A Look at How Glass Wall Systems are Making their Way into Mainstream Usage

Outdoor living is one of the hottest trends in the residential market these days. From kitchens to spas to overall entertainment, homeowners are looking for ways to connect to the outdoors. Thanks to innovations in glass and glazing systems, fenestration companies are poised to take a firm hold on this market trend in any economic recovery. One popular fenestration option of late is the moveable/opening glass wall system.

These systems, which consist of large spans of glass panels, are designed to slide or fold open, creating a way to bring the outside inside. Operable glass walls, influenced by European design, have been available in North America for more than two decades. It's been in recent years, though, that the systems have been making their way into North American construction at an accelerated rate.

Nana Wall Systems, a manufacturer of opening glass walls based in Mill Valley, Calif., has been working with these wall systems since the mid-1980s. President Ebrahim Nana says his company, which began as a real estate developer, started to see a market for large openings in 1986.

"From 1986 to 1990 we imported a system from Germany and then from 1990 to 1996 we began making our own. In 1996 we became partners with Solarlux [a German manufacturer]," says Nana.

Another California company, Weiland Sliding Doors and Windows located in Oceanside, has been making sliding glass door systems since the 1990s and before that was involved in specialty woodworking. Sue Weiland, chief financial officer and one of the company owners, explains that the decision to begin making the sliding door systems was driven by customer requests. Company founder Bill Weiland traveled to Europe to learn about the products and then brought ideas back to their operations in the United States.

Solar Innovations Inc., located in Myerstown, Pa., began manufacturing operable wall systems within the past few years. But the company is not new to glazing products, as it has roots that date back to the 1950s and has manufactured a variety of fenestration products including conservatories, sunrooms, skylights and more.

"The reason we got into it was because we could not find a good exterior operable wall system that would meet our needs and our customers' needs," says Greg Header, president. "We had tried buying others but we found that we could design a better one ourselves."

Nana Wall, Weiland and Solar Innovations all agree that the operable wall systems are fast-growing in terms of popularity and usage. Alison Blume, marketing manager for Nana Wall, says their sales have gone up more than 50 percent in the past few years. Header says they, too, have seen a great deal of growth.

And Weiland adds that her company has seen "healthy" growth in the past few years, too.

So what is it that has accelerated this growth? A need and desire to connect to the outdoors.

"What has lead to the growth is the seamless transition between the indoors and outdoors that they provide," says Weiland. "There's a big push to live outdoors and these systems can eliminate that barrier."

Another reason for the popularity is the shear aesthetics that come from large spans of glass.

"Architects will select something like this just for the aesthetics," says Nana, who explains that his company's systems are designed to have a minimal frame in order to maximize the view. "And all of the hardware is concealed," he adds.

But a product such as an operable wall system may bring with it many questions. Where can it be used? What are the challenges and concerns and how much more does it cost? To find out more about using operable wall systems be sure and read "Wide Open Spaces," in the upcoming issue of the Architects' Guide to Glass.

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