Techtextil and Texprocess will present ‘Living in Space’ in cooperation with the European Space Agency and the German Aerospace Centre, showing how technical textiles will make settlements in space possible.
Examples of the parts and products in which they are to be found will be on show at the ‘Living in Space’ exhibition during Techtextil and Texprocess. Among the exhibits to be seen are materials and technologies from exhibitors in a ‘Material Gallery’, architecture for space by Ben van Berkel, space-inspired fashions and an original Mars Rover. And—even without having completed a dizzying astronaut training program—visitors can take a journey through space to Mars via virtual-reality glasses.
“At the ‘Living in Space’ exhibition, visitors can see examples of textile materials and processing technologies in an application-oriented setting. In cooperation with our partners and exhibitors, we have created an informative and entertaining area, the like of which has never been seen before at Techtextil and Texprocess,” explains Michael Jänecke, brand manager, Technical Textiles and Textile Processing, Messe Frankfurt. Given that technical textiles are to be found in almost every sphere of human life, the materials and processing technologies shown are oriented towards the ‘Architecture,’ ‘Civilization,’ ‘Clothing’ and ‘Mobility’ areas of application.
Visitors can get an idea of how building in space could function at the ‘Architecture’ area curated by Stylepark architecture magazine. Lightweight construction and canopy specialist MDT-tex joined forces with star architect Ben van Berkel of the international UNStudio firm of architects to create a ‘Space Habitat’ especially for Techtextil.
Comprising 60 individual modules, each of which is double twisted and under tension, the lightweight pavilion has an area of 40 square meters and consists of specially designed aluminium profiles covered with PTFE sheets. MDT-tex designed the fabric especially for the pavilion in an extremely light grammage without sacrificing its high-temperature resistance and technical properties.
