St George’s Garrison Church

Fabric Architecture took possession of the St George’s Chapel site in mid-April to begin the process of installing the tensile fabric structure. The supporting framework for this particular project is glulam timber rather than the traditional and more frequently used steel. Fabric Architecture engineered the structure in-house and provided the specification to their chosen glulam supplier. Once in place, the glulam framework was covered with the tensile fabric roof canopy to complete to the protective structure over the remains of the Royal Garrison Church of St George. The build began with framework construction – this entailed a crane lift of the 4 main vaulted roof beams each weighing around 6 tonnes which sit atop 8 supporting columns weighing around 750kgs each, all in glulam. In addition to the 50 tonne crane, the lift required further use of 2 cherry pickers and a large 9m high scaffold tower. The build was carried out by a 6-man crew, made up of 4 tensile fabric riggers and 2 glulam specialists. Initial challenges for the build related to access – the site had uneven ground which complicated installation of the supporting columns. Fabric Architecture overcame this by laying down a specialist trackway to protect the ground and provide a suitable surface for vehicle access, both for plant equipment and the necessary goods deliveries.