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ETFE system case studies
January 1st, 1970
By Edward M Peck, AIA, LEED AP Boca Raton Resort and Club Image credit: Edward M. Peck (author) Location: Boca Raton, Fla. Architect: Office of Thierry W. Despont Ltd. VF project director: Edward M. Peck Specialty design/fabricator: Vector Foiltec Engineer: KPFF Date completed: 2008 Total area of ETFE: 14,000 ft2 The design concept was to […]
London 2012 Olympic Stadium sustainable wrap
January 1st, 1970
The London 2012 Olympic Stadium’s sustainable wrap—a polyester fabric with a low-density polyethylene coating produced by Dow Chemical Co.—will be comprised of 336 individual panels, each approximately 25m high and 2.5m wide. Dow estimates that the LDPE-coated fabric requires fewer materials to manufacture than the heavier fabrics more traditionally used as building wraps, and has […]
Hardware: Signs and banners
January 1st, 1970
By Mason Riddle Project Specs / Etude in blue: How it was done The Ferrari Stamisol® FT 381 Ice Blue fabric mesh is probably the most distinguishing characteristic of Copenhagen’s DR Koncerthuset designed by Jean Nouvel. The translucent cobalt blue textile not only reveals the performance hall’s interior volumes and glass façade but also the […]
Jim Miller’s recap of a collaborative retractable classroom
January 1st, 1970
Designing systems that retract requires a certain amount of trial and error—a part of the design process Miller finds exhilarating. In 2008 Clive Wilkinson Architects approached Miller with an unlikely concept, one he couldn’t refuse. The idea was to design, manufacture and install a retractable classroom at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Va. The project required […]
Ambiènte Gallerie: How it was done
January 1st, 1970
By Mason Riddle The fabric walls that enclose the individual treatment rooms at the Minneapolis chiropractic clinic and art gallery called Ambiènte Gallerie, can be raised to the ceiling when the space is opened for off-hours gallery events. Architect Ali Heshmati and fabricator Nora Norby devised a simple, but effective means of holding down the […]
Project specs: green grows the campus
January 1st, 1970
By Mason Riddle How it was done Project design team leader for RSP, Beau Dromiack, described the firm’s thinking behind their use of fabrics for shading key portions of the ASU campus buildings: “For the most prominent building of a trio of academic buildings, the highest balcony of the tallest building has a wall of […]
Up and coming: Power felt
January 1st, 1970
By Michael Lotti What it is Nonwoven, washable cloth that continuously generates an electric current. How it works The thermoelectric effect, which is the tendency of charged particles to move from warm to cold parts of metals, ceramics, fibers, and other materials. Possible applications “This fabric continuously generates small amounts of electricity, so it’s ideal […]
Up and coming: Hybrid piezoelectric photovoltaics
January 1st, 1970
By Michael Lotti What it is Nylon fibers or ribbons with a thin, flexible photovoltaic film coating over polyvinylidene fluoride and ceramic piezoelectric materials. Professor Elias Siores, director of Research and Innovation at the University of Bolton in the U.K., developed the patented material with his research team. How it works Any movement stimulates the […]
Designing entrances
January 1st, 1970
By Bruce N. Wright, AIA There are many types of entryways, depending on the essential function they need to fulfill. Prime, of course, is the need to shelter people from the sun and weather as they enter and exit a building. Other important types might be dramatic (such as this colorful tensioned fabric entryway covering […]
Critical performance factors
January 1st, 1970
By Mark Zeh Here are a few performance factors critical for creating a great shaded area on a hot day: Shade Factor (SF): This is the percentage of visible light which a shade fabric blocks. Higher values mean darker shade areas. Solar Reflection Index (SRI): This is the average amount of energy from the complete […]