Ney & Partners have designed a staircase for the first flagship shop of Carl Hansen in Japan. It is very well situated within Gaien-Mae, close to the new Olympic Stadium for 2020 and in front of the crossing of Gaien-Nishi Street, one of main streets in Tokyo. The shop comprises 2 floors and has a glass façade which offers an ideal opportunity for marketing and advertisement. The staircase has been designed to be both functional and an element of interior decoration. Furthermore, our ambition was to create an impressive architectural form which attracts the attention of the passer-by. The characteristic triangular spiral shape results from an effort to maximise floor space while creating the most comfortable way of climbing the staircase. All the detailing has been thoroughly thought through. The white colour is in accordance with the white concrete walls and gives it the lightness of a paper model.

Specific features|
The staircase’s railing is designed as part of the structure and consists of 9mm plate girders. The steps are made from 4.5 mm steel plates. It would have been possible to use only one side of the railing structurally, but we chose to use both, so that it becomes a more accentuated sculptural form and the safety of children is guaranteed. Difficult building conditions meant there was no possibility to use heavy machinery, the existing entrance was limited to only 1,2m and the construction schedule was extremely tight. Therefore we designed the staircase in 3 parts which were welded together on site. The curvature of the inner railing plate is R 200mm, which required highly skilled steel craftsmen to achieve its clean and smooth surface.

Program| Complete architectural and structural design of staircase
Study | 2014
Execution｜2014
Client｜Carl Hansen & Son, Japan
Budget｜3,250,000yen
Scale｜Width 0.9m, Height 3.6m
Architect & Engineer | Ney & Partners
Site | Tokyo, Japan
Image credit | Ney & Partners, momoko japan