Projects from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America among the nominees
A total of 17 international sustainable works compete for the Construmat Awards
17 buildings raised under sustainability criteria in Germany, Spain, Ecuador, France, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Switzerland, Thailand and Uganda, among others, have been nominated for the Construmat 2024 Awards, which will be presented at the 23rd edition of Fira de Barcelona’s International Construction Show, to be held from 21 to 23 May at the Gran Via venue.
The selected buildings were completed and between 2019 and 2023 and stand out for blending in their surroundings, formal resolution and use of space, as well as the sustainable and innovative materials and construction systems used.
The Spanish candidate projects for the Construmat 2024 award are the new sports centre in the Turó de la Peira district (Barcelona) designed by Anna Noguera and Javier Fernández; the social housing projects in Cornellà de Llobregat (Barcelona) by Peris + Toral Arquitectes and Palma de Mallorca by Carles Oliver, Antonio Martín, Xim Moyá and Alfonso Reina; the Reggio School of El Encinar de los Reyes by Andrés Jaque-Office for Political Innovation; and the integral transport centre of Metro de Madrid by Nexo+Gutiérrez-delaFuente+Perea.
The nominated works also include projects from other European countries, such as the museum in the Alpine town of Sonthofen in Germany, the Frida Kahlo School in France, and the Sales agricultural centre in Switzerland. Several works in Africa, Asia and South America have also been nominated including the Las Tejedoras community production centre in Guayaquil (Ecuador), the headquarters of the Institute for the Conservation of Agriculture in Karama (Rwanda), the St. Xavier’s Oratory in Umphang (Thailand) and the Mustardseed School in Sentema (Uganda).
The works have been designed by local architectural firms, some in collaboration with international or multidisciplinary professional teams. With these nominations, the committee rewards the work of professionals and companies in consulting, construction, construction management, interior design or landscaping, committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined on the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations.
Along these lines, the nominated projects have used solutions based on passive architecture, bioclimatic design, decarbonisation, energy efficiency, urban regeneration, rehabilitation, use of traditional natural systems and materials such as wood or earth, local resources, etc. to develop a social, inclusive and cultural initiative.
Expert committee and prestigious jury
The expert committee that has selected these works is comprised of representatives of five institutions linked to the promotion, encouragement and dissemination of sustainability in architecture: Architecture d’Aujourd’hui (AA), Associació d’Arquitectes per la Sostenibilitat (AuS-COAC), the Asociación Sostenibilidad y Arquitectura (ASA), Bauhaus-Earth and the Green Building Council España (GBCe).
After the preliminary phase, the winning project will be chosen by a jury of recognised prestige in the field of practice and research in sustainable architecture integrated by the director of the Paris School of Architecture (ESA-Paris), Marie-Hélène Contal; the architect of the bplus.xyz practice and professor at the Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, Olaf Grawert; and the founder of SUMO arquitectes and professor at the Barcelona School of Architecture (ETSAB-UPC), Jordi Pagès.
The public will also be able to choose one of these works through a popular vote, which will take place from April 11th to 25th and will grant free registration and tickets to the event.
The Construmat Awards ceremony, curated by the Fundació Mies van der Rohe, will take place on May 22nd as part of the activities of the tradeshow, which will be held from May 21st to 23rd.