Design, fabrication, and erection of fire escape stairs for your construction project, by Structural Beam! Call 773-917-8998 for a free estimate.

Order High-Quality Legally-Compliant Metal Fire Escape Stairs

Whether you are building a multi-family unit, an apartment building, or developing a commercial property, safety is of paramount importance. Metal fire escape staircase is an essential component of a building and is required by law to be there. At Structural Beam, we can offer you a one-stop metal fire escape staircase package solution, call us today at 773-917-8998 for more information and a free price quote!

For the sake of public safety

External fire escape staircases have been around for a while, and iron alloys have been a material of choice, for obvious reasons. It allowed the creation of structurally sound external fire safety arrangements that were naturally fire-resistant.

Building owners were obliged by the law to maintain public safety by installing the metal fire escape stairs, and the first options of materials they had weren’t particularly brilliant.

Wrought and cast iron

Initially wrought iron and cast iron were the materials of choice. A vulnerable material, at that, when exposed to water, which is always the case with external fire escape stairs. Fire stairs required a lot of inspections, maintenance, and repair, and were prone to sudden failure, due to the brittleness of the wrought and cast iron.

Mild structural steel, perfect fit for the job

By the end of the 19th century, mild carbon structural steel was getting a strong footing in the construction industry, and naturally became a material of choice for the fabrication of external fire escape stairs.

Mild carbon structural steel has predictable mechanical properties, and an excellent strength-to-weight ratio, an important characteristic for this kind of application. Mild carbon structural steel, due to a certain degree of ductility, is not prone to sudden failure and performs better under dynamic loads, with some degree of deformation as the worst outcome.

There are two legally-compliant metal fire escape staircase types, spiral stair, and straight stairs, and applications are different.

Spiral fire escape staircase

A spiral staircase is a fully functional means of fire egress, well suited for multi-family units. Does the job well, providing the occupants with the means of safe exit in case of a fire. Spiral stairs are compact and have a very modest footprint, so to speak. This makes them perfect for smaller residential applications, like multi-family units.

Straight fire escape staircase

A sturdier, and more reliable option for larger numbers of occupants leaving the building in case of a fire, best suited for residential apartment buildings, commercial buildings, and office buildings.

Legal and regulatory compliance matters

For public safety reasons, metal fire escape stairs are strictly regulated by various local and federal laws, rules, IRC codes, and regulations. So is the metal fire escape stairs fabrication and erection, it’s better done by reputable, legally compliant, experienced local structural steel designers, fabricators, and erectors.

Structural Beam’s metal fire escape service package

Structural Beam is a reputable, local Chicago IL company, that works in the capacity of all-things-structural steel contractor with raw materials supply support, and masonry capabilities.

If you are a commercial property developer or general contractor, we can offer you a truly comprehensive, one-stop metal fire escape package.

Metal fire escape design

Let us know your requirements, and our structural engineers and structural steel designers will design a fully-compliant metal custom fire escape staircase, complete with railings, handrails, steps, and landings.

Structural steel estimation

Structural Beam’s estimation team will do your project’s estimation, coming up with the raw materials takeoff, and the project’s price estimate. A professional, detailed, and thorough estimation makes your project’s financing simple and transparent and prevents you from the unpleasant surprise of later-added extra costs.

Full raw materials supply support

Structural Beam will arrange raw materials supply at wholesale prices. We work with the top structural metal suppliers, and can provide a comprehensive range of raw materials for your metal fire escape stairs fabrication :

• Structural steel hot-rolled beams
• Structural steel cold-formed HSS
• Steel grating
• Steel diamond plate
• Expanded metal
• Galvanized steel products

Our experienced structural steel fabricators will work with the steel designers, preparing the shop drawings, so the fabrication can be precise, and the erection process will go uninterrupted, without the need for any on-site alterations.

The fabrication of the metal fire escape stairs will be done, complete with platforms, railings, handrails, steps, etc., according to the shop drawings.

Metal fire escape stairs erection

Structural Beam’s structural steel erection team will work alongside structural steel designers and metal fabricators, to create exact placement drawings, so the erection of your metal fire escape stairs will go smoothly.

Our steel erection team has a lot of experience and a great portfolio to show. They will do a great job installing your metal fire escape staircase, in full accordance with all relevant regulations.

Get in touch

Structural Beam’s customer service team will be happy to hear from you, call 773-917-8998 for a free consultation!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is common to fire escape staircase?

Your regular fire escape staircase has horizontal platforms (landings) on each floor, connected by stairs. Open steel grating is the material of choice for both platforms and steps, to prevent leaves, snow, and ice from accumulating. There are also handrails running along the railing for people to hold onto.

How wide are fire escape stairs?

There’s a minimum width of fire escape stairs in the U.S., and that’s 22 inches. It allows people to safely go down (or up) the fire escape stairs.

Can a spiral staircase be a fire escape?

Totally, the spiral staircase is a great compact solution for smaller buildings, like multi-family units, or smaller condos. They are compact enough to not stick out too much visually but do the job.