Walkway canopies provide sheltered environment for travelers

July 1, 2008  |  Exteriors, Features

By Maqsood Ahmed At the specialty structures division of Halcrow Yolles, every request comes with unique challenges. Airport Architects Canada, — the architects for the Pearson International Airport, Toronto, Canada — had the challenge of designing the fast track, re-locatable walkways t…
Fabric shades enliven restaurant patio

July 1, 2008  |  Exteriors, Features

Adding a string of undulating fabric shades enlivens, and makes bearable, a champion restaurant patio. Mojito’s Café is part of the United States Tennis Association’s National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadow Park, New York. In fact, it’s attached to the Arthur Ashe Stadium …
Fabric structures shield members from errant golf balls

July 1, 2008  |  Exteriors, Features

A prestigious country club in Oregon calls for fabric structures to protect members and their expensive cars from errant golf balls. By Kent Hubbell In April 2005, I received a call from Howard McKee, architect for Bandon Dunes Resort, saying he had a problem that he thought I might be interested in…
Wind dam designed to deploy fabric sail

May 1, 2008  |  Case Studies, Features

A fabric sail-fan combination aims to take advantage of a unique geological setting for sustainable purposes. By Helen Elias When it comes to the latest thinking in new ways to provide renewable power, it all comes down to the fabric specified —in this case, a large wind dam designed to deploy…
Architectural membrane workshop to take place in May

May 1, 2008  |  Features

The 13th international workshop on the design and practical realization of architectural membrane structures will take place this May at the Technical University of Berlin. Invited lecturers this year include Dr.-Ing. Rainer Blum (Stuttgart), Prof. Wujun Chen (Shanghai), Ms. Dr. Deepali Hadker (Mumb…
Textile shades protect balconies and apartments

May 1, 2008  |  Exteriors, Features

A compact cluster of low-cost apartments soaks up sun and sea on the Mediterranean. Slovenia has a southern coast on the Adriatic Sea that neatly tucks in between Italy and Hrvatska east of Italy. Although it faces northwest and therefore doesn’t quite get the intensity of sun that a Valencia,…
Olympics feature top-to-bottom membrane structures

May 1, 2008  |  Case Studies, Exteriors, Features

As the world’s first public top-to-bottom membrane structure, the ETFE infused Watercube gets its moment in the sun this summer in Beijing. For almost five centuries, the Forbidden City—located in Beijing, and home of the imperial palace—has been the symbol of China’s distinc…
Metaphors and materials meet in Beijing’s National Stadium

May 1, 2008  |  Exteriors, Features

By Frank Edgerton Martin China’s civic infrastructure and economy continues to grow at Olympian proportions. With thousands of skyscrapers, factories and new towns opening each year, design and architecture are moving at the speed of capitalism. Yet, with such a rapid pace everyday design is o…
Brewer distribution center acclaimed as Britain’s greenest warehouse

May 1, 2008  |  Case Studies, Features

The Adnams Distribution Centre in Suffolk, England, instills the green approach to building throughout. By Helen Elias Designed by architects Aukett Fitzroy Robinson and structural engineer Faber Maunsell Aecom, the 90m long, 45m wide new central distribution center for the Suffolk brewer Adnams is …
New materials inspire architects

May 1, 2008  |  Features

The latest films, membranes and new materials fire the imagination of architects. By Katherine Carlson A fountain of light-filled fabric is the center of The Soft House, one of 15 architectural innovations created for the 2006 Intelligent Living by Design exhibit at Germany’s Vitra Museum. The…