Fremantle Markets Courtyard Canopy
Project Details
Location: Fremantle, WA
Completion Date: December 2024
Size: 340 sqm
Fabric: PTFE - Chukoh FGT600
Client: Fremantle Markets
Photography: © Evolve Design
MakMax Australia was engaged to design, engineer, and install a custom tensile membrane canopy for the Fremantle Markets – a heritage-listed site and an iconic part of the Fremantle community since 1897. The Fremantle Markets Courtyard Canopy involved replacing an ageing and mismatched series of shade sails that had been installed over the central courtyard in the 1980s. These old sails offered inconsistent shade and weather protection and lacked documentation regarding their structural integrity or fire compliance.
Working closely with the project architect and market management team from the early design stages, MakMax developed a fully engineered and NCC-compliant fabric structure that would provide long-term shade and weather protection to the marketplace, while respecting the historic character of the site.
The Brief
The client required a solution that would modernise the courtyard’s shade and weather protection without compromising the historical architecture or interfering with the market’s daily operation. The existing sails, irregularly patched and poorly supported, had reached the end of their usable life, and the market team had no records of the original installation, certification, or even the type of fabric used.
MakMax was tasked with creating a unified canopy to replace the fragmented structures and improve functionality and aesthetics. The courtyard presented a range of design and installation challenges. The area was not a regular shape, the surrounding rooftops varied in height, and the adjoining walkways branched out from non-uniform points. Additionally, all works had to take place within a narrow, enclosed courtyard space, with access restrictions and heritage protections in place.
The Materials
To meet fire compliance and durability requirements, Chukoh Skytop FGT-600 PTFE membrane was selected for the Fremantle Markets Courtyard Canopy. PTFE was ideal for this application due to its excellent fire-resistant properties, long service life, and high translucency, which allows natural light to enter the market space while providing weather protection.
The steel support framework was designed as a floating, free-standing structure, with no connection to the adjacent heritage buildings. This was achieved with a linear edge frame positioned above the existing rooftops, allowing the canopy to enclose the courtyard completely while maintaining clear separation from the original structures.
Two central steel columns support the main span, each with a four-spoked armature to distribute tension loads. Eleven additional slender columns are positioned around the perimeter, carefully located to avoid interference with the market layout below. The membrane was patterned into three distinct sections to suit the complex geometry of the structure. MakMax’s drafting team prepared the patterns, which were then fabricated by our international team and folded precisely for easy handling and deployment on site.
Installation on the Fremantle Markets Courtyard Canopy was carried out using small EWPs and boom lifts due to the tight access and confined working area. Careful coordination of deliveries, lifting operations and work scheduling ensured minimal disruption to market activity and preserved the integrity of the heritage-listed buildings.
The black-painted steelwork blends subtly into the background, allowing the bright white PTFE membrane to define the canopy without dominating the space visually. The new structure not only improves functionality and comfort for market stallholders and visitors but also supports recent fire-safety upgrades to the site, including the installation of a new sprinkler system.
The Result
The completed Fremantle Markets Courtyard Canopy features a clean central barrel vault with arched extensions to the north and south, enclosing the courtyard space, and two smaller arched walkway canopies branching from the southeast and northwest corners. The result is a light-filled, weather-protected marketplace that seamlessly blends old and new – a modern high-performance membrane canopy set within a heritage setting.
Delivered from concept to completion with MakMax’s full design, engineering, fabrication, and installation capabilities, the Fremantle Markets canopy is a strong example of how tensile membrane architecture can be sensitively integrated into complex heritage environments.
