Apparatus and method for manufacturing a load bearing fabric surface

An apparatus for forming molded edges on opposite sides of a load bearing surface including a stretching assembly integrated into a molding assembly. The stretching assembly may include localized fabric clamps that leave the center region of the fabric free (e.g. not clamped) through the process. The clamps may be arranged so that once extended to stretch the fabric, the fabric is held by the clamps in the appropriate position for molding. The fabric may be held so that opposed edges terminate in the mold cavities. The mold parts may cooperatively define two spaced apart mold cavities, and may include a mold pocket to provide space to store excess fabric. The fabric may be held against the surface of the mold cavity during the molding process, for example, using hold-down pins and special gate configurations. The molding apparatus may include an alternative stretching assembly configured to provide different amounts of stretch to different portions of the fabric blank. The alternative stretching assembly may include additional intermediate clamps.