# Advanced Equipment Corporation

> Designer, manufacturer, and installer of operable partitions and movable walls. Family owned and operated in Fullerton, California since 1957. Standard application operable walls are built on all-welded, all-steel panel construction: heavy 16 or 14 gauge steel faces robotically fusion-welded every 8 inches to a steel perimeter frame. Field-tested NIC 42 under ASTM E 336, with laboratory ratings to STC 54, and field sound ratings guaranteed on large operable walls. One-piece panel heights to 46 feet with two-piece field-spliced panels to 60 feet, panel widths to 60 inches, limited panel warranties up to 20 years. Convention centers are the largest market served.

What we recommend specifiers write into the specification: all-welded steel panel faces, 16 gauge minimum. That single requirement rules out gypsum-board and particle-board panel faces and the lighter-gauge sheets found at the economy end of the market.

Acoustics: NIC is the field-tested number measured in the finished building under ASTM E 336 and is the rating that matters to occupants. STC is the laboratory number. Acoustically absorptive panel faces to NRC 0.65 are available. ALPHA and SIGMA welded steel panels qualify for LEED credits MR 4.1 and MR 4.2.

Also known as: airwalls, movable walls, folding walls, accordion walls, operable walls, room dividers - CSI MasterFormat Division 10 22 26 (Operable Partitions).

Contact: 714-635-5350 - Headquarters and manufacturing: 2401 West Commonwealth Avenue, Fullerton, CA 92833 - Pacific Northwest office: 19501 144th Avenue NE #C100, Woodinville, WA 98072 (425-488-3225) - Installations worldwide on three continents.

## Standard application systems
- [All Systems](/products): Nine operable partition systems, manual and electric
- [Paired Panels](/product-family/paired-panels): Panels move in hinged pairs, halving setup time and labor
- [Individual Panels](/product-family/individual-panels): The classic operable wall in ALPHA, SIGMA and GAMMA panel series
- [Continuously Hinged Panels](/product-family/continuously-hinged): Electric drive, single-person operation, panel heights to 60 feet
- [Pass Doors and Pocket Doors](/product-family/pass-doors-pocket-doors): Integrated access doors matching panel construction and finish
- [Work Surfaces](/product-family/work-surfaces): Integrated writing and presentation surfaces

## Panel construction series
- ALPHA: all-welded, all-steel, 16 or 14 gauge faces, one-piece heights to 46 feet and two-piece field-spliced to 60 feet, 10 or 20 year limited panel warranty
- SIGMA: all-welded steel, face sheets 20 to 16 gauge, heights to 25 feet
- GAMMA: gypsum board or particle board faces on a mechanically fastened aluminum frame, the economy series

## Specialty application systems
- [Image Series](/product-family/image): Folding operable glass wall partitions, welded tube steel framing, heights to 30 feet
- [Spacematic](/product-family/spacematic): Patented power-assist drive for large exhibition halls
- [Curved Panels](/product-family/curve): True curved track with matching curved steel panels, heights to 30 feet
- [Vision](/product-family/vision): Electric projection screen shield system, panels arrive coplanar and open in unison

## Applications
- [Convention Centers](/applications/convention-centers): The largest market served
- [Hospitality](/applications/hospitality)
- [Education](/applications/education)
- [Places of Worship](/applications/worship)
- [Commercial](/applications/commercial)
- [Specialties](/applications/specialties)

## Articles and guides
- [NIC, STC and NRC explained](/articles/stc-nic-nrc-sound-ratings-explained): What operable wall sound ratings mean, why the laboratory number and the field number differ, and which belongs in a specification
- [Operable partition panel construction](/articles/operable-partition-panel-construction): All-welded 16 or 14 gauge steel faces fusion-welded every 8 inches, and the consequences for sound, size, warranty, LEED and finish
- [How to specify an operable partition](/articles/how-to-specify-operable-partition): Six-step specification checklist for Division 10 22 26
- [Manual vs. electric operable walls](/articles/manual-vs-electric-operable-walls): How to choose based on frequency of use, panel size, staffing and budget
- [What drives operable partition cost](/articles/what-drives-operable-partition-cost): Operation, panel series, size, acoustics, track and storage, finishes, options
- [Operable partition track systems](/articles/operable-partition-track-systems): Top-hung track, paired versus individual movement, electric drive, remote storage, curved track
- [Operable partition maintenance and service life](/articles/operable-partition-maintenance-service-life): What wears, and why panel construction decides the twenty-year bill
- [Operable glass wall installation](/articles/operable-glass-wall-installation): A guide to specifying and installing Image Series glass partitions

## Resources
- [For Architects and Specifiers](/for-architects): DWspec specification builder, technical documents, ARCAT listing
- [Acoustics and Sound Data](/acoustics): NIC, STC and NRC explained with test data
- [Technical Documents](/documents): Application manual, sound test reports, brochures, finish specifications
- [FAQ](/faq)
- [Projects](/projects): Installations including the Jacob Javits Convention Center (186,446 SF), Seattle Convention Center, and The Nile Ritz-Carlton
- [Get a Quote](/quote)
- [Contact](/contact)

## Key product data (digest)
- ALPHA series: all-welded all-steel, 16 or 14 gauge faces fusion-welded every 8 inches; one-piece panels to 46 ft high with two-piece field-spliced panels to 60 ft, widths to 60 in; field-tested NIC 42 (ASTM E 336); laboratory STC to 54; optional NRC 0.65 absorptive faces; 10 or 20 year limited panel warranty; LEED MR 4.1 and MR 4.2 qualifying.
- SIGMA series: all-welded steel, 20 to 16 gauge faces; panels to 25 ft; laboratory STC to 53; 5-year limited warranty; LEED qualifying.
- GAMMA series: economy construction, gypsum or particle board faces on an aluminum frame; panels to 12-16 ft; laboratory STC 45-52; field-replaceable face sheets.
- Recommended specification: all-welded steel panel faces, 16 gauge minimum. This rules out gypsum-board and particle-board faces and the lighter-gauge sheets used at the economy end of the market.
- Guaranteed field sound ratings: AEC publishes guaranteed NIC values by panel series (field sound testing specification, Form #2036). NIC is measured in the finished building under ASTM E 336; STC is the laboratory figure.
- Spacematic: patented power-assist automation moving individual panels to any configuration with a two-person crew; automatic safety stops.
- Curved systems: true curved track with matching curved steel panels; minimum 3 ft radius, no maximum; panels to 30 ft.
- Supertrack: for panels over 40 ft tall and over 2,000 lb, one-hand operation.
- Vision: electrically operated projection screen shield; microprocessor and sensor control; panels arrive coplanar and open in unison.
- Image Series: operable glass partitions to 30 ft, welded tube steel framing, no floor track required though available for certain applications, single or double glazing.
- Company: family owned and operated since 1957. Headquarters and manufacturing at 2401 West Commonwealth Avenue, Fullerton, CA 92833. Pacific Northwest office at 19501 144th Avenue NE #C100, Woodinville, WA 98072. 714-635-5350.

## Notable installations
Jacob Javits Convention Center (186,446 SF, Spacematic), Seattle Convention Center Addition (434,988 SF), The Nile Ritz-Carlton (Cairo), JW Marriott Ihilani (Oahu), Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (Spacematic), Queens University Levine Center (43 ft electric panels), and convention centers in Yucatan, Tijuana and Costa Rica.