A joint study by Roland Berger Strategy Consultants, Munich, Germany, and the VDMA Forum Composite Technology, Frankfurt, Germany, predicts a bright future for high-strength carbon fiber components, a market projected to grow 17 percent per year until 2020. Demand for lightweight, high strength composites in the automotive, aeronautics and wind energy industries will fuel some [...]

Fabric architecture covers urban plazas, school yards, park gathering spots and rooftop restaurants, providing protection from the sun’s harmful UV rays and unexpected precipitation, while allowing light and air to move. Arizona State University in Scottsdale, Ariz., took the idea a step further, working with FTL Design Engineering Studio, New York, N.Y., to design SkySong, [...]

The Spanish fishing fleet is the largest in the European Union, employing approximately 80,000 sailors, most working on small vessels with few crew members. Sailors falling overboard due to a boat’s slippery deck, sudden change of direction or shift in equipment face life-threatening peril—especially without safety gear. Scio IT, a Spanish research and development company [...]

Ocean Gateway is the terminal for cruise ships and buses visiting Portland, Maine, and the Greater Portland Convention and Visitors Bureau wanted an exuberant entry portal to the city and state. Tensioned fabric sculptor Cynthia Thompson, president of Transformit, a company based in Gorham, Maine, was given carte blanche with the design. “The impression I [...]