One of the priorities recognised by the Fabric Structures Committee of the Specialised Textiles Association of Australia is the need for an independent and unbiased information source available to promote our growing industry to government, policy makers and the public, that is, anyone about to make a decision on whether to purchase a fabric structure.

The background for this report came from a meeting held with NSW Department of Education in 2010

where this industry was asked to provide a promotional document to give to school principals to promote fabric structure products for schools. There was no independently available document.

Fabric structures have arisen from a demand for flexible and cost effective shade options which will work and protect in our hot climate. The industry is growing in size and value in line with advances in materials and processes. New applications emerge daily for the use of fabric structures. Often fabric structures are replacing and becoming the first option over traditional building products. Beauty, price and practicality are some of the many reasons for this change.

On the other side, our industry will inevitably be questioned and criticised. Are fabric structures safe, installed correctly, designed to the highest building standards, of good quality and so on. While each shade contractor can answer these questions to promote their own products, the Specialised Textiles Association, through this report, can now offer an independent response.

To foster understanding and encourage industry growth it is important to assess the benefits of fabric structures by identifying

·         the attributes of fabric shade structures

·         building and design parameters

·         industry standards and regulations and

·         positive comparisons against other materials.

Members of the Fabric Structures Committee of the STA have identified fifteen key areas which define fabric structures and address issues of significance. Their collective input, grounded on many years of experience, in the form of comments and research have been used to produce this positive and  useable resource. This report is the first version of “About Fabric Structures”.