Hybrid woven/knitted fabric

Fabric material comprising a woven first section and second and third sections comprising knitted yarn, the second and third sections connected through the first section by a yarn passing through the first section. The woven section warp and weft yarns may be perpendicular. The knitting yarn may comprise a polyester and the woven fabric may comprise carbon fibre. The polyester may have a high tenacity with denier between 150 to 6000. An apparatus for forming the fabric has needle beds 8, 10, a mechanism 24, 26, to maintain tension of the warp threads 12, 14, and a mechanism 36, 38 to extend inside a shed warp to place knitting yarn and simultaneously insert weft threads. The apparatus may have two needle beds which may be oriented in an interlock gaiting. The tension mechanism may include movable bars interacting with warp threads. The mechanism for controlling the tension may only be active during shedding.