KOVA introduces Modwall, a true replacement for traditional interior on-site construction. Unlike other adaptable ‘partition’ solutions on the market, Modwall is self-supporting with an integral structural armature and modular panels that allow the system to be free-standing in any space, eliminating the need to tie back to base-building columns or overhead structure. Additionally, custom-designed connections and friction-fit slip receivers make installation simple, efficient, and truly reusable while also improving performance over traditional systems.
With companies scrambling to transform their workspace to suit new modes of hybrid work, the impact of commercial office renovation on productivity, capital expenditure, and the environment is more evident than ever. The need for workplace design and construction methods that can better adapt alongside evolving space and human needs is also apparent. Traditional interior construction is rigid and inflexible, requiring significant demolition and renovation to address changing work and space needs. As a result, the typical office space is renovated on average every five years—with each renovation resulting in lost productivity and contributing to significant landfill waste. For example, the typical single-floor, 10,000 sq ft office renovation will disrupt work for 16 weeks and send 600,000 pounds of waste to landfill.
To date, modular solutions have been expensive, surprisingly inflexible, aesthetically limiting, and acoustically ineffective—they perform more like furniture than true replacements for interior drywall construction, and they often wind up in landfill alongside construction debris when workspaces are redesigned.
Modwall presents a compelling alternative: addressing the need for an affordable, efficient building system that meets the acoustic performance of drywall with the same ability to realize design intent, but without the mess, waste, and lost resources inherent in traditional construction. A simple aluminum wall frame with sustainable, plant-based batt insulation slides into the post-and-beam structure, providing a framework for easily mounting interior and exterior finishes. Designed with construction waste reduction in mind, the system can easily be demounted and reconfigured to meet changing human and space needs instead of ending up in a landfill.
“One of the most important inspirations behind the Modwall Adaptable Room System is real-world reuse,” says KOVA’s Director of Architecture, Gray Dougherty, AIA, LEED AP, Assoc. DBIA. “Modular systems exist, but the effective reuse of their parts in the customer environment does not, resulting in solutions that never seem to move the needle on the cost/time/quality trade-off. The simple design of the Modwall system allows it to be easily disassembled and redeployed.”
The Modwall system addresses projects of various magnitudes and rooms of different sizes. From small huddles to large meeting rooms, it works particularly well in addressing banks of spaces with varying layouts and sizes by leveraging the same post-and-beam infrastructure. As needs and desires change, finishes can be easily swapped and the system can be reconfigured with less investment and downtime. Mechanical, electrical, and fire protection systems are integrated into the system in the shop, providing plug-and-play connections that enable easy connection to base-building systems, removing this traditional pain point. In addition, everything can be easily moved and refreshed for Day 2 redesign.
“We developed Modwall to relieve the pressures surrounding the future workplace, allowing clients to design and build with confidence for today’s needs knowing that the system can accommodate unforeseen changes and evolving circumstances in the future,” says KOVA’s Vice President Dan Sullivan, AIA, NCARB. “This product strategically moves the commercial real estate industry away from staggering material waste while ensuring an ongoing return on investment for clients.”