What is BS EN 1502 about?
BS EN 1502 is an International Standard on inland navigation vessels, that discusses boarding stairs for inland navigation vessels.
BS EN 1502 specifies safety requirements on the design, dimensions and strength, and test methods for outboard stairs.
BS EN 1502 applies to board stairs for inland navigation vessels. Boarding stairs are used on inland navigation vessels for a safe transition into ship's boats, safe disembarking to the shore, or a safe crossing over onto vessels with lower decks.
Boarding stairs are designed for vessels having a boarding height greater than 1,5 m above the light waterline. They can be used up to a height of around 3,0 m above the light waterline.
Who is BS EN 1502 for?
BS EN 1502 on inland navigation vessels for boarding stairs is useful to:
- Marine industry
- Shipbuilding and naval manufacturing
- Vessel manufacturers
- Boarding stairs manufacturers
- Design engineers for inland navigation vessel
- Hulls manufacturers
Why should you use BS EN 1502?
BS EN 1502 provides safety requirements on design and dimensional guidelines to help stairs manufacturers to select proper dimensions and designs for the boarding stairs (as per the specification for marine applications).
BS EN 1502 gives you guidelines about facilitating safe climbing into ship’s boats, safe disembarking over onto vessels, and thus helps you significantly in such cases.
As a manufacturer of vessels, you would use BS EN 1502 to understand which boarding stairs are suitable for the inland vessel. Also, you can demonstrate the reliability of your products and build trust throughout the marine supply chain.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS EN 1502:2020 supersedes BS EN 1502:1995. BS EN 1502:2020 includes some technical changes with respect to BS EN 1502:1995. These include:
- Clause "Terms and definitions" has been revised, definitions have been changed, the term "hook" has been deleted
- Handrail must be provided on both sides
- Maximum permissible masses in Table 1 have been adapted
- Design requirements have been reformulated
- Material requirements have been changed, FRP is accepted
- Tests have been formulated more precisely

