Custom Opening System Case Studies

Surrounded by the wooded landscape of Daniels, West Virginia, this residence was designed to make the main living area feel connected to its surroundings from nearly every direction. Five Renlita Wave systems span three walls of the living and dining space, creating expansive glazed elevations that provide panoramic views while giving the homeowners the ability to open much of the room’s perimeter to the outdoors.

A New York City condominium garage uses an automated parking system to accommodate five vehicles within a limited urban footprint. Three vehicles are stored at street level while two additional vehicles can be stored below using automated car lifts.

A custom Renlita Float was integrated with the parking and home-automation systems so the garage door could become part of the vehicle-retrieval sequence. When a resident selects a vehicle from the control system, the parking equipment positions the requested car and the garage door opens once the vehicle is ready for access.

A coastal residence on Fishers Island, New York, called for a large glazed opening that could connect the home with the outdoors without requiring the door to occupy valuable space above the opening.

Working with Point One Architects, Renlita developed a custom Lift configuration that reverses the typical vertical operating direction. Instead of raising above the opening, the nearly 16-foot-wide glazed door lowers through the finished floor and stores within the basement level below.

The Expo Space at Starrett-Lehigh in New York City is a flexible event environment designed for content builds, immersive showcases, brand activations, and other large-scale gatherings. Within the space, a long glazed partition incorporates five large operable openings alongside coordinated fixed panels.

Renlita Lift systems allow these sections of the partition to open vertically, creating large connections between adjacent areas while keeping the door movement concentrated at the openings. When closed, the operable doors and surrounding fixed panels read as a continuous architectural composition.

Designed for a compact residence where every square foot matters, this Renlita Vue creates a large connection between the main living area and the outdoor deck without introducing an intrusive overhead door system into the interior.

The glazed vertical lift opening brings in natural light and expansive views while allowing the living space to extend outdoors when open. Its streamlined operation helps preserve valuable floor and ceiling space, supporting the home’s open, efficient design.

The Lexus Lounge at Credit One Stadium in Charleston, South Carolina, is a stadium hospitality space with views into the sports venue on one side and access to an outdoor terrace on the other. The lounge provides an interior gathering and dining space while the adjacent terrace extends the hospitality environment outdoors.

The project sought to extend the interior bar onto the terrace so staff could serve guests on both sides of the opening without sacrificing counter space, circulation, or the architectural character of the lounge.

While designing their new custom home in Denison, Texas, the homeowners envisioned an outdoor living space centered around their covered patio, grilling area, and pool. Because the family regularly hosts outdoor gatherings, they wanted a convenient connection between the kitchen and patio for moving food, drinks, and grilling supplies between the two spaces.

The original design called for a glass sectional garage door between the kitchen and outdoor living area. The homeowners ultimately chose a Renlita Flex gas-strut window because its single-panel, outward-opening design provided the kitchen pass-through they wanted without bringing sectional door tracks and overhead hardware into the finished interior.

The owners of a luxury residence in University Park, Texas, designed their finished garage to serve as more than vehicle storage. The space was intended for displaying collector vehicles, entertaining, and gathering with family and guests while maintaining the architectural character and finishes of the rest of the home.

The project called for three large glazed exterior openings while preserving the finished ceiling and flexible use of the garage. Renlita Hinge vertical lift doors were selected so the openings could operate without conventional garage-door tracks extending across the ceiling.

The Javits Center rooftop event venue in New York City combines an enclosed glass pavilion with an expansive outdoor terrace overlooking the surrounding cityscape. The venue uses the pavilion and terrace as complementary event spaces, creating an indoor-outdoor environment on the roof of one of New York City’s major convention facilities.

The project called for a large operable opening between the pavilion and rooftop terrace that could connect the two event areas while preserving the views, usable space, and transparent architectural character of the glass-enclosed pavilion.

Pearl Dive Oyster Palace in Washington, DC, uses a custom Renlita Float vertical opening to connect its interior restaurant space with exterior bar seating. Located within a historic building, the restaurant needed a pass-through that could support indoor-outdoor service while working within the distinctive arched geometry of the existing façade.

The finished 13’-wide by 8’-tall opening functions as both a glazed exterior enclosure and a pass-through bartop. Rather than modifying the arched opening to accommodate a standard rectangular door, the Float was custom engineered to follow its existing shape while preserving usable counter space below.

Hotel X in Toronto, Ontario, features a rooftop pool designed for year-round use while maintaining panoramic views of the Toronto skyline. The pool enclosure combines expansive glazing with an operable opening that allows the space to transition between an enclosed aquatic environment and an open-air rooftop experience.

