Critical performance factors

January 1, 1970  |  News

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 fro…
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Rigging checklist

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Bruce N. Wright, AIA Pattons, the Australian event structures fabricator, has more than 60 years of experience creating transportable performance venues. Here is the company’s checklist of considerations when designing a portable structure: Performance structures need to be engineered to wi…
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A checklist for portables

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Bruce N. Wright, AIA At minimum, when designing for portability in a fabric structure, architects and designers should keep in mind a number of basic concepts and key questions. “Concerning portable structures,” says Nicholas Goldsmith, FAIA, LEED AP, senior design principal with FTL …
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ETFE’s environmental benefits

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Frank Edgerton Martin Architects Luisa Badía and Néstor Soldate explain that because of its light weight, ETFE has lower embedded energy costs in shipment and installation. The Vitam’Parc project meets French HQE (High Environmental Quality) objectives by reducing the visual i…
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Technical considerations of ETFE

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Frank Edgerton Martin L35 offers the following technical information on the fabrication of the ETFE bubbles and their attachment to the underlying structure, both key details for long-term durability: “Each cushion or ‘bubble’ is made up of three layers of thermically welded ETF…
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Supporting air-supported domes in cold climates

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Barb Ernster The air-supported membrane for the Mall of America Field at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome sports stadium in Minneapolis held up impressively through Minnesota’s harsh winters, but in 2010—after 28 years—a record-breaking heavy, wet snow caused the membrane to tea…
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ETFE in architecture: What is it and how is it being used?

January 1, 1970  |  News

By Edward M Peck, AIA, LEED AP ETFE is a copolymer of ethylene and tetrafluoroethylene and is known as a “tough polymer.” It was pioneered by DuPont more than 40 years prior to its architectural debut in Europe in the early 1980s. DuPont developed the fluorocarbon-based polymer to have h…
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Defining responsive textiles and reactive façade systems

January 1, 1970  |  News

To make the terms “responsive” and “reactive” more understandable, a look at common approaches to shading systems is necessary. By Elena Vlasceanu Recent innovations in parametric architecture allow for finely controlled and adapted façade systems that react to diverse…
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Fabric catches power of the sun

January 1, 1970  |  News

Solar energy-collecting fabric products can impact energy use—and make businesses in the industry successful. By Todd Dalland Coal and oil have superbly fueled and helped enable the extraordinary growth of modern civilization. Their supply is reaching its peak, though, and will soon start to d…
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Keeping it up

January 1, 1970  |  News

How Tectoniks’ Dreamforce, an air-inflatable structure that is one and a half football fields in length, keep its figure during the world’s largest vendor-sponsored trade show. The world’s largest vendor-sponsored trade show, Dreamforce 2013, brought downtown San Francisco to a sta…
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