The winners of the 3rd International Holcim Awards competition for sustainable construction projects and visions from North America have been announced. A total of $300,000 was presented to ten diverse and innovative projects from Canada and the U.S. at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. The winning projects show how greater levels of sustainability can be reached in building and construction through people-focused designs that include simple adaptation, innovative materials, and clever architecture.
The Swiss-based Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction conducts the competition in parallel in five regions across the world. More than 6,000 submissions for projects located in 146 countries entered the Holcim Awards which aims to promote sustainable responses to contemporary technological, environmental, socioeconomic and cultural issues from the building and construction industry.
Gold to an infrastructure network for Inuit communities in Canada
A socio-architectural project to create regional food-gathering nodes and a logistics network in Canada's high arctic territory won the top prize for North America of $100,000. The Arctic Food Network (AFN)secures mobility between the scattered Inuit communities, allows a better distribution of local foods, and serves as a series of bases for the reinforcement of traditional hunting. The infrastructure project by Lateral Office/InfraNet Labbased in Toronto, Ontario, and Princeton, New Jersey, also establishes new foundations for a sustainable, more independent economy.
Mohsen Mostafavi, Head of jury and Dean of the Harvard University Graduate School of Design, congratulated the project for creating a cohesive strategy that responds to the landscape, climatic and site conditions. "The project includes purposeful interventions which are integrated without any grand gestures or expensive structures - but instead bridges between the traditions of the Inuit and the expectations of the young generation. The project thereby provides an opportunity to create an improved future, in terms of both economic opportunity and a sustainable way of living," he said.
Silver Award to a zero net energy school building in Los Angeles
The Holcim Awards Silver was presented to a design for a two-level zero energy certified school building to be constructed on multiple campuses throughout Los Angeles. The project led by architects Swift Lee Office of Los Angeles uses "off-the shelf" components and modular panels to create a pre-fabricated system that features a double-layered façade for solar, acoustic, and environmental control and achieves a climate-responsive solution for each site. The project was applauded by the jury for its thoroughly developed and comprehensively presented design, which manages the integration of a coherent technical and structural concept, yet retains spatial and conceptual simplicity.
Energy and water efficient border control station in Maine wins Bronze Award
The Holcim Awards Bronze was awarded to Julie Snow Architectsof Minneapolis for a border control station on the US frontier to Canada at Van Buren, Maine. The approach meets a range of stringent regulations for safety, operation and durability and yet is a highly aesthetic structure marking the national frontier. A zero net energy goal and water saving targets, challenged by the remote location of the site and energy demand for 24-hour operation, are achieved through features such as a ground source heating and cooling, a solar wall to temper outside ventilation air, a ground-coupled heat pump, peaking bio-diesel boilers, LED lights, and lighting control systems to reduce fossil fuel consumption. The jury commended the design for successfully applying state-of-the-art features of sustainability in a government project with its regulatory implications.
Projects in Kansas, Hawaii, Illinois and Missouri receive Acknowledgements
Four projects were presented with an Acknowledgement prize. An energy-efficient university building in Lawrence, Kansas, by Dan Rockhill of Studio 804 which forms part of the University of Kansas architecture, design and planning curriculum and traces the entire process of planning and construction up to realization. An energy-neutral portable classroom designed for use in Hawaii by Anderson Anderson Architecture of San Francisco that reaches manufacturing and transport efficiency, and achieves low operating costs and ease of maintenance. An energy, water and waste efficient military installation in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri by the US Army Corps of Engineersin Washington, DC, which adapts sustainable planning and construction to the military field. And, the Ford Calumet Environmental Center by Studio Gang Architectsof Chicago that reuses materials from the site's previous industrial function - while serving bird watchers and creating a dialog about the region's environmental past, present, and future.
"Next Generation" prizes for post-graduate student visions
The Holcim Awards competition recognizes the importance of engaging tomorrow's professionals on the theme of sustainable construction through the "Next Generation" category which shares the visions and ideas of postgraduate university students. First prize was awarded to Keith Van de Riet, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, NY for a strategy to strengthen mangrove forests along coastlines to reinforce the natural protection of the coastal communities against the threat of tsunamis. Second prize was awarded to a team of students led by David Getty, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD)of Providence, RI for the unique use of secondary building materials in a temporary festival structure. Przemyslaw Latoszek of the University of Toronto received the third prize for a materials science project that studies the building properties of foam concrete and the potential for wider use of the material in architecture and construction.
Independent jury of international experts in architecture and sustainability
Holcim Awards submissions for projects in North America were evaluated by an independent jury hosted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT): Mohsen Mostafavi (Head, USA), Ray Cole (Canada), Keller Easterling (USA), Harry Gugger (Switzerland), Sheila Kennedy (USA), Hans-Rudolf Schalcher (Switzerland), Nader Tehrani (USA), Bernard Terver (USA) and Mark West (Canada) used the five "target issues" for sustainable construction developed by the Holcim Foundation to evaluate submissions. The "target issues" address the triple bottom line of economic, environmental, and social factors together with architectural quality and the potential to apply the innovation in other locations.
