Tag Archives: Specialty Steel Bending

Spiral Staircases at the Newly Renovated Space Needle

Albina Co. Inc. bent the spiral staircases at the newly renovated Space Needle in Seattle, Washington. The Space Needle’s rotating glass floor, dubbed “The Loupe”, is located just below the open-air observation deck and Albina Co., Inc. was the steel bender/roller for the custom spiral staircases connecting the two areas. Albina Co., Inc. bent 1″ thick x 13 ¼” wide A572 GR 50 to yield three 180″ pieces and three 144″ pieces of rolled plate and 1″ thick x 10-13/16″ wide A572 GR 50 to yield one 80″ piece of rolled plate. We also bent tube steel 10″ x 6″ x .625″ WALL A500 GR B to a 11’ 6” inside plan view radius (the easy way). 

Space Needle Spiral Staircase at "The Loupe"
Backside view of spiral staircase at the Space Needle
People walking on the spiral staircase at the Space needle
the space needle

Albina Co., Inc. Recognized at “The Spheres” IDEAS2 Presidential Award Ceremony

“The Spheres” in Seattle, Washington have been all the buzz lately! “The Spheres” were featured in the May 2019 Edition of Modern Steel Magazine as the buildings were awarded the AISC’s IDEAS2 Presidential Award for Excellence in Fabrication!  Just this last week, our VP of Sales, Brad Lund, was able to attend the award presentation ceremony at “The Spheres” in Seattle and we were awarded a plaque to display in our office. See below for some AMAZING pictures!


Albina Co., Inc. was the steel bender/roller for the Curved Steel Bio-Sphere buildings in Seattle, WA. Albina bent 750,000# and 1,050 pieces rectangular tube steel bent the easy way and a portion bent off-axis. Almost 8 miles of welding work and grinding was avoided because of Albina’s ability to bend a portion of the project. Almost NO correction was needed during fabrication or erection as the bends fit to the fixtures within 1/32nd of an inch! Albina Co., Inc. also bent the handrails and spiral staircase for the interior of the buildings.

Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Interior Shot of the “webs” used to help create “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Brad Lund receiving the AISC IDEAS2 Award for Presidential Excellence in Fabrication
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Handrail 2nd floor of “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
A close up of the “webs” used to help create “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Handrails and Spiral Staircases on the interior of “The Spheres”
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Spiral Staircase at “The Spheres” (looking down)
Albina Co., Inc. Steel Bender/Steel Roller for "The Spheres" In Seattle
Curved Steel Spiral Staircase at “The Spheres” (from ground level)

Elliptical Bends Provided for Universal Palms Hotel Pool Renovation

Albina recently bent 100 lengths of TS 2″ X 1″ X .125″ WALL 6061-T6 aluminum in elliptical configurations. All of the ellipse bends had to be within 1/8″ of the template provided and it was critical that all parts match each other. This was a rush project that was required just a few days after receipt of material. The ellipse bends will be used in the newly renovated pool at the Universal Palms Hotel in Florida. The hotel was recently purchased by a group of New York investors that plan to re-brand the hotel under the Choice Hotels franchise. 

Tube Steel Elliptical Bends for Universal Palms Hotel Pool-1
Tube Steel Elliptical Bends for Universal Palms Hotel Pool-2
Tube Steel Elliptical Bends for Universal Palms Hotel Pool-3

Install Progress Picture of Curved Steel Spiral Staircase for the New American Airlines Headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas

Back in June, I posted a picture of some spiral bent Tube Steel 16″ X 16″ X .625″ WALL A500 GR B bent down to a an 18 foot radius, using our induction heating process, for the new American Airlines headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas. In addition to the 16″ square, we produced another set of spirals consisting of Tube Steel 14″ x 6″ x .625″ wall REALLY tight, exposed and bent to a 5′-6″ radius on a 45° pitch. Below is a progress picture of the installation of these spiral stringers.

steel spiral stringers for custom spiral staircase at new American Airlines Headquarters in Fort Worth, Texas

The 1.7 million-square-foot complex, dubbed the “Trinity complex,” consists of constructing four seven-story buildings. It will cost at least $300 million to build and will house over 6,500 employees. There are 10 tower cranes on the project and there will be more than 1,000 construction workers on-site during the peak. It is scheduled to open during the second half of 2019.  These are the type of bends that ONLY Albina can do!

Steel Spiral Staircase at the Ritz Carlton in Sunny Isles, Florida

Albina worked on a custom spiral staircase for the Ritz Carlton in Sunny Isles, Florida. This high profile spiral staircase was for a great customer out of Florida. When a top of the line luxury hotel needed top of the line bending, Albina was contracted. Yes! We shipped from Oregon to Florida to service the needs of our customer!

