This interview with TransHab developer William Schneider was conducted in the summer of 2006.

Here

It contains some interesting facts about the TransHab/ Bigelow inflatable space craft, and surprising performance comparisons with conventional rigid aluminum ISS type modules.

The original purpose of the TransHab design was for a Mars mission. The habitat for the Mars mission was required to be 600 cubic meters. For an aluminum shell structure—the type that had been conceived—to be that large while being launched (enduring high launch acceleration loads plus high launch vibrations) required a thick wall and heavy wall stiffening. Because of the large surface area the entire habitat became prohibitively heavy. An inflatable, however, could be launched in the collapsed configuration, strapped tightly around a central core so that it could easily withstand the harsh launch environment; once in orbit, where the acceleration and vibration loads are zero, it would be inflated to the required volume.

The TransHab was designed and successfully tested to withstand four atmospheres. No airplane cockpit or spacecraft crew module today could be pressurized to that high level. The deployable MM/OD protection was demonstrated to be better than a three inches of solid aluminum.