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The Arden System ‘A’ (including A38D and A50D) family of patch fitting assemblies was designed to fulfil a number of roles, replacing a range of components with a single unified fixing system. In staircase and balustrade projects, fixings are often required between a variety of materials within a single installation, e.g. nogging to handrail, concrete to glass, stanchion to handrail and glass. By applying an integrated system of components, a uniform design style is maintained throughout the entire project.

Arden has selected a clean and geometric style for components in the System A patch fittings, reflecting the modern trend appropriate for the vast majority of projects. Visually characterised by precision fit cylinders with fine bevels, the A38D / A50D family purposefully avoids extraneous geometry. Depending on the character of the surrounding materials, the system can either present a functional feature of the project, or recede visually without distracting from surrounding architectural features.

Most patch fittings are available in either 38mm or 50mm diameter clamps. The 38mm option is suitable for smaller spans or lower design loads when a lighter and more slimline appearance is required. This option is recommended by Arden for most residential projects. By covering a greater area, the 50mm version offers greater structural support to each point fixing. It is suitable for large spans and high design loads, and is often specified in commercial projects.

designGlass used in balustrade systems typically falls into one of two groups, either structural glass or infill glass, and it is important to understand the loads on these glass panels when selecting a particular patch fitting to mount the glass.

a) Infill glass applications

Infill glass, as the name suggests, is designed to simply be an infill in a balustrade run. It is assumed that the primary loads of the balustrade are applied to the handrail, and that this handrail is structurally independent of the glass balustrade, and derives support from a stanchion of similar structural item. In this situation, one only needs to consider the loads for infill glass as defined under AS1170.1-2002 (Structural design actions) and these loads are typically much less than that which apply to structural glass. Suitability of a particular patch fitting for infill purposes is then dependant upon the area of the glass supported and the number and relative position of the patch fittings.

In common infill balustrade systems, typically 25mm diameter through to 38mm diameter fittings based on an M10 fitting bolt are adequate in most applications. These include the R38D patch fittings described on page 9 of this document.

b) Structural glass applications

Structural glass in balustrade applications is that which carries the entire balustrade load onto the glass, including the handrail loads. Typical applications of using patch fittings to achieve a structural glass carrying of handrail loads involves the use of an upper and lower series of patch fittings that hold the base of the glass panel to the structural element (e.g. the void edge or the stair stringer) to thereby form a cantilever effect of the glass that then extends up to carry the balustrade handrail and therefore the balustrade loads.

In this typical application, the glass panel becomes a lever that transmits loads by way of compression and tension to the upper and lower series of patch fittings. The actual load that is imparted onto the fitting is determined by:

a) The design load to the balustrade (as defined by AS1170.1)

b) The horizontal spacing of the patch fittings that then determines that amount of load is shared by each patch fitting pair

c) The height of the handrail above the top series of patch fittings

d) The separating distance between the upper and lower series of patch fittings.

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Figure 1

A38D patch fitting body with 30mm offstand. Configuration is typically used for cantilevered glass fixings to concrete, LVL or other structural bodies in domestic applications.

1A. Front and side elevations

1B. Isometric

1C. Exploded

All of these factors combine to determine the load that each fitting must then be able to accept. The choice of patch fitting then involves consideration of the following points.

1) The size of the fitting bolt to structure that resists the tension and compression loads of each fitting

2) The area of the point load applied to the glass by the patch fitting.

Whilst every application can be subtly different, typical configurations for a C3 balustrade load are patch fittings with a vertical separation of around 200mm and a horizontal spacing of around 450mm, requiring a 50mm diameter glass bearing area and a base fixing bolt of M12.

Arden A38D and A50D patch fittings have been specially designed to suit these loads and application, with the design limiting factor being the base fixing bolt. In other words, the fittings themselves are tested to ensure that they can cope with more compression and tension than the M12 fixing bolt can carry back to the base structure.

As a long-time consumer of third party patch fittings, Arden was compelled to design its own range of patch fittings, due to the fact that available components paid little consideration to the structural requirements. For example, many fittings rely upon a threaded embedment of a threaded base pin into the button top of the fitting. As the button top has limited depth, this often results in only two of three treads (2 to 3 mm) holding the button cap to the structural base fixing bolt, which then becomes the weak point of the structure. Arden fittings are different in that the top fitting cap provides full thread for the cap depth plus the thickness of the glass, thereby ensuring a thread binding of at least the diameter of the bolt (12mm). By using a full structural binding between cap and base fixing bolt, the design limit of the system becomes the bolt itself rather than the fitting.

Arden patch fittings are a full multi-application system with the addition of various parts to provide remarkable flexibility for numerous applications, as shown on the following pages.

1A

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A50D stanchion wing to glass and handrail connection. Patch fitting assembly with mounting pin and handrail support pin assembly. Typical application is for mounting on stanchion systems such as the W4 (see brochure) in a commercial context, simultaneously bearing glass and handrail loads.

2A. Front and side elevations

2B. Isometric

2C. Exploded

2A

2B 2C

Figure 3

A38D patch fitting body with 8mm back nut. Typically used for glass fixings to stanchion posts in domestic applications.

3A. Front and side elevations

3B. Isometric

3C. Exploded

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A38D stanchion blade to glass connection. Includes slotted body without back nut. Typical application is for supporting glass panels from stanchion blades in domestic applications.

