Signature Structure.
Once a littered 3.1 acre empty space in the suburb of Perris, California, Mercado Park has now been transformed into a family friendly fun park with an amphitheatre, basketball court and a wading pool with sprinkler fountains. The amphitheatre is none other than the Fabric Architecture Bandshell canopy, bringing much needed shade from the searing Californian sun and creating a raised performance stage for local kids.
The challenge.
The Bandshell is just one of the many pre-engineered Signature Structures by Fabric Architecture. For Mercado Park we had to re-evaluate our UK engineering for USA Codes. This led to a requirement to increase the wall thickness of the steel, but the diameter of the masts remained the same. The local desert winds can reach up to 90mph but this fell within our calculated wind loads for the fabric canopy.
The solution.
Shaped like a giant Pringle and sometimes referred to as the Butterfly by clients, we designed the Bandshell to be 6m or 10m diameter. It’s popularity both sides of the Pond stems from the amount of useful coverage the canopy gives, and the drainage hoppers on the two low legs, which in arid areas could also be used for rainwater harvesting.
We flew our Installation Manager over to Perris for the installation. He worked with Kasa Construction and with the assistance of their site crew the whole structure was completed in two days. The steel ‘ring-beam’ was first bolted together on the ground, using a telescopic materials handler to support it while the fabric is fitted and tensioned into place. The whole ‘roof’ is then mechanically lifted onto the four support masts.
