Large Coworking Spaces: Glass That Shapes Space with Light and Flow

Large coworking environments are not just open floors—they are carefully layered ecosystems where private offices, meeting rooms, focused workstations, and informal lounges coexist in harmony. At One Journal Square in Jersey City, an entire floor is dedicated to amenities: a shared level designed to bring together residents and external users with a gym, pool, coworking areas, meeting rooms, and lounges. To define these spaces, Carvart, Etoile’s North American partner — installed nearly 100 meters of UNICA® SLIM glass partitions, with forty-five swing doors and three sliding doors.
UNICA® SLIM doesn’t divide—it organizes. The glass walls create zones, control access, and frame activities, all while keeping the space visually open and connected. The result is a flexible, transparent environment where collaboration, focus, and relaxation can coexist effortlessly.

The Rhythm of Organized Spaces

As a workspace grows, it stops being just a collection of desks and becomes an infrastructure for living and working. The goal isn’t simply to “divide” — it’s to give scale and rhythm to different activities: knowing where interaction can happen naturally and where focus is needed; where conversation should stay contained and where movement must flow freely.
In this context, the glass wall doesn’t act as a transparent backdrop. It works as a threshold device: defining readable zones, setting operational distances, and creating a sequence of transitions that guide movement intuitively. It’s the difference between a large space that dissipates energy and one that directs it.

Defining Space with Transparency

When used thoughtfully, transparency brings a real advantage: it keeps a floor feeling open and connected while clearly showing how different areas are meant to be used. You don’t need to block views to create privacy—often, simply adjusting how much you can see and how close you are to others is enough, making privacy flexible rather than an all-or-nothing rule. In a modern coworking space, this means alternating large open areas with smaller, clearly defined zones for meetings, calls, focused work, group projects, waiting, or socializing—so each activity has its own space without spilling into others. The result is a more intuitive and comfortable environment: you can sense where to pause, where conversation is welcome, and where quiet focus is expected.

Technical and Aesthetic Integration

Great design goes beyond what meets the eye. In large workplaces, technology is an essential part of the overall concept—from access control and cabling to security integration and door management systems. Design excellence is achieved when these elements are seamlessly embedded into the architecture—without visual clutter, misalignment, or improvised solutions. Carefully planning technical routes, integrating components with precision, and maintaining balance between fixed and movable elements are strategic choices. They enhance daily comfort, simplify maintenance, and ensure the space performs efficiently over time. In today’s office environments, aesthetics and performance must work together—creating spaces that are not only visually refined, but also intelligent, efficient, and built for long-term value.

Real Flexibility Without Losing Order

This is where modularity and building integration stop being buzzwords and become a real responsibility. A partition system that allows spaces to adapt—reshaping functions and density without disruptive construction—protects the investment and, above all, ensures business continuity. Natural light remains accessible, wayfinding stays intuitive, and circulation flows smoothly. Acoustics, often the true testing ground in large workplaces, can also be addressed with precision. Not by “sealing off” every area, but by creating differentiated conditions for different activities—using elements that absorb and organize sound rather than simply isolate it. The result is a workspace that evolves without losing clarity: structured yet flexible, efficient yet open, ready to support change without compromising identity.

Clarity That Works

Ultimately, the success of a large coworking space is measured by the clarity it creates—without imposing it. When thresholds, access points, and circulation paths are intuitive, the space no longer demands constant interpretation. People move naturally, recognize levels of access without relying on excessive signage, and shift between work modes without friction. In this context, the glass partition returns to its true purpose. Not as scenery, not as a barrier, but as an element that builds order, manages complexity, and holds everything together—both visually and operationally. The result is a perfectly regulated microcosm: dynamic yet controlled, open yet structured, capable of supporting diverse activities within a coherent and balanced system.