Staircases provide means of movement from one floor to another in a structure. Staircases consisting of a number of steps with landings at suitable intervals to provide comfort and safety for the users.
Types of Stairs
For the purpose of design, stairs are classified into two types; transversely, and longitudinally supported.
1- Transversely supported (transverse to the direction of movement):
Transversely supported stairs include:
a- Simply supported steps supported by two walls or beams or a combination of both.
b- Steps cantilevering from a wall or a beam.
c- Stairs cantilevering from a central spine beam.
2- Longitudinally supported (in the direction of movement):
These stairs span between supports at the top and bottom of a flight and unsupported at the sides. Longitudinally supported stairs may be supported in any of the following manners:
a- Beams or walls at the outside edges of the landings.
b- Internal beams at the ends of the flight in addition to beams or walls at the outside edges of the landings.
c- Landings which are supported by beams or walls running in the longitudinal direction.
d- A combination of (a) or (b), and (c).
e- Stairs with quarter landings associated with open-well stairs.