Ceremony in Washington, DC as part of a series of Holcim Awards presentations for 2011
The Holcim Awards ceremony for North America in Washington, DC follows the presentation of winners in Milan, Casablanca and Buenos Aires. In November, the series of events will conclude in Singapore. The projects that receive Holcim Awards Gold, Silver and Bronze in each region automatically qualify for the Global Holcim Awards next year. In addition, all prize-winning projects at the regional level - including the Acknowledgement and "Next Generation" winners - will automatically compete for Global Holcim Innovation prizes which are being introduced in 2012, coinciding with the centennial anniversary of the Holcim Group. Winners of the Global Holcim Awards will be announced in April 2012.
The Holcim Awards is an international competition of the Holcim Foundation which seeks innovative, future-oriented and tangible sustainable construction projects and offers prize money of USD 2 million per three-year competition cycle. The competition is run in cooperation with renowned partner universities: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), Switzerland; Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, MA, USA; Universidad Iberoamericana (UIA) in Mexico City, Mexico; Ecole Supérieure d'Architecture de Casablanca (EAC), Morocco; Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Bombay) in Mumbai, India; Tongji University (TJU) in Shanghai, China; Universidade de São Paulo (USP), Brazil; and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Holcim Foundation is supported by Holcim Ltd and its Group companies in more than 70 countries and is independent of its commercial interests. Holcim is one of the world's leading suppliers of cement and aggregates (crushed stone, gravel and sand) as well as further activities such as ready-mix concrete and asphalt including services.
Holcim is represented in North America by Aggregate Industries US, Holcim Canada, and Holcim (US). BD+C
Related Stories
| Nov 11, 2010
USGBC certifies more than 1 billion square feet of commercial space
This month, the total footprint of commercial projects certified under the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED Green Building Rating System surpassed one billion square feet. Another six billion square feet of projects are registered and currently working toward LEED certification around the world. Since 2000, more than 36,000 commercial projects and 38,000 single-family homes have participated in LEED.
| Nov 10, 2010
$700 million plan to restore the National Mall
The National Mall—known as America’s front yard—is being targeted for a massive rehab and restoration that could cost as much as $700 million (it’s estimated that the Mall has $400 million in deferred maintenance alone). A few of the proposed projects: refurbishing the Grant Memorial, replacing the Capitol Reflecting Pool with a smaller pool or fountain, reconstructing the Constitution Gardens lake and constructing a multipurpose visitor center, and replacing the Sylvan Theater near the Washington Monument with a new multipurpose facility.
| Nov 9, 2010
Just how green is that college campus?
The College Sustainability Report Card 2011 evaluated colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada with the 300 largest endowments—plus 22 others that asked to be included in the GreenReportCard.org study—on nine categories, including climate change, energy use, green building, and investment priorities. More than half (56%) earned a B or better, but 6% got a D. Can you guess which is the greenest of these: UC San Diego, Dickinson College, University of Calgary, and Dartmouth? Hint: The Red Devil has turned green.
| Nov 9, 2010
12 incredible objects being made with 3D printers today
BD+C has reported on how 3D printers are attracting the attention of AEC firms. Now you can see how other creative types are utilizing this fascinating printing technology. Among the printed items: King Tut’s remains, designer shoes, and the world’s smallest Rubik’s Cube.
| Nov 9, 2010
U.S. Army steps up requirements for greening building
Cool roofs, solar water heating, and advanced metering are among energy-efficiency elements that will have to be used in new permanent Army buildings in the U.S. and abroad starting in FY 2013. Designs for new construction and major renovations will incorporate sustainable design and development principles contained in ASHRAE 189.1.
| Nov 9, 2010
Designing a library? Don’t focus on books
How do you design a library when print books are no longer its core business? Turn them into massive study halls. That’s what designers did at the University of Amsterdam, where they transformed the existing 27,000-sf library into a study center—without any visible books. About 2,000 students visit the facility daily and encounter workspaces instead of stacks.
| Nov 9, 2010
Turner Construction report: Green buildings still on the agenda
Green buildings continue to be on the agenda for real estate owners, developers, and corporate owner-occupants, according to the Turner 2010 Green Building Market Barometer. Key findings: Almost 90% of respondents said it was extremely or very likely they would incorporate energy-efficiency improvements in their new construction or renovation project, and 60% expected to incorporate improvements to water efficiency, indoor environmental quality, and green materials.
| Nov 5, 2010
New Millennium’s Gary Heasley on BIM, LEED, and the nonresidential market
Gary Heasley, president of New Millennium Building Systems, Fort Wayne, Ind., and EVP of its parent company, Steel Dynamics, Inc., tells BD+C’s Robert Cassidy about the Steel Joist Manufacturer’s westward expansion, its push to create BIM tools for its products, LEED, and the outlook for the nonresidential construction market.
| Nov 3, 2010
First of three green labs opens at Iowa State University
Designed by ZGF Architects, in association with OPN Architects, the Biorenewable Research Laboratory on the Ames campus of Iowa State University is the first of three projects completed as part of the school’s Biorenewables Complex. The 71,800-sf LEED Gold project is one of three wings that will make up the 210,000-sf complex.
| Nov 3, 2010
Park’s green education center a lesson in sustainability
The new Cantigny Outdoor Education Center, located within the 500-acre Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Ill., earned LEED Silver. Designed by DLA Architects, the 3,100-sf multipurpose center will serve patrons of the park’s golf courses, museums, and display garden, one of the largest such gardens in the Midwest.
