Structures
Playing with Fabric
Rigid-frame fabric buildings offer a permanent solution for athletic facilities.
By Shannon Humbert, Legacy Building Solutions
Space to Play Web truss structures had another serious limitation in that they were typically supplied only in predetermined sizes. This basically forced organizations into picking the standard offering that most closely matched the dimensions that were actually desired. The price may have been right, but it came along with needing to make certain sacrifices if the structure was oversized or undersized in any way. With a structural steel frame, end users have far more design flexibility. Facilities can always be engineered to the optimal specifications since every project begins with a clean sheet design. In effect, rigid- frame engineering was able to advance tension fabric buildings to a place where a facility can be constructed exactly as desired for its intended uses. There’s no getting around the fact that turf sports like football and soccer take up a lot of space, especially if you want a full-size regulation field. Rigid-frame design allows fabric buildings to have long clear spans without any need for support beams that would interfere with the playing area. For indoor facilities where a track is also needed, it isn’t a problem to go wider and longer with the building dimensions. From an engineering standpoint, brick-and-mortar buildings are obviously structurally sound as well. Where fabric becomes advantageous by comparison, however, is that the cost to clad a building with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) fabric walls is much less than constructing masonry walls or using other “conventional” materials.
For many entities , both public and private, the need for an athletics and recreation facility comes down to two options: A permanent brick and mortar building, or a lower-cost fabric bubble. In reality, there is another solution–the modern tension fabric building–that takes the known benefits of fabric cladding and applies them to a permanent facility. Fabric buildings have become increasingly popular in the sports world because of their ability to fulfill the need for large open spaces, in combination with aesthetic appeal, fast delivery times, and relatively modest prices. Universities, communities and clubs alike have recognized fabric facilities as an ideal project fit. Rigid-Frame Design A turning point for fabric buildings came 13 years ago when Legacy Building Solutions first introduced fabric structures that featured a structural steel I-beam frame. Prior to this, tension fabric structures had typically relied upon hollow-tube, web truss framing systems. This innovation allowed fabric buildings to be designed in the same fashion as conventional construction projects. The engineering credibility of this rigid-frame approach was unquestioned, whereas web truss designs had often been viewed as subjective among engineers. With known and proven I-beam frames providing the backbone, buildings using fabric cladding were now in a better position to succeed.
12
csengineermag.com
NOVEMBER 2023
Made with FlippingBook Annual report