4A. Front and side elevations

4B. Isometric

4C. Exploded

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Figure 5

A38D solid body offstand with back nut. Configuration is typically used for cantilevered glass fixings to concrete, LVL or other structural bodies in domestic applications where a larger offset is required.

5A. Front and side elevations

5B. Isometric

5C. Exploded

Figure 6

A38D glass to handrail connection. Used for frameless cantilevered glass systems (such as F8) in domestic applications.

6A. Front and side elevations

6B. Isometric

6C. Exploded

Figure 7

A38D stanchion blade to glass connection. Includes slotted body and back nut. Typical application is for supporting glass panels from stanchion blades in domestic applications where a larger offset is required.

7A. Front and side elevations

7B. Isometric

7C. Exploded

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Figure 8

A38D stanchion wing to glass connection. Includes patch fitting assembly with mounting pin. Typical application is for mounting on winged stanchion systems such as the W4 (see brochure) in a domestic context, bearing a glass panel from a stanchion wing.

8A. Front and side elevations

8B. Isometric

8C. Exploded

8A

8B 8C

Figure 9

A38D stanchion wing to glass and handrail connection. Patch fitting assembly with mounting pin and handrail support pin assembly. Typical application is for mounting on stanchion systems in a domestic context, simultaneously bearing glass and handrail loads.

9A. Front and side elevations

9B. Isometric

9C. Exploded

9A

9B 9C

10A

10B 10C

Figure 10

A50D patch fitting body with 8mm back nut. Typically used for glass fixings to stanchion posts in commercial applications.

10A. Front and side elevations

10B. Isometric

10C. Exploded

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Figure 11

A50D patch fitting body with 8mm back nut and 38D/30mm offstand body. Typically used for frameless glass fixings in commercial applications.

11A. Front and side elevations

11B. Isometric

11C. Exploded

Figure 12

A50D glass to handrail connection. Used for frameless cantilevered glass systems (such as F8) in commercial applications..

12A. Front and side elevations

12B. Isometric

12C. Exploded

Figure 13

A50D stanchion blade to glass connection. Includes slotted body and back nut. Typical application is for supporting glass panels from stanchion blades in commercial applications where a larger offset is required.

13A. Front and side elevations

13B. Isometric

13C. Exploded

11A

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12A

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A50D stanchion wing to glass connection. Includes patch fitting assembly with mounting pin. Typical application is for mounting on winged stanchion systems such as the W4 (see brochure) in a commercial context, bearing a glass panel from a stanchion wing.

14A. Front and side elevations

14B. Isometric

14C. Exploded

14A

14B 14C

Figure 15

A50D stanchion wing to glass and handrail connection. Patch fitting assembly with mounting pin and handrail support pin assembly. Typical application is for mounting on stanchion systems in a commercial context, simultaneously bearing glass and handrail loads.

15A. Front and side elevations

15B. Isometric

15C. Exploded

15A

15B 15C

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16B 16C

Figure 16

R38D patch fitting cover nut with 30mm offstand for M10 connection/fixing. Typically mounted on blade stanchions in domestic situations where high potential loads are not expected.

16A. Front and side elevations

16B. Isometric

16C. Exploded

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Figure 17

R38D patch fitting cover nut with 38mm offstand for M10 connection/fixing. Typically used for cantilevered glass balustrade in domestic situations where high potential loads are not expected.

17A. Front and side elevations

17B. Isometric

17C. Exploded

Figure 18

R38D handrail mount: bent version. For handrail mounted off M10 through-glass patch-fitting fixing.

18A. Front and side elevations

18B. Isometric

18C. Exploded

Figure 19

R38D handrail mount: mitred version. For handrail mounted off M10 through-glass patch-fitting fixing.

19A. Front and side elevations

19B. Isometric

19C. Exploded

17A

17B 17C

18A

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Wall mounted handrail support. Typically located on nogging or other behind-plaster support.

20A. Front and side elevations

20B. Isometric

20C. Exploded

20A

20B 20C

Figure 21

44 square light duty clasp style patch fitting suiting 8-10mm glass. Typically employed on flatbar or SHS stanchion posts.

21A. Side detail

21B. Back detail

21C. Top detail

21D. Isometric

21E. Exploded

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complianceArden is a BSA licensed contractor for carpentry, joinery, glass, glazing and aluminium as well as structural metal fabrication and erection. Arden supplies a Form 16 (Licensed Contractor) on all projects. In design and construct contracts, a Form 15 (Design Engineer) certification is supplied upon request. Please see specific product technical data sheets to check level of compliance with relevant codes and standards.

For all commercial applications, it is important that sufficient space for the stairwell cavity be allowed to satisfy Australian Standards and BCA requirements.

The footprint is primarily driven by the floor to floor rise, as well as the staircase configuration chosen. However, stringer and balustrade style design may increase the amount of space required. Allowing too small a cavity can restrict the design options of the staircase. Also, points at where the staircase interacts with other structures are best addressed early in the design cycle.

Consultation with Arden early on will help ensure that these design issues can be addressed in a cost-effective manner.

design note

About this document

Intellectual property is copyright © Archstairs Pty Ltd unless otherwise agreed in writing. All rights to the document are retained. Any use of the document by clients or third parties, unless specifically authorised by Archstairs Pty Ltd, are at their own risk and the user releases and indemnifies Archstairs Pty Ltd from and against all loss or damage arising from such use.

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