This could quite possibly be Melbourne’s biggest Shade Sail. You really can’t miss the Shell service stations on either side of the M1 approach to the Westgate Bridge. Even from a distance they look like gigantic circus tents.
These giant tensile structures which are reminiscent of the Sun Sails from Brisbane’s Expo ’88 are designed not only to completely shelter refuelling drivers from the weather but to have maximum visibility to attract customers. And the work ! These are now doubt one of the busiest petrol service stations in Melbourne ….
From underneath you get a true sense of their scale and uplifting lightweight design forms.
Even Kentucky Fried Chicken’s fast food drive-thru next door has a giant red tensile structure which not only provides shelter for drive-through customers but really effectively reinforces the franchises’ strong brand and demands attention from the freeway.
We’re hoping to sometime soon knock these structures off their perch. So if you have a project this size or bigger (hint) – you know who to call. In the meantime, we’re busy build some complex and spectacular commercial and architectural tensile structures of our own ….