by Brianna Crandall — June 20, 2014—Continuing FMLink’s coverage of workplace furniture manufacturer Allsteel Inc. at last week’s NeoCon contract furnishings show in Chicago, Allsteel’s Beyond Designer for Revit took home Best of NeoCon Silver in the Software Technologies category. Allsteel also expanded its line of Beyond movable walls with Beyond Solid, which is described below along with the new Revit app. A previous FMLink article covered the Mimeo task chair, which won Best of NeoCon Silver. Both Mimeo and the Beyond Designer for Revit address growing industry trends and meet user demands in a new way, says Allsteel.
Beyond Designer is a free add-on application for the Autodesk Revit building design and construction software (specifically built for Building Information Modeling, or BIM) that is used to improve workflow through productivity, communication and collaboration when planning Beyond movable walls. The add-on utilizes the Revit program’s native curtain wall functionality to easily place and specify movable walls (“demountable curtain walls”).
The application’s built-in automation efficiently places all trim, wall mounts and vertical fillers to allow users to draw and specify movable walls quickly and intuitively in a familiar, industry-standard program. The user can also quickly update a panel to change sizes and add options such as doors and privacy elements with a few clicks. The Beyond Designer for Revit increases productivity by allowing the user to perform functions considerably faster than placing the same elements with native Revit capabilities with some additional features, explains Allsteel.
Allsteel has expanded its Beyond movable walls line with the introduction of Beyond Solid. With this addition, Allsteel’s Beyond portfolio offers a high level of flexibility and speed to meet the difficult-to-predict needs of the modern workspace. The solution enables facilities professionals to move beyond permanent drywall solutions and rigid space planning to flexible workspaces that are ready to reconfigure by relocating walls, empowering them to easily manage whatever change the future brings.
With unitized, or fully assembled, construction, and factory-controlled quality, Beyond serves as an agile movable wall solution designed to deliver superior acoustic performance. Specifically, Beyond Solid and the rest of the Beyond line allow for increased design flexibility, and function as an alternative solution to drywall and other traditional construction. Beyond Solid is the third offering in Allsteel’s suite of movable walls and complements the existing Beyond Framed and Frameless options.
Designed in partnership with Eberhard von Huene, Beyond Solid movable walls are built with a unique scissor-lift leveling mechanism. The universal frame accommodates both vertical and horizontal mounting of tiles and furniture. The tiles are available in monolithic or segmented formats, and come in a variety of materials and finishes.
Allsteel Inc., headquartered in Muscatine, Iowa, has been designing, building and delivering award-winning workplace furniture solutions since 1912. Allsteel continues its commitment to innovation with its extensive product portfolio, which includes movable glass wall offerings. Allsteel offers solutions designed to improve efficiency, foster teamwork, and deliver long-term value to increase the effectiveness of businesses. The company has Resource Centers in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, San Francisco, Santa Monica and Washington, DC, as well as in Toronto, Canada.
