Book Review

Volume 3, Issue 6,  August 2010

Expert Advice

Whether you’re looking to reduce noise or dust and fumes at your workplace or turn it into something that will catch your eye, Soper’s Engineered Fabric Solutions has just the answer.
     Soper’s Engineered Fabric Solutions—better known as Soper’s—is a leading manufacturer and supplier of softwall enclosures, partitions and curtain systems. Their state-of-the-art products are specifically designed to control dust and fumes, noise, temperature, privacy, cross-contamination and odour, as well as welding flash and over-spray.
     “Soper’s softwall systems are just a fraction of the price of a traditional rigid wall,” explains Bob Finch, Marketing Coordinator at Soper’s. “Our partitions and enclosures can also be installed or disassembled with little or no downtime. That means little interruption for you and more time to get back to business.”
     Located on 144 Chatham Street in Hamilton, Soper’s has a 40,000 square foot production facility that allows their company to manufacture products of any size or shape. For example, their plant features three FIAB welders including one with a 160 feet travelling head and another that’s much smaller and portable so Soper’s can create anything from a modest canopy to a large air-inflated structure.
     Longevity has always been one of Soper’s strong suits. Their company has been in the fabric solutions business for over 135 years—ever since J.A. Grant first opened a sailmaking business in Hamilton in 1875. (Robert Soper would purchase the company in 1884.) Over the years, the firm has continuously adapted to meet changes in the marketplace, making everything from coal bags and tents to horse covers and awnings. Their firm even supplied rope to Allied troops during the First World War. By the 1950s, Soper’s had expanded into the industrial market, providing fabric curtains, partitions and enclosures—and building the very first air-supported structure in Canada.
     For the past three generations, Soper’s has been owned and managed by the Gallagher family, and their belief in quality and customer service excellence has been passed on to their employees. Soper’s expert staff works closely with each customer to ensure their every need including factors like cost and logistics is taken into account.
     “When you purchase one of our softwall products, you’re getting more than just fabric and steel frames,” Bob explains. “You’re getting a complete turnkey solution. We pride ourselves on providing our customers with a value-added approach in designing, manufacturing, installing and servicing our products.”
     Throughout its history, Soper’s softwall products have been used in a wide range of sectors across North America including the manufacturing, food, warehousing, pharmaceutical, aerospace and mining industries. Eventually, the company launched a new division called Soper Fabric Products (SFP) that focuses entirely on the development of architectural tensile fabric structures for commercial buildings, medical centres, amphitheatres, walkways, pavilions and park umbrellas.
     SFP’s lightweight but strong fabric structures can be engineered to meet almost any architectural requirement—from the shades at Children’s Village at Ontario Place to the canopies at Canada’s Wonderland, from the audience shelter at the Emperor’s Boat Race in Hong Kong to the entranceways at Brampton’s William Osler Health Centre. The only limit is the designer’s imagination.
     Soper’s also provides industrial and commercial fabric solutions for military and airport hangars, barge covers, nuclear reactors, water treatment plants, tennis courts and environmental containment facilities.
     Times may change and building trends may come and go, but innovative firms continue to stand the test of time. And this historic Hamilton manufacturer remains committed to developing innovative softwall products for today’s changing world.