Albina bent TS 16″ X 4″ X .500″ WALL A500 GR B down to a 12’ inside radius (for the stringers and the landings). All bends were to AESS standards. Click here for images of the spiral staircase and the newly renovated hotel.

Steel Spiral Staircase for the Moab Hoodoo Hotel- Curio Collection by Hilton

Albina recently completed some very complex spiral bends for a Spiral Staircase which will be installed at the new Moab Hoodoo Hotel, Curio Collection by Hilton in Moab, Utah. The 117-guestroom hotel will offer an upscale lodging option to travelers heading to the Moab desert community. The hotel will be surrounded by large sandstone monoliths that feature balanced stones, known as hoodoos.

Materials bent for the spiral staircase consisted of:
4″ X 4″ X ¼” ANGLE A36
2 pcs bent leg out to a 7′ 4″ inside radius
2 pcs bent leg in to a 13′ 0″ outside radius
C15 X 33.9# A36
2 pcs spiral bent to a 7′ 4″ outside plan radius.
2 pcs spiral bent to a 13′ 0″ inside plan radius.
1 pc bent in a single plane to a 7′ 4″ outside radius
1 pc bent in a single plane to a 13′ 0″ inside radius

Spiral Staircase Moab Hotel- Curio Collection by Hilton

Custom 12″ x 8″ HSS Spiral Stringer for Spiral Staircase in Utah

We recently spiral bent tube steel 12″ X 8″ X .625″ WALL A500 GR B Spiral the Easy way to a 173” radius for a customer spiral staircase located in Utah. Square and rectangular tubing is also known as HSS (hollow structural steel). Albina has the ability to bend both square and rectangular tubing. For rectangular tubing we can bend both the easy way (against the weak axis) and the hard way (against the strong axis). We can even provide Multi-Plane bending where we are bending both the easy way AND the hard way. Albina is a unique shop in that we can bend very small square materials such as TS ½” x ½” x .049” wall all of the way up to very large materials such as TS 20” x 12” x .625” wall, which happens to be the largest size that mills produce. Albina actually has a larger capacity than TS 20” x 12” x .625” wall, which means we can bend materials larger then what the mills produce!

HSS Spiral Stringer for custom Spiral staircase

HSS Spiral Stringer for custom Spiral staircase

HSS Spiral Stringer for custom Spiral staircase

HSS Spiral Stringer for custom Spiral staircase

Spiral Rolled Plate for Spiral Staircase in Multi-Million Dollar Luxury Home on Green Street in San Francisco, CA.

We recently spiral rolled 1/2″ and 1″ plate for a custom spiral staircase in a multi-million dollar luxury home on Green Street in San Francisco, California.
We provided the rolled plate for the staircase and then flat plane rolled the plate for the landings. The tightest radius was a 29.75” center line radius.

Spiral Rolled Plate for spiral staircase on Green Street in San Francisco, CA.

Spiral Rolled Plate for spiral staircase on Green Street in San Francisco, CA.

Spiral Rolled Plate for spiral staircase on Green Street in San Francisco, CA.

Curved Spiral Staircase for the Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences

Albina recently spiral bent several stringers for a state of the art spiral staircase for the Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences in Lubbock, Texas. The Lubbock Entertainment and Performing Arts Association (LEPAA) has had the vision for this building since 2013 and broke ground just over a year ago in April 2017. The dance center will contain the entire operation of Ballet Lubbock, including six dance studios, parent and community space, production areas and administrative offices and expected to be complete in early 2020. Check out this website for artist renderings of the building and interior features such as the spiral staircase we bent consisting of:

TS 16″ X 8″ X .625″ WALL A500 GR C
16 pcs: Spiral bend the easy way
Bent down to a 7 ft plan view radius.

TS 10″ X 6″ X .625″ WALL A500 GR C
10 pcs: Spiral bend the hard way
Bend down to a 14’ 11” plan view radius.

Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences

Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences

Buddy Holly Hall of Performing Arts and Sciences

Curved Steel for the Fort Worth Multi-Purpose Arena in Fort Worth, Texas

We just finished a project for a new customer out of Texas. Albina Co., Inc. provided 40,000# of bent steel for the Fort Worth Multi-Purpose Arena project in Fort Worth, Texas which broke ground on April 18th. Albina provided 28 pieces of spiral bent Tube Steel 8″ X 4″ X .500″ WALL A500 GR B the easy way to AESS (Architecturally Exposed Structural Steel) standards. The tightest section was bent to a 17 foot radius. The Fort Worth Multipurpose Arena will be a 14,000-seat, multipurpose venue owned by the City of Fort Worth. The state-of-the-art arena, scheduled to open in November 2019, will host concerts, sporting events and family entertainment, and will be the new home to Fort Worth Stock Show Rodeo performances.