Structures support awnings to provide rain protection

Tropical J’s Inc. | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

The Kahulai, Maui, Hawaii, Post Office wanted awnings to be hung onto the side of an old commercial tent used to provide rain protection to trucks and workers during the loading and unloading of mail trucks at the Kahului Airport. There was not enough structure to attach the awnings to, except for the main tent rafters. Tropical J’s designed a “bear trap”-type structure that is hinged on the sides and held in place by cables. Each structure is designed from two large radius tubes, smaller spreader tubes and then positioned and held in place by large hinge structures that support the awnings, which won an Outstanding Achievement Award in the commercial awnings category of the 2008 International Achievement Awards, only on the tent’s rafters. Using two different radii for each awning required the use of articulated hinges to facilitate adjustment, and then the tensioning of the rear radius back against the tent.