Like other inflatable restraints, it is made of a coated fabric sewn into the shape of a bag.
These coated fabrics are flexible, resist cracking, are easily handled, and generally have a life span of 15 to 20 years depending upon environmental conditions.
There are no complete studies about the dynamic behaviour of coated fabric and foils for structural applications.
A dynamic test on coated fabrics can evaluate the response under fast loading and unloading cycles due to blasts of wind or other sources of stress.
Since coated fabrics do not follow an elastic behaviour, once the stress is removed the sample maintains a certain level of permanent strain, a plastic deformation.
During the 1920s they diversified into paint and varnish, coated fabrics and plastics, and in 1927 they changed their name to Canadian Industries Limited.
Paul R. Thompson, who represents BondCote, said in an interview that the company's annual revenues were about $30 million, with coated fabrics accounting for only part of that.
However, other airbeam constructions consist of coated fabrics that are cut and manufactured to its intended shape by a method such as thermal welding.
The coated fabric is typically referred to as a lining, which simply refers to a coated fabric that does not have any particular color or pattern.
The seam area should be stronger than the original coated fabric when testing for tensile strength.