Renlita engineered a custom Hinge vertical opening system for the enclosure, creating a 23’-11 3/16”-wide operable connection between the pool and exterior rooftop environment. The glazed system closes at the edge of the pool and becomes part of the exterior enclosure when closed, then raises vertically to open the pool directly to the outdoors.

Gotham West Market is a food hall and hospitality destination in New York City that brings restaurants, bars, and communal gathering spaces together within a high-density urban environment. The project included a large operable opening at the market’s bar and dining area to support service, visibility, and interaction with the surrounding market space.

Renlita engineered a custom Hinge vertical opening system measuring 19’-3 1/4” wide by 10’-5” tall. The glazed system opens vertically above the bar area, creating a broad connection to the surrounding market while preserving usable floor and ceiling space.

A custom pool house in Murphy, Texas, uses three Renlita vertical opening systems to connect its interior gathering space with the surrounding pool, patio, and outdoor living areas. The project incorporates two full-height Hinge vertical lift doors and one Float vertical lift door, allowing multiple areas of the pool house to open directly to the exterior.

Rather than using the same opening configuration throughout the structure, the project combines Hinge and Float systems to address different opening requirements while maintaining a coordinated architectural design. The resulting configuration allows the pool house to transition between an enclosed gathering space and a more open environment connected directly to the pool and patio.

Urban Farmer Steakhouse is located within Denver’s historic Oxford Hotel, a landmark property originally completed in 1891 near Union Station. Over more than a century, the Oxford has undergone multiple renovations and restorations intended to modernize the property while retaining its historic architectural character.

For Urban Farmer, the project called for two large operable openings that could connect the restaurant with the exterior while fitting naturally within the architecture of the historic property. Renlita engineered two custom Float vertical lift systems, formerly the S-1000 Floataway, measuring approximately 16 feet and 13 feet wide. The openings combine motorized counterweight operation with Low-E insulated glass to create large, transparent connections that can open without requiring conventional overhead door tracks through the restaurant.

The Moxy Washington, D.C. Downtown hotel uses two large operable glass openings to connect its interior social spaces with an outdoor patio. Designed as part of the hotel’s highly social ground-floor environment, the openings allow the interior gathering areas to extend outdoors while maintaining the glazed architectural character of the patio-facing façade.

Renlita provided two custom Fold vertical opening systems, formerly the S-3000 Foldaway, each measuring 11’-8 1/2” wide by 9’-5 3/4” tall. The motorized, counterweighted systems incorporate 1” Low-E insulated glass and fold vertically at the center of the opening, allowing the glazed façade to transition from an exterior enclosure into two large indoor-outdoor connections.

Bard College in New York created a multi-use student space using shipping containers, requiring the compact structure to support several different activities within a limited footprint. The space was designed to function as a classroom, study area, gallery, performance space, and informal gathering place, making flexibility an important part of the architectural design.

A large operable opening on the first floor was used to connect the interior with the surrounding wooded landscape and allow the relatively small building to function differently depending on how students and faculty were using it. Renlita provided a 16-foot-wide by 7-foot-tall Hinge vertical opening system, formerly the S-2000 Hingeway, with Low-E glass to create that adaptable connection.

The Detroit Red Wings Team Store at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, uses two large operable storefront openings to connect the retail space with the surrounding concourse. As part of the arena’s broader glazed façade, the openings needed to function as an integrated part of the storefront rather than appearing as conventional doors added to the architecture.

Two custom Renlita Float vertical lift systems were incorporated into the black-anodized curtainwall design. Each approximately 13’-5” wide by 10’-6” tall opening provides expansive glazing when closed and can be raised to create a direct, unobstructed connection between the Team Store and the concourse.

Fisher Middle School in Greenville, South Carolina, needed a flexible partition that could open educational spaces to one another without consuming the overhead area already occupied by HVAC equipment, fire sprinklers, and other building systems. The goal was to create adaptable space for changing school activities while avoiding unnecessary modifications to the existing infrastructure.

Renlita provided a custom Sovereign vertical stacking door with manual chain-hoist operation. Unlike a conventional sectional garage door that requires horizontal tracks extending into the room, the Sovereign panels stack vertically above the opening, leaving the surrounding ceiling available for the school’s existing mechanical and life-safety systems.

Urban Outfitters needed three large operable storefront openings for its Carlsbad, California location that could function as secure glazed barriers when closed and open pedestrian entrances during business hours. Each opening measures approximately 13’ 4” wide by 8’ 7½” tall, making the way the doors operated an important part of both the storefront design and the usable retail space.

