Fabric structures have a long history dating back to nomadic times. Modern architecture has rediscovered fabric structures for permanent buildings by using advanced, durable fabrics to span large areas. Fabric structures offer various cost efficiencies over traditional materials and are more energy efficient in their production, installation, and ability to use natural lighting. A variety of natural and man-made fabrics are available for different applications like roofing, partitions, and tents. Fabric selection, design, engineering, and installation are important to ensure the structure's performance. Fabrics are typically coated for strength and environmental resistance.

1. REPORT ON FABRIC
DATE-28.2.2013 BY:
RAJAT NAIWAL

2. Historical significance
• The relationship between textiles and architecture starts with corresponding beginning.
• Their vast history starts from the role of providing shelter, shade and protection in the building envelope,
the ‘skin', originating from crudely stitched animal skin.
• the history, form and expression of physical woven construction and the use of membrane exist from the
light tent structures of human habilitation
• Textile forms of habitation have a long history going back to palaeolithic times and represent an archetypal
form of building which has endured to the present day
Rediscovering textile architecture
 Fabric structures are among the oldest form of architecture, dating back to nomadic times when shelters
were made of animal skins and tree branches. Throughout history, they have been adapted in one form or
another by different groups of people living in a variety of environmental conditions. These structures have
evolved over the years with advances in materials and technology, and are growing in importance today.
 The term “fabric” refers to the material or membrane used to create these lightweight structures. The
material may have an open weave or be constructed of woven base cloths of varying strength, and it is
protected by a coating to provide thermal, fire, water, and ultraviolet (UV)-light resistance and protection
from the elements.
 Modern architecture has rediscovered the principle of the tent as an architectural form and taken its
development further – not just for temporary structures but also for permanent buildings
 Advanced and durable fabrics enable large areas to be spanned, which has turned their use into a highly
specialised sector within the construction industry
Fabric structures offer a number of cost efficiencies in terms of:
 Economy & efficiency of materials used
 Speed of installation
 Re-deployability of fabric structures
In comparison to traditional building materials, textiles are more energy efficient in terms of:
 The textile production process
 Fabrication & installation of membrane systems
 The ability to use natural lighting instead of artificial lighting, with the use of translucent fabrics
 PVC textiles are now fully recyclable with major textile manufacturers running their own recycling programs.
Eg Ferrari – Texiloop Recycle Program.
At the end of a fabric structures life, deconstruction is far simpler than more traditional structures.
Available materials

3.  Permanent Roofing applications: Fluotop T2 range of fabrics with a high concentration PVDF coating, are
widely used for roofing applications, like atriums, terrace coverings, entrance roofs, cafetarias, stadia roofs,
etc.
 Partitions: Batyline range of fabrics are ideally suited for false ceilings, accoustic wall coverings etc. and can
cover large stretches of area with only peripheral support systems, and are especially recommended where
sound absorption is necessary.
 Lightweight structures like : We have a range of fabrics for lightweight structures like awnings, canopies &
tents.
 Recently, new alternative materials are participated by the production of composites which includes
polymer fibers. The fibers in the form of “Technical Textiles” show variety and provide spreading the modern
structure systems in “Textile Architecture”. The fibers used in textile architectures are mainly polyester,
polypropylene and polyamide fibers. Especially the fibers in the form of microfibers come forward because
of the endurance against the climatic conditions
DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS
USES OF FABRICS -
 Fabrics complete the look of a room.
 A room could be full of furniture and will still look bare without the use of fabric. The theme of the room can
be changed just by changing the furniture coverings.
 It can be used as the sofa, bed covers, curtains and drapes (A room that is only used for entertaining can
have delicate fabric but a room that is used by toddlers and pets needs sturdy and washable fabric).
NATURAL FABRICS
 - Damask, gingham, velvet and tapestry (types of cotton fabrics) are suitable for upholstery whereas satin
and percale (types of linen fabrics) are ideal for tablecloths and bed linen.
 - Pima cotton, muslin and lawn are thinner fabrics making them more suitable for curtains, drapes, valances,
blinds and tablecloths.
 -Brocade, damask and taffeta (types of silk) are ideal for tailored curtains, pelmets and cushions.
 -organza is the most suitable for drapes and bed skirts.
 -Tweed, tartan and mohair (types of woollen fabrics) can be used for upholstery, curtains and pelmets.
 - jacquard tapestry is only suitable for upholstery.
MAN-MADE FABRICS
 Nylon, polyester, rayon, viscose and acrylic are manmade fabrics. They are manufactured either as 100%
synthetic or are blended with natural fabrics.

4.  -The blends have a more natural feel to them, are easier to care for and have better fall than the natural
ones. Most of the fabrics available in the market are blends. Blends hold their shape and do not need much
maintenance. They are colorfast and are washable at home.
 -Micro fibers are now very popular in the garment and upholstery industry
 -Modern architecture has rediscovered the principle of the tent as an architectural form and taken its
development further – not just for temporary structures but also for permanent buildings.
 - Advanced and durable fabrics enable large areas to be spanned, which has turned their use into a highly
specialised sector within the construction industry.
 -A protective film gives the surface of PVC-PES membranes anti-adhesive properties, which means that the
material remains dirt-resistant for years and is easy to clean.
Structure nature
 A fabric structure’s material selection, proper design, engineering, fabrication and installation all work
together to ensure a sound structure. The material role in the structure’s performance makes the selection
process especially important. This is particularly true with tensile and air-supported structures because their
membranes, as well as their frames, carry the loads.
 The fabrics typically are coated and laminated with synthetic materials for greater strength and/or
environmental resistance
 Tear strength is important because if a fabric ruptures in place, it generally does so by tearing. This occurs
when a local stress concentration or local damage results in the failure of one yarn, which increases the
stress on remaining yarns.
 Adhesion strength is a measure of the strength of the bond between the base material and coating or film
laminate that protects it. The measure is useful for evaluating the strength of welded joints for connecting
strips of fabric into fabricated assembly.

