Mild steel spiral staircase with polished stainless steel balustrading installed at a showroom in Leeds, West Yorkshire (02)
Summary of Terms Stairway, staircase, stairwell, flight of stairs or simply stairs are designed to bridge a large vertical distance by dividing it into smaller vertical distances, called steps.
Spiral stairs wind around a central pole. They typically have a handrail on the outer side only, and on the inner side just the central pole. A tight spiral stair with a central pole is very space efficient in the use of floor area.
Helical, helix or circular stairs have a handrail on both sides. These have the advantage of a more uniform tread width when compared to the spiral staircase. Such stairs can be built around an elliptical or oval platform.