Renlita Float vertical lift systems, formerly the S-1000 Floataway, were used to create the three openings. Their single-panel, counterweight-balanced design allows the glazed storefront panels to move vertically rather than requiring conventional overhead tracks to extend into the store.

Arizona State University’s W. P. Carey Foundation Armstrong Great Hall serves as a major gathering and event space on the Downtown Phoenix campus, hosting graduations, lectures, assemblies, performances, and other university events. The project called for a monumental operable opening between the interior auditorium and adjacent outdoor plaza so the two spaces could function independently or as a larger connected event environment.

Renlita engineered a custom Fold vertical opening system (formerly the S-3000 Foldaway) for the opening, allowing the Great Hall to transition between enclosed and indoor-outdoor configurations without conventional door tracks extending into the occupied event space.

Stanford University’s McMurtry Building houses the Department of Art and Art History, with classrooms, studios, screening rooms, a library, student spaces, and other facilities supporting the university’s arts programs. Designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro, the building includes a landscaped courtyard that serves as an important extension of its interior spaces.

The design called for a large glazed opening that could physically connect the building with the courtyard rather than limiting that relationship to views through a conventional façade. Renlita’s Fold vertical opening system, formerly the S-3000 Foldaway, was incorporated into the building to allow a substantial section of the façade to open vertically and create a direct connection between the interior and exterior.

At Sunglass Hut’s SoHo location at 496 Broadway in New York City, an existing office and back-of-house area needed greater flexibility without sacrificing valuable retail space. The challenge was to create a large operable partition that could separate the office from the sales environment when needed while opening substantially when the spaces needed to function together.

A conventional fixed wall would permanently divide the spaces, while a traditional overhead door would introduce tracks and operating hardware into an interior already coordinated around retail fixtures, lighting, and customer circulation. The solution needed to provide separation when closed, preserve a generous passage when open, and become part of the store’s interior architecture rather than look like conventional overhead door equipment.

Renlita’s Float vertical lift system, formerly the S-1000 Floataway, provided a custom single-panel solution designed specifically around those requirements.

The Branson School in Ross, California, wanted its Student Commons to function as more than an enclosed gathering space. The all-glass building was designed to connect with an adjacent outdoor dining terrace, creating the opportunity for the commons to transform into an open-air pavilion for student activities, dining, collaboration, and campus events.

The architectural challenge was integrating large operable openings without disrupting the transparency and carefully coordinated appearance of the glass façade. The doors needed to visually align with the surrounding window system while the lifting hardware, pulleys, and counterweights remained as unobtrusive as possible.

Renlita engineered three custom Float vertical lift doors, formerly the S-1000 Floataway, specifically around the architecture of the building. Rather than treating the opening systems as separate mechanical components, the doors and their operating systems were customized to become part of the pavilion’s architectural expression.

Physicians Realty Trust wanted to connect two adjacent office spaces within its Milwaukee workplace while preserving the warm, rustic character of the existing interior. The goal was to create a large operable opening that could allow the rooms to function together when needed while maintaining separation and privacy during normal office use.

The architectural challenge was finding a partition large enough to meaningfully connect the spaces without introducing conventional overhead tracks or an industrial appearance into the finished office environment. Because the opening would become a prominent interior feature, its glazing and appearance also needed to complement the surrounding wood, glass, and architectural finishes.

Renlita developed a custom Sovereign vertical lift bifold system measuring approximately 14 feet wide by 8 feet high, combining a compact stacking configuration with clear insulated glass and a faux wood-grain architectural finish.

Sundance Square Pavilion is a public and private event venue in downtown Fort Worth, Texas, designed to accommodate weddings, corporate functions, exhibitions, cultural gatherings, community festivals, and other events. Because the pavilion serves many different uses, its perimeter needed to adapt to the event rather than permanently separate the interior from Sundance Square Plaza.

Renlita provided 12 custom Hinge vertical lift door systems, formerly the S-2000 Hingeway, around the pavilion. Each motorized counterweight system measures approximately 6’-2 3/4” wide by 13’-8 1/8” tall and incorporates 1” Low-E insulated glass. Together, the glazed openings allow substantial portions of the pavilion to open directly to the surrounding plaza while maintaining an enclosed event space when needed.

The result is a venue whose exterior openings become part of its space-planning strategy. Rather than limiting events to a fixed interior footprint, the Hinge systems allow Sundance Square Pavilion to change its relationship with the surrounding public space according to the event, weather, and operating requirements.