such handrails is that here we get a variety of options to choose from according to our budget and choice. Based on the building theme, development pattern, and requirements, we can easily pick the most appealing design and set our standard apart from the crowd. 

Must Obey Safety Standards:

Using stairways is easy. You just have to be a bit more careful. You should always follow the below-mentioned rules while using a stairway:

• You should use handrails always while ascending or descending any stairway.
• You should remain cautious about the weather condition and place your steps carefully. 
• There should be proper arrangements to keep stairways and handrails clean, hygienic, and slip-free. 
• You should not rush and run using the stairways otherwise, you can face falls and slipping. 
• Try to look down i.e. pay attention to your steps as it will prevent you from skipping steps and unwanted serial falls and injuries. 

Just by following these simple steps, you can easily prevent any injury or risk related to stairways. All you need to do is just be a bit more careful.

What is the Difference between Handrails & Railings?  

Handrails Stairs and railings both ensure the safety of the people moving up and down the stairs. However, they are different from one another despite being used to fulfill the same objective. 

Handrail: 

People hold onto a handrail or banister for support when climbing up and down the stairs. It prevents accidents or injuries resulting from tripping over or slipping down the stairs.

Handrails have to be strong enough to provide support to the people moving up and down the stairs.

They may extend from the side of a railing, remain on vertical posts (balusters) or be attached to the wall.

Railings:

The railing provides support to the people climbing up and down the stairs alongside creating a barrier on one or both sides of the staircase to prevent accidents.

A railing has to be strong enough to prevent breakage if someone leans against it or to break the fall during accidents.

Types of Material Used to Build Handrails and Railings

Different types of materials (wood or metal) are used to manufacture the handrails and railings. The suitability of the materials depends upon a client’s preference or a building’s interior décor. The railings can be designed in different styles based upon the interior décor. The following materials are commonly used to manufacture the handrails or railings. 

Steel:

Two types of steel are used to manufacture railings and handrails alongside being used to build stair stringers.

• Galvanized steel that is coated with zinc to prevent rusting.
• Stainless steel containing nickel/chromium/nitrogen/molybdenum to prevent corrosion.

The zinc coated galvanized steel is generally used for industrial stair applications. On the other hand, the handrails or railings made of stainless steel are ideal for both residential and commercial buildings featuring contemporary interior décor.

• Stainless steel handrails can be paired with stainless steel or glass railings.
• Stainless steel railings can be paired with handrails made of similar or different materials, such as wood or metal.

Aluminum:

The lightweight aluminum can be used to manufacture both handrails and railings. It is possible to fashion the aluminum railings in different designs. The density of aluminum is lower than other metals and the aluminum alloy is naturally resistant to corrosion or rusting. 

Aluminum handrails and railings can be used for both indoor and outdoor applications. The aluminum railings or handrails can be installed anywhere, such as residential, commercial and industrial. 

Wrought Iron:

This is an iron alloy with a low content of carbon. The handrails or railings made of wrought iron are ideal for both indoor and outdoor applications. This iron alloy can be used to manufacture strong and durable railings and handrails for both commercial and residential buildings.

The wrought iron can be used to manufacture decorative railings due to its malleability. These handrails or railings can be colored through powder coating and can be installed on both straight and curved stairs.

Wood:

The handrails and railings made of wood feature sophisticated look irrespective of the design. This material is being used to manufacture both simple and decorative handrails and railings for centuries. The wooden handrails and railings have to be sanded or treated with a waterproof coating in order to prevent damage resulting from humidity or pest infestation.

The wood from various plants, such as mahogany, red-oak, ash, cherry, cypress etc., are used to manufacture durable and classy railings and handrails. The wooden handrails are usually found in residential buildings, hotels and some office buildings. They can be installed on staircases as well as decks and can be paired with railings made of wood, metal, glass or other materials. The wooden railings are commonly installed on indoor staircases; however, they can be used outdoors after being treated with waterproof coating. These railings can be installed on staircases made of wood, glass or other materials. 

Glass/Fiberglass:

The toughened glass is a special type of glass which is used during the construction of staircases and railings. This variant of glass is tougher (around 8 times) than the normal variant of glass. The glass railings and staircases complement the contemporary interior décor of residential and commercial buildings. This type of railing is installed on interior as well as exterior staircases. 

The glass panels used as railings can be frameless or can be partially or fully framed using frames made of stainless-steel or aluminum. The light can penetrate through the glass. Therefore, glass railings can make a room look spacious alongside providing the users with a safety barrier. The glass railings may be made of transparent, frosted or tinted glass. The railings made of glass work as wind barrier when installed on exterior staircases. 

Crucial Stairway Components in Industrial Application

Stairs Treads:

The treads are one of the fundamental parts of a staircase. They provide users with a solid foundation to step on alongside ensuring balance of the stairs. The treads may be made of wood (ironwood, knotty pine, walnut, hard-maple, white/red oak or distressed wood), toughened glass, stone (bluestone or limestone), tiles, composite material, steel or concrete.

Platform Stairs:

The floor or ground adjacent to the bottom or top step of a staircase is called landing. The platform stairs have intermediate landing areas where the stairs change direction. In industrial applications, the platform stairs provide the workers with sufficient space to land or stand when working on something. There are two types of intermediate landing in platform stairs. 

• In half landing, the stairs change direction 180-degree angle.
• In quarter landing, the stairs change direction in 90-degree angle.

Platform Handrails:

The platform handrails border the intermediate landing areas of a staircase. The people climbing up and down the stairs or standing on the platform hold onto the handrail for support. They can be manufactured in various shapes, sizes and designs based upon clients’ requirements.

At Earth Tech Engineering, you will find a varied collection of stair-treads, handrails, railings etc. All products have been manufactured by experts using first-class materials to ensure durability and longevity. We are a leading supplier and exporter of handrails, stairs, railings and other components alongside being a reliable manufacturer. With a team of professionals and technologically advanced devices, we deliver premium quality products to our clients.