When the Upfit adaptive outdoor structure system was initially released in 2018, its purpose was clear—to give landscape architects the tools to create tailored destinations that capitalize on a site’s underutilized outdoor spaces. "In-between spaces are overlooked and undervalued but hold such potential,” says Landscape Forms Chief Creative Officer, Kirt Martin. “Upfit gives landscape architects tools to look at these spaces with fresh eyes and create places with purpose and value at a lower cost than indoor real estate.”

Today, while Upfit still fulfills this purpose, its benefits and significance have become even more acute. Landscape Forms has long supported the idea that people thrive through a strong connection to nature, and that people deserve outdoor spaces that support this connection without compromise. But now more than ever, it is crucial to the health and well-being of our communities that people have the spaces and resources they need to bring the fundamental aspects of everyday life outdoors without sacrificing productivity, happiness and social interaction.

In the new era of social distancing and moving work, study and other activities outdoors, Upfit answers this call. Adaptive, modular and scalable, Upfit transforms outdoor areas into work spaces, classrooms, dining areas and meeting hubs, fully powered, lit and with the amenities people need to learn, work, and meet outdoors. Upfit takes the complexity out of customizing outdoor structures with a beautifully designed and expertly engineered system—the post-and-beam structure begins with a single 16’ x 16’ x 10’ base unit that can then be specified with a range of amenities and scaled based upon the needs of a site, from a simple single unit, to a fully powered, lit and furnished multi-unit structure.

Now Upfit enables you to leverage outdoor spaces more than ever, with the release of a broad new feature set adding new possibilities and functionality to the already versatile system. “Upfit has become one of the most successful solutions we've launched. And with that success came a lot of engagement with our customers in the form of new ideas and requests,” says Kirt Martin. "So we're literally building on the success of Upfit, inspired by real-world applications and the opportunity to enable even more new and unique outdoor experiences.”

Upfit’s new features include large-scale retractable screens, sliding panels, an integrated shelving system, in-line benches, mitered standing-height tables, a new full-height panel with vertical slatting, and a solid roof. "Now, more than ever, Upfit brings the indoors outdoors,” says Martin. "There’s a new softness to the interior spaces, with new functions, textures and colors that make you feel more capable, comfortable and inspired being outside.”

"Every day is a new opportunity to enjoy the benefits of being outdoors,” concludes Kirt Martin. "And what we've added to Upfit gives people new ways and new tools to do just that—on a daily basis.”