Aluminium Stair Nosing 70x40mm Bullnose with Photoluminescent Strip

A step edge that stays visible when the lights go out

This is the nosing you fit when a stairway has to stay legible in a power cut. It is a heavy duty aluminium profile with a 70mm tread and a 40mm bullnose front, and the leading 13mm of that tread is a photoluminescent strip that charges under ordinary room lighting and keeps glowing once the lighting fails. Behind it sits a wide coloured PVC insert doing the everyday work: grip underfoot, and a tonal difference against the tread. Specifiers use it in stair cores forming part of an escape route; facilities teams use it when a refurbishment has to improve slip resistance and emergency wayfinding at once, without running a cable to every step.

Why it works

The glow strip is a material, not a battery

The pale green band at the nose is a europium-doped strontium aluminate compound moulded into a textured anti-slip strip. It charges from whatever light the stairway already has, and needs no wiring, no driver and no maintenance beyond cleaning. The manufacturer states afterglow brightness of 455 mcd/m² measured ten minutes after excitation, a highly visible afterglow of more than 600 minutes, and more than 3,000 minutes before it decays to 0.32 mcd/m². That is the case for it over a powered nosing: there is nothing to fail at the moment you need it.

The insert does the day-to-day work

The wider insert behind the strip is a REACH-compliant flexible PVC extrusion with a three-dimensional pyramid surface. The manufacturer states R11 under the DIN 51130:2010 inclined platform test, and pendulum values under BS 7976-2:2002 of 66 dry and 54 wet, both inside the low slip potential band the UK Slip Resistance Group puts at 36 and above. A polyurethane coating reduces dirt retention. The insert is stated to resist UV, oil, grease, petrol, salt, dilute acids and alkalis and common detergents; organic solvents will soften it.

A carrier sized for heavy traffic

The channel is extruded from 6063 aluminium alloy in a 5mm gauge. That gauge is what lets the profile sit down over heavy duty carpet or a similar floor covering rather than perch on top of it. The 40mm bullnose front is a formed shell that wraps the step corner and hooks back underneath, so the vulnerable arris of the tread is covered rather than merely edged.

Where it is used

Office and school stair cores, hospital and care home circulation stairs, hotel back-of-house flights, retail service stairs, plant rooms, and internal stairways forming part of a means of escape. It is also specified in student accommodation and apartment blocks where a common stair has to stay usable in a power failure. With eleven insert colours it suits a hazard-marked industrial flight and a finished public one equally.

Specifications

Choosing the right option

Length. Measure the full width of the tread, including any string or skirting the nosing runs between, and take the next stock length up. Six lengths are stocked, from 1.0m to 3.22m, so most standard flights and most 900mm to 1200mm domestic stairs are covered with little waste. Cut on site with a mitre saw and a non-ferrous blade.

Colour. Choose it for contrast, not decoration. The manufacturer publishes a light reflectance value for every insert, and the mill aluminium channel sits at 78.9. Pairing that channel with a dark insert gives the widest tonal separation: Black at 4.5, Brown at 9.1, Cobalt Blue at 9.2, Red at 10.6, Midnight Grey at 12.8. White at 79.9 sits almost on the channel value and will read as one pale band. Work from those figures against your own tread and riser finishes, not from the colour names.

Installation, use and care

The manufacturer specifies a bonded and mechanically fixed installation, not adhesive alone. The steps must be dry, clean, free of debris, level and even. Where the profile is pre-drilled, use the holes to mark the drilling positions, then drill and plug the step. Apply a suitable adhesive to the underside, set the nosing down and screw it down with the appropriate size screws; the insert, or an insert pip, then covers the screw head. Clean the inserts with a neutral detergent, rinse with clean water and let them dry before the stair takes traffic. The aluminium can be polished with steel wool or a cloth, but solvent cleaners should never be used on it.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the glow strip stay visible after the lights go off?

The manufacturer states a highly visible afterglow of more than 600 minutes, and more than 3,000 minutes before the strip decays to 0.32 mcd/m². It has to have been charged by the stairway's normal lighting first; it will not perform in a space kept permanently dark.

Is this suitable for outdoor steps?

No. The manufacturer supplies this insert range for internal applications. A separate external-grade insert range is made for the same profile, so if your steps are exposed to the weather please ask us for that build instead.

Can it be cut to length on site?

Yes. Order the next stock length up from your tread width and cut it with a mitre saw and a non-ferrous blade. If you would rather have it supplied cut and drilled, contact us before ordering and we will quote it.

What is the 5mm gauge for?

It is the floor covering depth the profile accommodates, so the nosing can be laid over heavy duty carpet or similar and finish flush with it rather than standing proud.

Ordering and delivery

Every insert colour and length is priced individually above, so the price shown is the price for the exact bar you need. Orders are dispatched on a tracked UK service at a single flat rate. For a full flight quantity, or a length or drilling pattern not listed, contact us before ordering and we will confirm availability and price.

View our complete range of stair nosing profiles — aluminium, rubber and PVC options for every application.