Creating a beautiful staircase is one thing. Creating a complex curved staircase where every transition, radius and component has to work perfectly is another.
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, King & Company combines specialist staircase craftsmanship with advanced CNC technology. Nate Clay, responsible for drawing, CNC programming and shop floor management, shares the story behind two very different circular staircases.
Two Very Different Staircases
The first was a traditional curved staircase in a Boston brownstone, featuring a continuous handrail running from the garden level to the sixth floor.
The second was a modern circular staircase with clean, minimalist lines, a butcher-style stringer, metal balusters and a wooden handrail. Despite its simple appearance, the design demanded a high level of precision.
“With all these minimal, clean, super-crisp lines, it’s much more difficult to fabricate and make sure that everything is just so.”
Precision and Control with Staircon
For the modern staircase, King & Company used Staircon to design and manufacture complex wreath rails, a wall cap and a wreath volute. These components were produced using 5-axis CNC machining, with the rails also pre-drilled to ensure accurate assembly.
Staircon’s parametric approach makes it easier to make design changes and update components, compared with the more time-consuming process of reworking individual parts in other CAD and CAM systems.
Together, Staircon and 5-axis machining have also allowed King & Company to bring more of the work in-house, from design and machining to assembly and testing. This gives the team greater control over quality, timing and the finished result.
“Having control of that process and that work and scope is kind of key to what we do.”
Not every staircase arrives with every radius and transition precisely defined. Sometimes the architect specifies the required radii. In other cases, King & Company uses its experience to create transitions that are both technically sound and visually pleasing.
The team can refine the geometry in Staircon and submit the design to the architect and designer for approval, combining software, experience and craftsmanship to achieve the desired result.
From Craftsmanship to Best in Show
King & Company’s work has received five StairCraft Awards. The projects featured in this case story received multiple awards, with the modern curved staircase ultimately selected as Best in Show.
For Nate, the recognition was particularly meaningful. The modern staircase had required significant time, engineering and craftsmanship, and seeing the completed project in the finished home confirmed what the team had set out to achieve.
For King & Company, it is a strong example of how advanced technology can support specialist craftsmanship and make it possible to take on increasingly complex staircase designs.
Watch the video to hear Nate Clay share the story behind these award-winning staircases and how Staircon supported their design and manufacture.
You can also read about all the 2026 StairCraft Award winners here.
