Today, the American Institute of Architects announced the winners of its 2020 Innovation Awards, recognizing "innovative technologies and progressive practices" from architects and collaborators that "support the design, delivery, and operation of buildings or research in practice and academia." The annual honors, whose announcement was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are given in up to three categories: holistic design, development of design or design thinking, and project delivery excellence. The 2020 awards recognized projects in the two former categories.
The jury for AIA's 2020 Innovation Awards comprised chair Violet Whitney, of Sidewalk Labs, New York; Chris Giattina of Blox, in Bessemer, Ala.; Bill Zahner, Hon. AIA, of A. Zahner Co. in Kansas City, Mo.; Yanel de Angel, AIA, of Perkins&Will, in Boston; and Charlie Williams, AIA, of LPA, in Irvine, Calif.
Category: Holistic Design
Project: Catalyst Building, in Spokane, Wash.
Designer: Michael Green Architecture and Katerra
Excerpt from AIA description: "Born of close collaboration and a set of shared values, Spokane’s Catalyst Building is a testament to the fact that wood buildings can meet and exceed the performance of their steel and concrete counterpoints. Composed of more than 4,000 cubic meters of cross-laminated timber and glulam products, it is expected to be one of the largest buildings in North America to achieve Zero Energy and Zero Carbon certifications from the International Living Future Institute."
Category: Development of Design or Design Thinking
Project: BHoM (Buildings and Habitats object Model) Life Cycle Assessment Toolkit
Designer: Buro Happold
Excerpt from AIA description: "This valuable new tool, an open-source endeavor, is an accessible and data-driven framework that allows design professionals to measure embodied carbon of all elements within building design. Supported by a network of architects, engineers, and software developers who have contributed code to it, Buildings and Habitats object Model (BHoM) boasts an impressive range of functionality that spans multiple disciplines and represents a transformative and democratic approach to measuring embodied carbon in everyday construction materials."
