Walkway Tensile Structure Fabric Shade Structures or Tensile Structures are designed using a build approach. Each shade structure uses various fabric membranes, all of which are put together using clamps, cables, or stainless steel supports. The tensile structures are lightweight can easily span large distances. A tensile structure is a construction of elements carrying only tensile and no compression or bending. The term tensile should not be confused with tensegrity, which is a structural form with both tensile and compression elements.