Awnings & Shades – Specialty Fabrics Review

Canopy protects New Zealand kindergarten from UV rays

June 1, 2016 | Awnings & Shades, Markets

Mid-century kindergarten in New Zealand gains a contemporary facelift and enhanced enrollment—and a healthy dose of shade. Of all the roles that shade structures fulfill—from aesthetic appeal to space expansion— their most critical function is weather protection. Few places require as much pro…

Framework for success

March 1, 2016 | Awnings & Shades, Feature, Markets

Companies with in-house metal shops enjoy advantages in quality control and customer service, plus increased opportunities for expanding operations. Like the stars of box-office hits, fabric usually gets all the glory as the most noticeable player (especially when emblazoned with colors and custom g…

Envision, build, repeat

March 1, 2016 | Awnings & Shades, Business, Feature, Management, Markets, Perspective

Michael Catalano treats his clients as strategic partners—and that keeps them coming back. “We have a saying here: It’s not about the first job. It’s about the next job,” says Michael Catalano, CEO of Capitol Awning Co., Jamaica, N.Y. “And probably 90 percent or more of our work ends…

Angles of shade

February 1, 2016 | Awnings & Shades, Markets

Tech giant Google™ relied on old-school textiles to help shed some shade on its new campus expansion. Google™ is known for its inventiveness, creativity and efficiency. It’s no surprise that the unique Internet company continued that trend when it chose an industrial fabric solution for the ou…

Demand + supply = prevail

October 1, 2015 | Awnings & Shades, Business, Feature, Management, Markets, Perspective, Tents

Robert Cole brings decades of experience and common sense to the time-honored but always evolving economic model of supply and demand. One of the great things this industry has to offer is the quality of its suppliers,” says Robert Cole, IFAI Honored Life Member (HLM) and owner of Goodwin-Cole, Sa…

Selling shade

August 1, 2015 | Awnings & Shades, Feature, Markets, Perspective

Conrad Masterson builds his business by focusing on what clients really want—and what employees need. “The first thing I learned when I entered the shade sail industry was to focus on what the customer really wants,” says Conrad Masterson, president of SHADE Industries, Phoenix, Ariz. “T…

Shade sails on ice

June 1, 2015 | Awnings & Shades, Markets, Projects

A goal of the restoration of New York City’s Riverbank State Park ice rink, completed in December 2014, was to extend the season for the ice by protecting it from increased sun exposure it experienced in late winter. Considering the facility’s high visibility due to its location—69 feet above …

Printed, practical and appealing

June 1, 2015 | Awnings & Shades, Feature, Markets

Fabric graphics projects enhance public spaces thanks to their aesthetic, acoustic and eco-friendly properties. When 114 million viewers tuned in to watch Super Bowl XLIX on Feb. 1, 2015, they partook in a visual feast of fast-moving plays, dazzling electronic displays and big-screen graphics. TV vi…

Category: Awnings & Shades