6. Fire resistance
 Flame-retardancy tests measure the self-extinguishing feature of fabric when subjected to a flame
 Flame retardancy is not the same as flame proofing. Fabric with a flame-retardant coating can withstand a
point source even if it is very hot, but a flame-retardant material still will burn if a large ignition source is
present. The larger the ignition source, the more total heat energy is available to the fabric fibres behind the
protective coating, The more heat energy gets in, the faster and more successfully the fabric reaches a
temperature at which it catches fire and burns from the inside out. Typical tent fires, for example, begin with
small ignition sources, but ultimately the flammability of the tent’s contents contributes to the fabric’s
response.
FIBRE TO FABRIC
Types of Fibers
➢ Synthetic
➢ Rayon
➢ Nylon
➢ Acetate
➢ Acrylic
➢ Spandex
➢ Polyester
➢ Natural
➢ Silk
➢ Cotton
➢ Wool
➢ Mohair
➢ Cashmere

7. 1) Animal fibres :-
The common animal fibres are wool and silk. Wool is obtained from sheep, goat, yak, camel,
llama, alpaca etc. Silk is obtained from silk worm.
2) Wool :-
Wool is obtained from the fleece (hair ) of sheep, goat, camel, yak, llama, alpaca and other animals.
These animals have a thick coat of hair on their bodies because the hair traps air and air is a poor conductor of
heat. So the hair keeps their body warm.
The most common wool is sheep wool.
Yak wool is common in Tibet and Ladakh.
The wool obtained from Angora goats of Jammu Kashmir is soft wool used for making shawls.
Camel hair is also used as wool.
Llama and Alpaca found in South America also yield wool.
3) From fibres to wool :-
For obtaining wool sheep are reared and then their hair is cut and processed into wool.
a) Rearing and breeding of sheep :-
Sheep are reared in many parts our country like Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaracnhal,
Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat etc.
Sheep feed on grass and leaves. They are also fed with a mixture of pulses, corn, jowar, oilcakes and
minerals.
In winter sheep are kept indoors and fed on leaves, grain and dry fodder.
Some breeds of sheep have thick hair on their body which yield good quality wool in large quantities. They
are selectively bred to get sheep of good breed.
Man-Made Fabrics
These fabrics made from synthetic fibres. This is usually a liquid form of polymer being blown
through fine nozzles to get a really fine fibre which is then spun together and then woven into the
material.
➢ Acetate
➢ Polyester
➢ Nylon
➢ Acrylic
Nylon
• It one of the most widely used synthetic fabrics. The term itself is actually used to refer to a broad range of
polyamides, or synthetic polymers.
• When the nylon moves through the spinneret, it is exposed to the air for the first time. The air causes the
strands to harden immediately, and once they are hard, they can be wound onto bobbins. The fibers are
stretched to create strength and elasticity — a key benefit of nylon. The filaments are unwound and then
rewound onto another, smaller spool. This process is called drawing and is used to align the molecules into a
parallel structure.

8. • Nylon can also be mixed with other fibers to create combination materials. When combined with cotton, it
produces a resilient material that holds its shape but is soft to the touch. It can also be woven into patterns
to reinforce strength, improve its appearance, or meet other design requirements.
Polyester
Polyester also refers to the various polymers in which the backbones are formed by the “esterification
condensation of polyfunctional alcohols and acids”.
Polyester can also be classified as saturated and unsaturated polyesters.
• Saturated polyesters refer to that family of polyesters in which the polyester backbones are saturated. They
are thus not as reactive as unsaturated polyester.
• Unsaturated polyesters refer to that family of polyesters in which the backbone consists of alkyl
thermosetting resins characterized by vinyl unsaturation. They are mostly used in reinforced plastics. These
are the most widely used and economical family of resins.
CHARACTERISTICS OF FABRIC
Physical Properties
• Air permeability ( includes all gases and vapour)
• Heat transmission ( thermal conductivity)
• Light permeability
• Moisture transmission
• Radioactivity transmission (the degree with which radioactive energy such as x – ray and gamma rays can
penetrate fabrics).
Durability Characteristics
Durability characteristics are the capacities of fabric to maintain the style and utility characteristics during wear. It
is the measure of stress which destroys the fabric or the fabrics ability to repeat a desired style or utility
characteristic. The durability characteristics are:
• Abrasive strength (measure of rubbing action)
• Bursting strength ( measure of vertical pressure)
• Launder ability ( measure of washing)
• Tearing strength
• Moth resistance
• Tensile strength
• Radiation absorption strength (the rate at which radiation energy either disintegrate a fabric or destroys
utility characteristics).
• Fire resistance

9. • Corrosive strength ( the measure of chemical action, acid or alkaline)
• Dry cleaning durability ( the measure of dry cleaning performance)
Product Production Working Charateristics
• Product production working characteristics are those characteristics which affect the quality of
production with respect to quality values and the cost of production method.The working characteristics of a
fabric include:
• Coefficient of friction ( cutting, sewing, pressing and packing)
• Sewed seam strength
• Sewed seam slippage (yarn slippage)
• Sewing distortions
• Yarn severage
• Bond ability strength (fused, cemented, and heat – sealed seams
• Pressing moldeability (to what degree a flat piece of fabric may be skewed during pressing with hand and
/press buck).
• Die moldeability – how well a flat seamless piece of fabric may be molded withdies into a given from such as
a bra cup or a hat.