TEXTILES.ORG
A photovoltaic fabric structure stores in the trunk, and serves as a charging station for Volvo’s hybrid vehicle.
Design team Synthesis Design + Architecture (SDA), Fabric Images, and Buro Happold were awarded first place recently in a competition sponsored by Volvo Car Italia and The Plan magazine to create a pavilion for display at outdoor fairs and events. Besting 150 entries, the project titled “PURE Tension” is a collapsible tensile membrane structure and portable solar charging station for Volvo’s new hybrid vehicle.
The flexible mesh structure is held in place by carbon fiber rods and embedded with photovoltaic cells so that the pavilion can absorb energy from the sun or indoor lighting, making it a portable charging station. The entire structure can be folded small enough to fit in the trunk of a car.
The car and pavilion premiered September 15, 2013 in Rome.
Fabric Images is a designer and fabricator of printed and nonprinted tensioned fabric architecture headquartered in Elgin, Ill. Buro Happold is a design and consulting firm that specializes in low-energy design, delivering projects with less carbon emissions that are more sustainable. The company has offices worldwide.
