Specialty Fabrics Review June 2020 - 37

that protection for anything from a light
shower to a heavy wind and rainstorm
blowing at 60 mph that, when possible,
doesn't deny access to a beautiful starlit
evening," says Barnes. "Only fabric can
provide that flexibility.
"If someone comes in and says they are
looking for wind protection, we advise
them that the only curtain we've really
found that works is manual roll-down, the
rope and pulley system," says Barnes. "We
can pull those down and lock them tight.
We have not had foolproof performance
with several types of tracked systems
in Hawaii's unpredictable and quickly
changing weather systems. They work
if the wind is blowing and the curtain
is down, but most customers with track
systems don't decide to put them down to
protect themselves until it's too late.
"Those systems tend to bind in their
tracks when the wind is blowing hard and
the curtain is under load," explains Barnes.
"If you try to operate the motor while the
curtain is bound in the track, you might find
significant damage to either the curtain
or the part of the building it is attached
to-so if you're pulling it up, it can either
cause the track to separate from the wall or
cause damage to the mechanism, or if you're
trying to deploy it, it binds up and then the
fabric rolls up in the hood above the track,
which can result in a major service call."
Tropical J's rope and pulley systems are
made from a wide variety of solid vinyls,
acrylics such as Sunbrella®, mesh material
or even clear vinyl. When in use, the
systems are fully deployed and tied to
set anchor points.

FLOOD MITIGATION
ILC Dover, based in Frederica, Del., is
widely known for producing spacesuits for
NASA for more than 50 years. "But we've
leveraged that expertise into some pretty
spectacular things with film and fabric,"
says director of marketing Dan Klopp-
including products for flood protection.

Klopp says the company entered the
flood protection market in recent years
"through kind of a circuitous route."
According to Klopp, "It's wasn't a strategic
move; we were brought in by a customer.
But we've found an ever-growing need."
ILC Dover produces a wide range of
flood protection products, including gate,
wall, cover and plug systems. "Ours are
different than most," says Klopp. "The vast
majority out there are some sort of rigid
barrier, either aluminum or steel, typically
stainless steel. We approach it with a soft
fabric structure."
Klopp says fabric structures are lighter
weight and their flexibility makes it easier
for them to be stored when not in use. "They
also have a higher resistance to impact, which
on the surface may look counterintuitive," he
says. "But our structural layer is made from
Kevlar® webbing, which pound for pound is
five to 10 times stronger than steel.
"The fact that it is soft gives it an
additional advantage," he adds. "In floods,

Tropical J's has found manual pulldown
rope and pulley systems preferable to track
systems, which can bind if deployed during
high wind. Photos: Tropical J's.

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Specialty Fabrics Review June 2020

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