When you are planning a major event, you will often require a large covered area. The event may also be held at times when the weather is not likely to remain favorable, and it can be winter when you expect snow, or in summer when to is hot, or other times when you can expect high winds. Fabric tension structures are an ideal solution to create large covered spaces, even temporarily, and can be erected quickly, and dismantled and carried away equally speedily, as soon as the event is over.

A typical tension fabric structure will have a rigid frame over which the wall and roof elements are made up of a fabric that is stretched over the frame. Tension is created in the fabric using many different methods that impart greater stability to the structure. They can be installed quickly, and require lesser preparation and groundwork prior to their installation. Spans as large as 300 feet without any intermediate columns or support are possible, while the lengths can be as long as required. Many of the fabrics used in these structures are translucent, thus allowing for natural light. The frames can even be designed for any expected loads, and satisfy all the needs of the user.

Foundations for these structures can be of many types, and will often depend on the usage, and can be designed to cater to high winds and even snowstorms. If the tension fabric structure is for temporary use the foundations can also be of a nature that does not take long to install and can be things like stakes, anchors, posts or even ballast blocks. Fabric structures have also used weighted down shipping containers as foundations. For more permanent applications, foundations can be in the form of piles or other poured in place foundations that are designed to resist the uplifting forces that can be caused by high winds on the fabric that tend to topple the structure.

When designing fabric tensioned structures, the primary use of the building, the harshest climatic conditions expected at the site, and the stability of the soil have to be taken into consideration before deciding on the foundation that will be most suitable. These design factors will also have an influence on the frame structure and the fabric that is to be used. Tensioned fabric allows the fabric to stretch in such a way that it will cause anything thrown at it to bounce, and the resist the weight of snow or other things, without allowing the fabric to sag. High winds will not cause the fabric to balloon. Once the fabrics are adequately tensioned they can withstand even tornados and typhoons.

Tensioned fabric structures are used in industries for warehousing, for recreation and sports, in aviation for hangars, for emergency relief centers, and even on construction sites so that work can proceed in all kinds of weather. These structures are portable and can be easily dismantled and re-erected in a new location. They can be assembled very quickly and anchored to any surface with very little of bother. Most of these structures can withstand winds up to 80 mph and even heavy snow.

Heights and widths of these buildings with tensioned fabric have practically no restriction and you can choose those that are the most suitable for you, as long as you design the frame to carry the fabric, accordingly, and have proper arrangements to induce the required tension. Shapes can be versatile and are only limited by the imagination of the designer. It is important in these structures that every part of the fabric remain in tension and curve equally in opposite directions so that it has the required three dimensional stability.