What are tensioned roller blinds systems?

Tensioned roller shades are specialty shading systems that consist of an aluminium roller containing a tubular motor onto which the fabric is securely fixed and therefore it is dimensionally stabilized throughout its travel. The shade fabrics are available with an extensive array of colours and various levels of opacity.

These tensioned roller shades are ideal for vertical, horizontal, or sloping glazing in large areas. They are designed to be reliable in commercial, residential and leisure spaces, providing ease of operation, low maintenance and stability. These shades allow for maximum daylight transmission; yet they are an exceptionally effective solution to minimize solar gain on large areas of glazing.

This type of blinds are robust shades designed for skylights, roofs and atriums and can be applied with accuracy and discretion irrespective of the size or shape of your glazing. Tensioned fabrics are widely adaptable to all building types. The system consists of a horizontal, vertical, or sloping roller blind with the fabric held under tension to maintain a tight and flat cover across the opening.

The innovative design keeps fabric panels taut and parallel to the glazing to avoid sagging at a variety of slopes. These tensioned shades reduce light gaps around fabric and maximize the view when opened by eliminating cable guides that are regularly used in classical skylight shades.

Also called specialty shades, these blinds are engineered with a unique torsion spring mechanism combined with a very thin tension cable to create a smooth-running shading for glazing applications. To ensure that the fabric remains flat and avoid all kind of wrinkling that can occur, the tension mechanism and the motor are both incorporated in a single barrel.

So far, the key feature of all tension shades is the single-motor mechanism, which reduces installation costs, controllers and wiring and improves system reliability.

Some specialty shades are designed to hold the fabric and cable take-up spools in the same barrel. The system’s side pulleys are mounted on the side of the opening opposite the motor tube. This makes the tensioned blind ideal for bottom-ups, laterally-traversing, and specialty shapes.

There are a comprehensive range of fabrics, colour finishes and control systems to choose from. The result of which will be a perfect arrangement when selecting something suitable for the building specifications, ensuring this specialty blind seamlessly blends in with your interiors. Moreover, the system can be fitted externally to the glazing.

The tensioned roller blind system can be used with any glazing application from typical windows and angled windows through to large, glazed areas, facades, skylights and atria spaces. It is available in a range of high-performance fabrics such as: black-out, dim-out, energy saving, heat reflective, metallized and screen.

The system comprises mainly: galvanized steel roller tube, tension cable spools, hembars, endcaps, roller mounting brackets and return pulleys assembly and the shade fabric. The system is motorized, and all guide cables are held under permanent tension. When vertically installed, or fixed on a sloped glazing, the shade can close from top to bottom, or from the bottom up.

When a building is constructed with an overall shading strategy, better results are achieved including, natural daylighting, reduced heat gain, glare control, and improved aesthetics. The tension shades contribute to enhancing indoor environments, well-being of occupants, energy savings and sustainability.

Discover our collection of specialty shades by browsing the section dedicated to our Solange® series.