Background:
In singular buildings, stairs can be much more than an element connecting two storeys. They can be a piece of art too. This requires a design adapted to the performance of each material (steel, wood, concrete, …). RDC proposes UHPC as a great option to reach slender and harmonic stairs, which are at the same time functional and without vibrations.
Why to use UHPC?
UHPC allows to go beyond the traditional design of stairs. Instead of using the steel rebars for the reinforcement of ordinary concrete, fibers can provide all the tensile capacity necessary in the design. This reduces the covers and allows to design elements with thickness between 4 and 8 cm. This implies that the weight is more than 50% lower than the weight of an ordinary concrete stair, having a slenderer element and applying lower loads to the rest of the structure. RDC has designed already helical, spiral, and straight UHPC stairs, all of them produced by PREFFOR and installed successfully in singular houses.
Advantages:
- Slender and tailored designs.
- Minimum loads transferred to the structure.
- As they are light, transport and commissioning is easy.
Achievements:
- 7 different UHPC stairs built in Spain (helical, spiral, straight, …)
