Location: Leeds
Stair/Balustrade made from: Steel staircase with low iron glass balustrade
Other parts made from: Timber treads and landings and stainless steel handrail

The CANAL team produced a large bespoke spiral staircase; 4.5 metres in diameter, 12 metres tall, serving three floors complete with low iron glass as the centre piece of the new flagship store for Republic in their home city of Leeds.

The manufacturing methods required to produce such a large staircase; together with the very tight tolerances, were very demanding. The layout of the staircase required each tread to precisely line up with the one below to enable the full height balusters to be fixed perfectly vertical.

On the staircase spanning from the basement to the first floor, the vertical glass in-fill panels were individually fitted to each tread, forming a multi-faceted balustrade: The balustrade was then finished with a curved satin polished stainless steel tube handrail. The curved, spiral handrail was hand crafted, using a tube bender, in the workshop by the fabrication team, using a part-assembled stair structure as a template. The pre-assembled staircase parts in the workshop ensured that the installation onsite in Leeds was relatively easy.

The spiral staircase was finished with timber treads and landings, anti-slip inserts and a painted white underside and central column. Complementing the staircase, the surrounding landing balustrade on the ground and first floor, was fitted with low iron glass and a matching stainless steel finish, folded top plate.