Dear ###USER_name###,

thank you very much for the the overwhelming positive and massive number of responses to the first University Master Program in "Membrane Lightweight Structures" starting November in Vienna Austria.

The goal of the "Membrane Lightweight Structures" Master Program is to combine the pioneering spirit of the early developments made by Frei Otto and his team with the current and future building technologies.

Above all, this Program will provide practical yet innovative answers to real-world questions.

This comprehensive Master Program includes lectures by key figures from the Membrane Lightweight Structure Industry and Academia. With the 4 semester part time program the so called "top secrets" will be fully revealed. The worldwide accredited and approved academic M.Eng. eq. M.Sc. (90 ECTS) opens also the door to an unprecedented Ph.D program.

State of the art software like the EASY and Formfinder Professional are free available to all participants in their development as the most prepared and up-to-date graduate in the field of membrane lightweight structures. This 4 semester part-time program is presented in Vienna Austria, in 4 units each lasting 12 days:

Unit 1: Nov. 8^th to 19^th 2010
Unit 2: Feb. 21^st 2011
Unit 3: Oct. 17^th 2011
Unit 4: Jan. 16^th 2012 plus one optional Unit for the building workshop.

Be part of our network to set new quality standards in membrane architecture and membrane engineering. For more information please visit http://mls.tuwien.ac.at  or  mail@formfinder.at. 

The main objectives of the workshop is to provide fundamental information, as well as presenting the state-of-the-art in membrane lightweight structures. The workshop is hosted by Univ. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dr. h.c. Lothar Gründig. For more information please  mail@textile-roofs.com or visit www.textile-roofs.com.

We are happy to announce that Formfinder Professional Version 3.0 will be officially presented on June 3^rd 2010 at the Textile Roofs in Berlin.

SEFAR® Architecture Vision is a novel open-mesh fabric made out of black synthetic fibres. The basic assortment consists of six fabrics with two different yarn thicknesses from 0.14 to 0.26 mm. The amount of open space depending on fabric is between 25 and 70%.
The six basic fabrics are coated unilaterally with metal in a complex process; such as aluminium, copper, chrome, titanium, gold or aluminium/copper-alloy. Further it can be personalized by digital printing.

SEFAR® Architecture Vision opens in conjunction with glass or other transparent materials manifold possibilities. In combination with plastics fair construction or temporary architecture is in the spotlight. Laminated in glass/safety glass or chucked in the frame of isolated glass the attractive applications have no limits. The thin fabrics give the glass a unique textile structure and reduce its toughness. Depending on the application the metallic front plays with natural or artificial light and reduces visibility to the inside. The back of the fabric remains neutral and allows only slightly darkened viewing to the outside. It does not matter whether the fabric is coated or also unilaterally exclusively printed.

In addition to numerous indoor applications like doors and walls, the design of veneer elements or glassed railing is in the foreground. First large-scale projects were already implemented in 2010.
Through the use of SEFAR® Architecture Vision the culvert of energy according to mesh size and coating can be significantly reduced. The fabric valuable contributes to the field of energy efficient constructions.

Between May and October 2010, the people of Essen and their guests will be able to enjoy an unusual sight: emerging from the centre of Lake Baldeney will be four islands, where previously only the RWE retaining dam was to be seen. Together the islands form the Ruhr Atoll – one of the highlights of the Capital of Culture Ruhr.2010.
The islands in the lake are works of art, each of which has been conceived jointly by an artist and a scientist. "Under the motto 'Art is energy – Energy is motion', seemingly disparate partners unite their concepts of energy," explains Ruhr Atoll curator, Norbert Bauer. "In this way, energy sources such as water, wind and the sun are joined by an additional source: human creativity. The Ruhr Atoll transforms physical energy into creative energy, motion, light and sound."

Icebergs conjure up various associations. Whereas earlier generations first thought of the sinking of the Titanic, today the drifting ice floes tend to symbolise climate change. The artist Andreas Kaiser and polar research scientist Dr. Lars Kindermann draw on such images in their contribution to the Ruhr Atoll.

Yes, "Membrane Lightweight Structures" range from very small to very large.

In the beginning of spring leichtbaukunst installed a small sail at the Bergische Land to cover the entrance area of a private house: Therefore a V-shaped strut was fixed by means of four adhesive anchors to stretch the 8.5 m2 membrane using 6 points in total (including two at another strut the client had already mounted). To reach a high-level standard all metal parts were made of satin stainless steel. For the sail areoflon PTFE fabric was chosen and manufactured by aeronautec in combination with pre-stretched cord at the edges.

Projects like the entrance canopy in Schwelm and the Mabhiba Stadium in Durban can be found with the Formfinder Project Finder. More than 1000 projects can be found. Please find more information on our website.

The Formfinder Software Development Team thanks for the support to

• Carl Stahl
• Lenzing Leading Fiber Innovation
• SEFAR Architecture Solutions

We keep you InForm!

Lars Meeß-Olsohn and
Robert Wehdorn-Roithmayr