Material for an Architectural Revolution

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"You have to evaluate, project by project, what the driving force is for using ETFE," says Foiltec's Peck. "Is it for architectural imagery, for transparency, for structural reasons or thermal performance?" He doesn't advise using it for small-scale or residential projects.

Acoustics can be another drawback. The cushion system, when used on a roof, can amplify the sound of rain because the tension in the cushion acts like a drum. Manufacturers have developed several noise-suppressing techniques, including layering polycarbonate sheets within ETFE cushions, but their use isn't widespread yet.

Interior applications, such as walls within an office, present other sound issues. ETFE transmits more sound than glass or wood, making it ill-suited for meeting rooms or conference centers near airports, to name one ETFE proposal that was quashed by noise concerns. Conversely, ETFE can be beneficial for self-contained, noisy areas like aquatic parks—sound bounces off the walls and floor and escapes through the roof.

Just the Beginning

But plans are already under way to address these concerns, and ETFE is already cropping up in more and more locations. Foiltec has eight projects that will be built in the U.S. next year (and more than 100 projects slated worldwide), and has just completed an atrium roof for a U.S. Federal building. Peck hopes the latter project might prove to be a turning point for ETFE in the U.S., which has been notably slow to catch on to the material's potential. ETFE was named in three of the four submissions for the Beijing National Aquatic Center, and can be seen in several proposals for the 2012 London Olympics.

Another large ETFE project is already on the horizon: The Khan Shatyry Entertainment Center, a 1,076,000-sq.-ft. tent-shaped recreational complex in the capital of Kazakhstan, designed by London firm Foster + Partners is due for completion next year. Other top-tier architecture firms, like Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) and Gehry Partners, are said to be considering ETFE for upcoming projects.

And other innovations are still being developed. Foiltec is currently testing whether it might be possible to attach photovoltaics to ETFE panels or use an insulating "nanogel" to increase a panel's thermal properties. As Bilmon, the Watercube architect, says: "There's a new realization that the whole of the world is facing sustainability issues—and solutions like ETFE are required for the future."

Click here to view how ETFE is being used in buildings around the world.

Woyke is a staff editor at BusinessWeek.