Members Only  
Pvilion’s solar ag buildings could take farmers off the grid

May 1, 2025  |  Features

Solar-structure manufacturer Pvilion, of Brooklyn, N.Y., is partnering with fabric ag building manufacturer Accu-Steel Inc., headquartered in Templeton, Iowa, to test an “agrivoltaic” structure for farmers. With the addition of walls, it could serve as an off-grid shop or livestock shelter or ha…
Read More
Members Only  
Fabric awning replaces metal—fast

April 1, 2025  |  Features

A New Zealand seafood restaurant in need of a refresh to its outdoor patio turned to Kolorful Kanvas Ltd., of Christchurch. The project replaced the restaurant’s metal awning with a retractable fabric solution and outfitted the outdoor dining area with new screens and signage, making it look more…
Read More
Members Only  
Fabric awnings vs. metal

April 1, 2025  |  Features

There’s no denying it: Metal has become popular for shading products and is taking market share from fabric. However, that doesn’t mean that fabric can’t compete. It brings qualities to the table that metal does not have.
Read More
Members Only  
With myriad shapes and materials, tents continue to evolve

April 1, 2025  |  Features

While traditional tent styles are always popular with consumers, there also are numerous requests for new and different event venues. As a result, tent and event rental companies are constantly on the lookout for the “next big thing” to offer clients.
Read More
Members Only  
GuildWorks gives a California park its first shade

March 1, 2025  |  Case Studies, Features

River Park in Petaluma, Calif., is transforming. Its inaugural structure is the peninsula’s first shaded area—there aren’t even any trees—underneath a shade sail array composed of diamond shapes and providing a covered area more than 70 feet in diameter. It rises 20 feet and was created by G…
Read More
Members Only  
Blue and green roofs use many kinds of geosynthetics

March 1, 2025  |  Features

In the global push to lower buildings’ carbon footprint and energy and water use, some look to blue and green roof construction. These roofs can help combat urban environmental challenges such as the heat island effect and rapid inundation of sewer systems from stormwater and are a small but growi…
Read More
Members Only  
Awning business succession: An in-and-out approach

March 1, 2025  |  Features

The awning business offers enough challenges to keep you growing, consistency you can plan around, and is rewarding enough to keep you fulfilled.
Read More
Members Only  
Australia’s Wangun Amphitheater honors cultures

February 1, 2025  |  Case Studies, Features

Fabric architecture includes innumerable possibilities with shape and form, which can result in imbuing even an amphitheater with rich cultural symbolism. Wangun Amphitheatre in Kalimna West, Australia, commissioned by the Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Aboriginal Corporation (GLaWAC), is such a place.…
Read More
Members Only  
Indoor shade trends: Regulations, automation and more

February 1, 2025  |  Features

New regulations are affecting shade products, but that’s not the only thing going on in this market. Changes in motorization, the way products are used for light control, available color options and demand for sustainabilityare all happening too.
Read More
Members Only  
New Zealand backyard shade sail solution

February 1, 2025  |  Case Studies, Features

The clients for this project asked for a shade sail to cover their north-west facing courtyard. The solution from SunCraft NZ, Ltd., won an Award of Excellence in the Commercial Awnings & Canopies category of the 2024 Advanced Textiles Association International Achievement Awards.
Read More