Legacy Building Solutions has been designing, manufacturing and installing fabric structures across the globe since 2010. Based in Minnesota, the company combines a rigid steel I-beam frame with ExxoTec PVC-based fabric panels that incorporate a patented fabric attachment system. The PVC fabric—which lets in natural sunlight—has a grab tensile strength of 745 pounds per inch, making it twice as strong as polyethylene fabrics commonly used in other fabric buildings. Legacy’s fabric buildings are open freespan structures that support dynamic loads such as hangar doors, fire suppression systems, cranes, conveyors, HVAC systems and lighting equipment.
Despite Legacy’s success in projects ranging from equestrian riding arenas to international U.S. military aircraft hangars, the team still frequently comes across architects, civil engineers and regulatory authorities who lack experience with fabric structures.
“The initial preconception is often that this is a tent instead of a permanent structure,” says Nathan Stobbe, general manager at Legacy Building Solutions.
“We’re involved on the front end in helping users understand the technology of our fabric buildings,” adds Troy Jurek, operations manager at Legacy Building Solutions.
The Legacy team works with architects and general contractors to explain permitting parameters and to cover all permit requirements for a particular application. Insight is actively provided to architects and general contractors for optimizing the structure and accounting for factors such as different loads related to occupancy. With assistance, they can minimize concerns when obtaining a building permit.
“One of the challenges with permitting officials not being accustomed to working with fabric structures is that they don’t always have a thorough working knowledge of section 31 of the building code, which details many of the rules for fabric structures,” says Stobbe. “And so, we’ll often work together with the architect to help them walk through the process, as it relates to getting the permit for the fabric building portion of the project.”
When it comes to inspections, these are normally handled between the building inspector and the architect or general contractor. Legacy becomes involved in the process whenever modifications are required, or to provide an understanding of how the fabric building system works and how it can be integrated into the project.
“It really comes down to educating them on the tapered column system, and the rigidity of that framework system,” says Stobbe. “Educating them on how the fabric connections work, and the most effective ways to put penetrations through the fabric—whether it’s for heating, cooling or anything else that’s going through there.”
“We explain the durability of the fabric, and how it’s essentially stronger than steel from a load-bearing capacity. Legacy’s patented fabric attachment system allows us to install the building with significant pre-tension on the panels. The rigid membrane building basically performs in an extraordinary fashion as a result of the pre-tensioning of the fabric. So, it’s about educating them on the overall benefits of the system as compared to preconceived notions of a tent with floppy fabric,” Stobbe adds.
One significant advantage of Legacy’s fabric structures is that their framework system is highly similar to that of a pre-engineered metal building.
“Inspectors are typically accustomed to inspecting the framework of a pre-engineered metal building,” says Stobbe. “And so, they very quickly have an understanding of our framework. They trust its performance because they’ve seen and dealt with it before. That often helps simplify the process, because Legacy employs the tried-and-tested proven framework system, which is utilized extensively in the pre-engineered metal building industry, and which engineers, architects and building officials all understand.”
From the perspective of energy codes, things have been advancing for Legacy over time.
“When Legacy started in the fabric building business, we basically provided non-insulated buildings,” says Stobbe. “As we’ve progressed, we have managed much more complex structures with liners and insulation, for various industry segments such as sporting complexes or manufacturing facilities. Working through the requirements of the energy code, how it’s applied differently in different states, what code any particular state is operating out of, has definitely been a source of progress for us.”
Things get trickier when it comes down to the fire code associated with fabric structures.
“There’s a lot of confusion on whether the fabric that’s put on these buildings needs to be a non-combustible membrane or simply meet the [National Fire Protection Association] NFPA 701 codes for not propagating fire,” reveals Jurek. “Many local officials don’t understand those requirements.”
“In the U.S., our fabric is classified as non-combustible with a zero-hour rating, which means that it does not resist fire, but it also doesn’t burn,” explains Stobbe. “That’s what creates the confusion, because the building code in section 31 indicates that fabric buildings with steel frames are to be classified as a type 2B II-2 structure, which is a non-combustible building. It allows for a different roof structure fire rating or testing criteria than for a typical type 2 building. So, often there’s involvement to work through the variations as it relates to fabric buildings in the building code, compared to what the inspector might be used to looking at.”
As for other codes—such as mechanical, plumbing and electrical codes—Legacy serves as a partner while ensuring smooth integration for all parties involved.
“When it comes to other fabric building manufacturers who consider fabric buildings as a temporary structure, there are elements of the code that probably allow them to get away with less of a structure,” says Jurek. “And not be designed to the more stringent criteria that would typically be applicable to any other type of construction, such as pre-engineered buildings and brick-and-mortar buildings.”
“When we’re designing these structures for our clients, there are no corners cut. As far as that goes, we’re designing to the live loads, snow loads, wind loads—all the criteria that any other type of construction would be held to, we are being held to. There are fabric building manufacturers out there who claim that snow will not stay on the roof of their buildings. Therefore, in areas that get snow, they may be designing to a lower snow load on the building, with the end result being a less expensive structure that’s under-designed for what could actually happen. The snow will end up accumulating on the roof of these buildings if you’re in that sort of climate.
Legacy ensures a fluid process by employing a team approach to problem-solving, and leveraging extensive experience in working through permit-related issues.
“Any county or town or city can basically create their own code requirements so long as it is in excess of the building code. On occasion, we do run into situations where a town has created a code that is not expected, so it’s about working through the details of that particular code requirement for that town, city or county,” Stobbe adds.
Jurek advises clients to become actively involved with Legacy as the building supplier, as early in the process as possible.
“It’s a chance to be a little bit more proactive rather than reactive,” states Jurek. “Sometimes we’re not introduced to a problem or potential issue until late in the process. It’s better to be able to get ahead of it—say, weeks earlier. I believe that’s critical to any of these processes, to try and make them as smooth as possible.”
“If we have experience in any particular jurisdiction, we may have specific advice as it relates to working with that building department,” adds Stobbe. “We can work closely with the customer or the architect in that process. The reality is that building departments and building inspectors are all individuals applying their best interpretation of the building code. Every possible situation really is a whole new one, because you’re dealing with individuals who may have different understandings of the interpretation of the building code. We just work to be proactive together with building inspectors, architects, engineers, general contractors and clients, in trying to provide them with useful information specific to their project.”
Despite going through a sales process that helps them understand exactly what a Legacy fabric building entails, customers are often surprised once a building is erected.
“There’s always this exclamation where customers are like, ‘Wow, I didn’t realize it was such a robust, structurally massive building that we were buying!’” says Stobbe. “A good example of that is a project we did for a large steel manufacturer. It was a fabric building with 75-foot-tall sidewalls, so obviously the framework was very large, strong and robust. Even though we were dealing with an extremely experienced contractor that does work throughout the world, they just marveled at the framework and how well it went together. I guess they originally had the word ‘tent’ in mind instead of a very strong pre-engineered metal frame structure.”
“Legacy’s fabric buildings are definitely making significant inroads in terms of becoming an accepted technology within both the architectural and engineering fields, as well as with building inspectors,” advocates Stobbe. “Their popularity is continuing to grow. As inspectors gain experience in dealing with a fabric building, it helps facilitate the construction of more projects like it in the area.”
“Just like with anything else, as people become experienced with something new, they become comfortable to the point that they become proponents of it—because they see the value adds that are created for the community,” Stobbe adds. “This is opposed to when they don’t understand a system, it’s viewed as more of a risk. And so, the process of installing more of Legacy’s fabric structures around the U.S. and the world is part of the educational process, because people begin to understand how well they perform.”
To learn more about Legacy’s fabric buildings, visit their website.