Shading structure promotes dining alfresco-with a view

A dynamic, responsive building in the Italian sun improves business with a flexible fabric shade.

This restaurant overlooks beautiful Lake Garda in northern Italy, not far from Verona and the Swiss border. In recent years, the proprietor found demand for service such that the outdoor dining terrace needed to be pressed into use year round. To exploit the underused space, the restaurateur commissioned a shading structure to cover the terrace during the three seasons when colder weather prevailed.

BAT USA designed a motorized system that uses a single piece of fabric to cover the sliding segments of the aluminum frame system. The retractable aluminum extruded sections, sliding on fitted carriages that nest snuggly when fully retracted, are connected by stainless steel joints designed to resist any corrosion.

The structure is integrated with light and a sound system as well as glass side closures to make an attractive atmosphere for dining.