It can take several weekends, even for only an office or two. Standard construction is messy, disruptive and time-consuming. Movable walls will reduce that by roughly sixty percent. A typical budget to reconfigure space in an office can run around fifteen thousand dollars.

Future reconfigurations: There are significant savings when reconfiguring an office space using movable walls.

Potential tax savings over the lease term: Talk to your CPA or CFO, but often the movable wall costs can be structured so that tax savings over five years is possible.

Schedule: Movable wall installation will save you three to four weeks on your construction schedule.

However, the cost difference is offset by a few factors. Depending on the type of movable wall used costs can run up to $3.00 per square foot more than standard drywall construction.

When looking at initial values for a project, and comparing standard construction and movable wall installation, there are several variables to consider. Change is a constant in business, so finding solutions that are considerably less expensive is key. The main advantage of movable walls is flexibility, and for facility managers, it’s what justifies paying any first-cost premium. At the same time, reducing costs now make them a more viable option. How long ago was that? In the past several years “standard” construction materials have skyrocketed while the movable wall industry has improved its technology. Maybe the last time you looked at movable walls, they were considerably more expensive than standard drywall. Giving movable wall systems a second look An emphasis on flexibility, cost, and green design. Once trendsetters like Google and Facebook started sharing their office design concepts using movable wall systems, the wall industry finally caught fire. At the same time, conventional construction costs hit the roof. What made the transition to movable walls even easier was each evolution of the product was better engineered and affordable. Companies were forced to embrace flexibility or go the way of the dinosaurs. Their competition is people they’d never heard of on the other side of the world. First, global trade barriers were broken down, and suddenly businesses were no longer competing with Frank down the street. Small and mid-sized companies were reluctant to adopt movable walls because at the time it was more expensive than using drywall and it required a new thought process in terms of design.Ĭhange happens: Many events over the past couple decades have contributed to movable wall systems viewed as the indispensable office technology they are today. The broader market: At a time when the term “global market” only applied to a tiny amount of industries, the business climate was considerably more static than it is today with little need for reconfiguring space (a key point in selling movable walls). Government offices were quick to implement movable walls for the same reasons.

Some of the earliest users were the corporate giants with their half-acre multilevel offices that cried out for practical methods of dividing and rearranging space. Construction costs were relatively low at that time. The pioneers: When movable walls entered the market over 40 years ago many companies looked at the price tag and considered them an exciting concept, but with no real-world application. As these companies utilize movable wall systems to increase competitiveness, they’ve also discovered they can save a bundle on construction and utilities versus conventional drywall. Companies of all sizes are realizing the wisdom in designing spaces which can quickly change to accommodate temporary or permanent staffing fluctuations. The movable walls revolution was in slow motion for close to half a century. Movable Walls Are Disrupting Office Design