Why Modular?

Durability

The first thing to show signs of rust on any fabricated guardrail is almost always at the welds. Why do welds rust? The most common reason for railing corrosion at the weld is because welds are commonly made on pipe that has already been galvanized. The process of welding will remove any existing coating or galvanizing on the welded parts. These welds are typically touched up with a zinc rich paint. Zinc paint can chip and flake off and is not nearly as corrosion resistant as the original galvanized coating.

Additionally welds are often porous and rough, allowing water and contaminants to be trapped inside. Not only are rusted welds unsightly, significant levels of rust compromise the integrity of the most structurally critical part of a railing. An uncoated area of railing can lose up to half of its’ structural integrity in less than 8 years. Seems like a long time, but when you consider that most guardrails are only required to be rated for a load of 220 pounds, any loss of strength can pose a serious safety concern.

What About Railings That Are Painted or Powder Coated After Welding?

Painted or powder coated railings can offer a similar level of protection to galvanized railings provided there is no abrasion or damage to the finish. Once a painted or powder coated finish is damaged the exposed steel will rust rapidly. Since guardrails and handrails are by design going to be touched and interacted with by people, the likely hood of damage is high.

Most damage to painted and powder coated railings occurs during shipping and installation, requiring field touch up. Touch-up spots don’t have the same level of surface preparation and quality control as original coatings. A properly galvanized coating is at least equal in strength to the coated metal.

At Modular Railing Systems, our fittings and railings are all galvanized first and then, if required, powder coated. This ensures that any eventual scratches or chips will not lead to rusting.

What About Railings That Are Hot Dipped Galvanized After Welding?

The maximum total length a continuous fabricated railing can be galvanized and shipped on average is 20-24 ft. Continuous railings longer than 24’ are typically spliced together with field welding, bolted or broken into sections. These splice sections are where coating damage and rusting is most likely to occur. Railings by modular railing systems can be constructed with infinite continuous length with no risk of rusted splices.

Why Use Modular Railing Systems?

Our pipe and fittings system maintain the integrity of the coatings because they don’t require welding. The cut ends of the pipe can be sprayed with zinc but it is not necessary because all ends are covered by a fitting.

Need More Proof?

We went to downtown Houston one afternoon to take a look at the railings in the area and this is what we found.

Repairs

Repairing a welded railing usually requires either fully replace or cutting out the damaged section and welding a new section of railing in place. Repairs often turn out looking like this:

Railing repairs for modular railing systems is as simple as loosening a few set screws and replacing the damaged pipe with a new one.

Quality

Our products offer superior quality. Our railing fittings have been used around the world for over 50 years. Our galvanized rail tubing features the flo-coat triple layer corrosion resistance. Our powder coated products have been tested and refined to provide a superior look and finish. All of this is provided to our customers out of our facility certified to the quality standards of ISO9001:2015.

Cost Effective

When taking into account all factors associated with welded railings our railing solutions typically save our customer 20%-30%. This does not take into account the extra cost of field modifications or adjustments that are typical of welded railings. See here for more details.

Lead Times

Need your railing project done in a hurry. No problem, we can fulfill most orders in 24 to 48 hours and large non stock orders in only 1-2 weeks. Powder coated projects typically add 5 days. Compare that to fabricated welded railings. A typical fabricated railing will take:

• 1-2 weeks for design and shop drawings
• 1 week for materials procurement
• 1-2 weeks for fabrication assuming there is room in the schedule.
• 1-2 weeks for galvanizing, painting and/or powder coating.
• 4 to 7 weeks just to make a simple fabricated guardrail and that is just for a small project.   Large projects can take months to finish.

Safety

Welding is hazardous work, fumes from welding on galvanized pipe, fire and electric shock are just some of the hazards welders face. Our pre-engineered railings only require simple tools to put together and eliminate all of the risks associated with welding.

Repurpose

Decide your railing needs to be moved? With Modular Railing Systems it is super simple. All of our fittings and pipe are reusable. A welded railing system is best sent to the recycler if it needs to be modified.

Shipping and Handling

One of the biggest complaints we here from customers who buy fabricated railings is damage in shipping and handling. Imagine you just bought a beautiful powder coated fabricated railing and after it bounced around in a truck and was moved with a forklift the coating is damaged all over. Our modular systems ship compact and well packaged. Coated fittings are individually wrapped as well as each pipe bundle. This greatly reduces the chance of damage in transit.