15th Annual R+D Awards

Few things can keep design-minded researchers—and research-minded designers—from iterating on potential solutions to societal and environmental concerns. From 62 entries, ARCHITECT’s 15th annual R+D Awards jurors June Grant, Mónica Ponce de León, AIA, and Bradford Prestbo, FAIA, selected six winners that have made meaningful strides in tackling these challenges. The winners are “a good representation of the fertile ground that is the architectural space and of where the industry is heading,” Prestbo says. “Even during pandemic times, interesting design and product exploration are still going on, which is a [testament] to the industry.”

“We often award projects that don’t solve for local issues or improve local skills,” Grant says. “These winners show how you can use what is accessible to solve a local problem. And it’s important to recognize that there are many ways to solve a problem.”

JURY

June Grant is a design principal of Blink!Lab Architecture, in Oakland, Calif. A registered architect, Grant is a board member of the Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture. Prior to launching her firm she was a principal at Steinberg Architects and an associate principal at AECOM. She received her M.Arch. from the Yale School of Architecture and also has backgrounds in sculpture, investment analysis, and economics.

Mónica Ponce de León, AIA, is the dean and a professor of architectural design at Princeton University School of Architecture and the founding principal of MPdL Studio. A National Design Award winner and National Academician, Ponce de León is widely recognized as a pioneer in the application of robotic technology to architecture, both in her practice and in academia. She has been honored with the Academic Award in Architecture from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; the ACADIA distinguished teaching award; and the Architectural League of New York’s Young Architects and Emerging Voices awards.

Bradford Prestbo, FAIA, is the director of operations at Placetailor, a development/design/build practice in Boston. He is advancing the profession through his practice, advocacy, and educational efforts in the use of cutting-edge design technologies, high-performance design, and the incorporation of maker culture into the design process. He is the 2021 chair of the AIA Technology in Architectural Practice Knowledge Community, and founded the Boston Society of Architect’s MakeTANK Knowledge Community, where he currently serves as the national director.

• Award: Robotic Construction—The Glass Vault

  Robots are put to strategic use in a complex construction by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Princeton University's CREATE Laboratory and Form Finding Lab, and other collaborators.

  

• Award: ADALAC—Acoustically Diffuse & Absorbent Lightweight Aerated Concrete

  Concrete's porosity, durability, and moldability make the material ideal for a nonstructural use, says University of Oklahoma associate professor of architecture Daniel Butko.

  

• Award: Toward Carbon Neutrality—High-Performance Biochromic Window

  An aesthetic and adaptable microalgae façade system by Kyoung Hee Kim at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and EcoClosure, improves occupant wellness while producing a biofuel source.

  

• Award: Cove.Tool, an App to Optimize Building Design for Sustainability

  The Atlanta-based software developer's eponymous analysis program might be the dynamic, versatile, and visual solution sought by performance-conscientious architects.

  

• Award: Hospital COVID La Margarita

  At the height of the pandemic, a collaboration by Kainsa and Movil Technologies delivered a high-performance, 40-bed hospital in Puebla, Mexico, in 60 days.

  

• Award: Front Flats, Net-Zero Affordable Multifamily Housing

  Architecture and development firm Onion Flats hopes to revitalize a Philadelphia neighborhood with its prototype for economical, net-zero living.