Architect’s lightweight permanent structure

August 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Projects, Tents

[Structurflex LLC.] , Kansas City, Mo., U.S.A. Working with an architect’s concept, Structurflex LLC. developed this lightweight permanent structure to provide entertaining space for fans at the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament in Indian Wells, Calif. The fabricated membrane (Ferrari 1202 T2…
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The Cloud sculpted structure showcased in NZ

August 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Projects

[Fabric Structure Systems Ltd.] Whangarei, New Zealand The Cloud on Auckland’s Queens Wharf in New Zealand was a central showcase of creativity and innovation at the Rugby World Cup 2011. A collaboration of architect, engineer and Fabric Structure Systems, it fit the need for a fan/VIP/media g…
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Interior textiles

August 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Features, Tents

Fabric technology has taken designers from tents and art installations to a mainstream commercial business in hospitality and retail spaces. By Nicholas Goldsmith With the advent of the turbulent 1960s, there was a departure from the hard-edged architecture of the 1950s to more organic and softer fo…
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Turning engineering into art: the heart of passionate design

July 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Features, Industry News, Management, Perspective

Nic Goldsmith uses his architectural vision to design innovative fabric structures. By Sigrid Tornquist “I think there are a lot of areas where fabric technology could be applied and it’s not,” says Nic Goldsmith, FAIA, LEED, AP, senior principal of FTL Design and Engineering Studio in New Yor…
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Advanced roofing overcomes technical hurdles to generate electricty

July 1, 2013  |  Business, Fabric Structures, Projects

A city carport in Munich—and a prototype for efficiency and sustainability. By Lynn Keillor It’s not always easy being green: that’s what Wika Pösl discovered when attempting to build a ground-breaking carport roof for a public works building in Munich, Germany. The project, w…
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Outstanding in the field: fabric finds a home on the range

June 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Features, Industry News, Management

Agricultural operations are reaping the benefits of innovative structural solutions for crops, grain and livestock. By Janice Kleinschmidt Twenty years ago, the Calhoun family started another business on their beef farm: selling tarps for hay storage. Somewhere around 1996 or ’97, president Je…
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Creating the future of textiles: Bearable lightness

June 1, 2013  |  Advanced Textiles, Business, Fabric Structures, Projects

Building energy research in Germany finds inspiration from polar bears. By Mark Zeh Fabric materials offer quite a few advantages in the construction of roofs, such as efficiency of material use, ease of transport and good light transmissivity, but a big disadvantage is their poor thermal insulation…
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Architects, biologists and students in Stuttgart weave a structural web

June 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Projects

New digitally-driven technology explores what it means to build buildings. The strikingly beautiful pavilion at the University of Stuttgart, Germany, gets most of its attention on closer examination. Its digitally woven skin is the product of ongoing research collaboration among architects, biologis…
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Art and recreation intersect with The Drift art installation

June 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Projects

[Canvasland] Levin, New Zealand The Drift, designed by artist David Cross and created by Canvasland New Zealand, was an art piece that asked audience members to rethink their experience of the urban environment and perform a curiously different passage through this frenetic city thoroughfare in Sydn…
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Kenafine recyclable coated fabric for architectural structures

June 1, 2013  |  Fabric Structures, Products, Tents

PTFE- and PVC-coated fabrics are often used in tents and membrane structures, but have been difficult to recycle due to the difficulty of separating the fibers from the coating resins. Taiyo Kogyo has developed Kenafine™ for architectural structures, a “green” fabric made by weavin…
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