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Steady progress in technology has increased the popularity of fabric-roofed structures. The low weight materials make construction easier and cheaper than standard designs, especially when large open spaces have to be covered.
Tensile fabric structures are a dramatic and exciting method of construction, allowing curvature, translucency and the ability to remarkably light both external and internal spaces. Fabric structures are a unique addition to almost any building not only providing the structure of a building envelope, but also enabling us to consider different methods of creating environments; rather than boxing a space in, fabric structure allows spaces to be wrapped. The visual delicacy created by fabric architecture has led to the conception that tensioned structures are temporary building types, when in fact they are not. With a design life of over 30 years, fabric buildings can last generations, and conform to the same structural codes as permanent buildings.
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