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HERMEQ Modular Steel Stairway or StepGO: which one to order for your site

By George | October 2026 | 6 min read

Choosing between HERMEQ's two temporary steel staircases comes down to three site details: how you are fixing at the top and bottom of a slope, how you are joining runs together, and what the treads have to cope with underfoot. HERMEQ supplies the Modular Steel Stairway and the StepGO, and the overlap between them is real enough that orders regularly go in for the wrong one. This guide maps each staircase to the site conditions that should decide the call.

Two HERMEQ staircases, one order decision

Both the Modular Steel Stairway and the StepGO are temporary steel staircases for construction site access, and both will get people up and down safely. A buyer rings asking for "the site staircase," and the right answer is a question back: how is it being fixed, and where is it going?

One solution doesn't fix all site issues, and therefore we stock and distribute the two.

The confusion at point of order is a communication gap, not a customer mistake. The two products look similar enough in a catalogue that the wrong one goes on the order, and the problem only surfaces on site. What follows maps each staircase to the conditions where it is the right choice.

Similarities of both staircases

Both the Modular Steel Stairway and the StepGO are modular site stairs, available in 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 steps (multiples of three), and both can be joined to extend a run. Two 9-step units make an 18-step run, and there is no practical ceiling: keep adding flights until the height is right.

Either staircase works on an unsupported span as well as a supported one, so both handle embankment access without intermediate ground support. Both fix to a concrete slab and to scaffolding using the appropriate stairway attachments, including the scaffold coupler for scaffold tube ties. Handrails run down both sides as standard on either product.
Both are 700mm wide. That is the only width available, so width is never the variable that decides the order. Both carry a UDL of 1 kN/m² or 1.5 kN per step, which is two people on the stairway at once.

The differences that decide the order

Every shared capability was covered above. What follows is where the two products actually diverge.

Feature	Modular Steel Stairway	StepGO
Connecting units	Sections slide together and connect at the handrail, which is already fitted	Screws must be released and separate connectors fitted before sections join
Bracket size (top and bottom)	Standard	Notably larger
Embankment fixing	Slab attachment point at the top; 400 mm ground peg usable at the bottom, though no dedicated method is published	400 mm pegs at top and bottom, with a documented method in the HERMEQ StepGO User Guide
Tread surface	Standard anti-slip finish	Aggressive "bear trap" anti-skid surface
Handrail finish	Standard finish	Powder-coated in HERMEQ Green

Joining two units into a longer run

Modular Steel Stairways

With the Modular Steel Stairway, the handrail is already fitted to each unit, so joining a second flight is straightforward:

The modular steel stairway will just connect. It will slide in together, and then they connect at the handrail, which is already there.

No separate connectors to source, no screws to release before the sections mate.

The StepGO

The StepGO works differently. Screws must be released and separate connectors fitted between the units before the sections join. The result is the same continuous run, and the StepGO connection is not difficult, but it takes longer and introduces a small part that has to be on site and accounted for.

If the staircase stays in one configuration from installation to strip-out, the difference barely matters. If the crew will be joining and separating sections repeatedly, the Modular Steel Stairway is the faster tool.

Fixing to an embankment

Embankment fixing is where the two staircases part company most clearly. The StepGO has a documented method: 400 mm pegs at the top and bottom of the slope, driven through the larger brackets the StepGO carries at each end.

It is documented that you can attach them at the top of an embankment and at the bottom of an embankment with 400 millimetre pegs, very similar to tent pegs.

That method is written up in the HERMEQ StepGO User Guide*, so there is a written procedure to point to when a site manager, principal contractor or inspector asks how the staircase is held. The larger brackets are part of why the method works: they give the pegs enough purchase at each end to hold the staircase on the slope without intermediate ground support. The 400 mm pegs are not included in a standard StepGO order, but HERMEQ can supply them when the embankment application is flagged at the time of ordering. This is temporary staircase embankment fixing with a paperwork trail.

The Modular Steel Stairway is a different picture. It has a slab attachment point at the top and can take a 400 mm peg on site, so it is not impossible to use on an embankment. What it lacks is a documented procedure. Any embankment fixing with the Modular Steel Stairway is a site decision taken by the competent person on the ground, rather than a step-by-step method the crew can reference and the paperwork can record.

If your RAMS or inspection regime requires a documented fixing method at the top and bottom of the slope, the StepGO is the answer. If the site does not carry that documentation requirement and the fixing conditions suit, the Modular Steel Stairway remains an option.

Fixing to a slab or to scaffolding

Concrete slab fixing and scaffold attachment work the same way on both staircases. Both use the appropriate stairway attachment for a slab, and both tie to scaffolding identically. Neither product has an advantage over the other in either scenario, so if your site has a slab at the bottom and scaffold at the top, the fixing points do not decide the order. Work down to the connection method and the tread surface instead.

Treads, handrails and spotting one on site

The fastest way to tell the two staircases apart on a busy yard is the handrail colour. The StepGO handrail is powder-coated in HERMEQ Green; the Modular Steel Stairway handrail is a plain steel finish. Handrails run both sides on each product, so the ID cue is colour, not configuration.

The tread surface is the more consequential difference. The Modular Steel Stairway carries a standard anti-slip tread finish, which does the job on a covered staircase or inside a structure where conditions stay relatively dry.

The StepGO is another matter:

The StepGO has a very aggressive (what is referred to as a bear trap) anti-skid surface.

The bear trap finish bites hard into boot soles, which is what you want when the staircase is outdoors, exposed to rain, and the crew are coming up in muddy boots. It is a deliberate specification choice, not a cosmetic upgrade.
If the staircase sits inside a building or under a covered structure, the aggressive tread is not a reason to choose one product over the other. If it is going outside and mud and water will be on those treads daily, the StepGO tread is a genuine safety margin worth ordering for.

Which one to order

Embankment fixing with a documented method at top and bottom: order the StepGO. Outdoor or exposed treads where mud and rain are a daily reality: again, the StepGO. Its larger brackets, 400 mm pegs at both ends and bear-trap tread surface are built for those conditions.

Slab-fixed base, scaffold-tied top, or a site staircase going inside a structure: the Modular Steel Stairway. If the crew will be joining and separating flights repeatedly across a programme, its slide-and-lock handrail connection saves real time over the StepGO screw-and-connector method.

If the two conditions split across one job, the fixing points at top and bottom outrank tread preference. A staircase that cannot be properly documented on an embankment is the wrong staircase, whatever its surface finish.

Still not certain? Ring HERMEQ with the fixing points at top and bottom and the total run length. Those two facts are enough to write the order.

*For more information about our StepGO user instruction Manual, please contact a member of our team on 0800 043 2520 or email us at sales@hermeq.com

FAQ

Can I join a HERMEQ Modular Steel Stairway to a HERMEQ StepGO?

No. The two staircases use different connection methods, and the units are not interchangeable. The Modular Steel Stairway locks sections together at the handrail; the StepGO uses its own joining system. A longer run must be built from sections of the same product.

What is the longest run I can build by joining sections?

There is no documented maximum. Both staircases are available in 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 and 18 steps per unit, and you keep adding sections until you reach the height required. Two 9-step units produce an 18-step run; the same logic applies as you add further sections.

Are the 400 mm embankment pegs supplied with the StepGO or sourced on site?

The pegs are part of the StepGO's documented fixing method, driven through the brackets at each end of the staircase. For confirmation of what is included in the supply, contact HERMEQ directly before ordering.