Architectural and structural metalwork
Balustrade and Handrail Configurator
Configure a balustrade to your dimensions with live dimensional rule checks and get a price today, not a site visit next week.
The problem
Why this is a configurator
A balustrade enquiry usually means a site visit, a manual take-off and a quote next week. Contractors and self-builders increasingly will not wait: the fabricator who returns a credible price today wins the job. Quoting speed is the sales problem in this trade.
Sellers
Architectural metalwork fabricators.
Buyers
Main contractors, architects, developers and serious self-builders.
Live
Watch the price move as the part changes
A scripted sweep of the real configurator. Every value is computed by the same engine your customers use.
Parameter tour
What the buyer sets
Every parameter validates against the seller's own rules and stock, so an impossible order cannot leave the browser.
- 1
Run shape and lengths
Straight or L-shape; posts repopulate live as the run changes.
- 2
Height and use class
Internal domestic, external domestic or commercial, validated against the configured height rules.
- 3
Infill
Vertical bars at spacing, glass panels, mesh or none (handrail only), checked against the 100mm sphere rule.
- 4
Material, finish and sections
Post sections, handrail profiles and finishes from seller stock, including powder coat RAL options.
- 5
Fixing and quantity
Top fix base plates or side fix, per run.
Exports
Manufacturing files, not just a picture
Proven formats are listed with what has been verified. Formats still in verification say so, honestly.
- PDFQuote with a dimensioned elevation matching the configured values
- STLVerified download, configuration id in the file header
- GLBVerified download with configuration metadata
DXF elevation and STEP exports are generated and parser-verified but stay in verification until confirmed in independent CAD software.
Cite or abstain
The AI grounds every answer, or says it cannot
It reads only what the seller has loaded. Where a source covers the question it answers and cites; where none does, it abstains rather than guessing.
“External balustrade for a school ramp, 6.2m, glass infill”
Sets the use class and minimum height from the configured rule table and selects compatible glass components from stock, stating that structural sign-off remains with the seller's engineer.
Cited: Height rule table row and stock fields (example data)
“What fixings do I need into my substrate?”
The seller's tables do not cover fixings into unknown substrates, so I cannot specify them. That needs the seller's engineer.
Questions
About the Balustrade and Handrail Configurator
- Is a configured balustrade compliant with building regulations?
- The configurator checks dimensional rules the seller configures, shipped with example values referenced to the seller's confirmed reading of Approved Document K and BS 6180. Structural sign-off remains with the seller's engineer. The configurator states this on screen and on the PDF.
- What is the 100mm sphere rule?
- Guarding infill must reject any gap a 100mm sphere could pass through. The configurator validates bar spacing against bar width so no drawn opening exceeds the configured clear gap.
- How accurate is the drawing?
- The PDF quote carries a dimensioned elevation whose run, height, posts, rails and infill match the configured values exactly, verified in the build tests.
- Can it handle stairs and gates?
- Not yet: straight and L-shaped level runs are in the preset, with stair rakes and gates planned. Both are natural bespoke builds today.
Give your customers a price today, not next week
Start free with example data. Load your own stock, rates and rules before you go live.