102nd Edition – Zak World of Façades USA

This will be the 102nd edition globally and the 4th edition in New York which will showcase sustainable innovations and challenges in the construction industry pertaining to the building envelope and will also display latest technological solutions.

Speakers and Panelists
Computational Design Leader, KPF
Alan Cation is a computational designer, artist, and educator based in New York City. His work focuses on parametric architecture, complex geometry, sustainability, and simulating how natural behavioral systems interact with each other and their environments. Alan utilizes his expertise...
Senior Project Manager, AECOM Tishman
As AECOM Tishman’s Senior Project Manager, Samaneh leads the curtain wall trade and complex structures where curtain wall and structural steel are highly integrated. She was the lead on managing the engineering and fabrication of 30 Hudson Yards Observation Deck...
Director of Façade Segment, Hilti
Jesus Barreda joined Hilti North America in 2014 as a Facade Structural Engineer II. Eighteen months later, he was promoted to Facade Structural Engineer III. From 2018-2019, he led the Hilti Facade Steuctural Engineering team where he also worked closely...
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, SWBV PRECAST
Guy Tremblay, Professional Engineer, graduated from Laval University in 2001, began his career in the precast concrete and building science industry over 20 years ago. His early years in the field has been dedicated to quality assurance management, project management,...
Principal, Woods Bagot
James Hickerson possesses a strong background in integrating design and technical elements on a broad range of project types, including commercial-office, mixed-use, and hospitality projects in North America, Asia, and the Middle East. His experience covers the complete development process...
Founder & Executive Director, ODA
Since establishing ODA in 2007, Eran Chen has earned a reputation for mold-breaking designs that will deliver a better urban future. Having completed more than 50 buildings in just over a decade, he has become one of the most prolific...
CEO, Halio
A Halio, Inc board member since 2015, Bruce Sohn was most recently the CEO of Siva Power. Prior to that, he led First Solar’s rise from start-up to the world’s largest solar manufacturer and utility systems contractor with $3.2 billion...
Studio Director, James Carpenter Design Associates
Joseph Welker is Studio Director at James Carpenter Design Associates, managing the studio’s cross-disciplinary staff and coordinating its collaborations with landscape architects, architects, structural engineers, environmental engineers, fabricators and materials engineers. Joseph works across the studio’s diverse range of projects,...
Founding Principal, Studio NYL
Chris O’Hara is a Founding Principal of Studio NYL. Trained as a Structural Engineer, Chris has a passion for Architecture. This passion has fostered the collaborative approach that is a cornerstone of Studio NYL’s collaborative approach to structures and enclosures....
CEO | Co-Owner, Mancini Duffy
William Mandara Jr., AIA, is the CEO and co-owner of Mancini Duffy, a national design firm with a 100+-year-old history and tech-forward approach based in New York City. Bill comes from a family in the business: his father and grandfather...
Principal | Façade Design Director, Studio NYL
Will Babbington’s passion lies in the leveraging of both high- and low-tech methods to merge high performance and high design. As both an architect and an engineer, he has designed award-winning and high performance building enclosures on local, national, and...
Associate Director, Transsolar
Tommaso Bitossi focuses on two aspects of climate responsive design: architecture and climate engineering. His unique perspective on the integrated design process together with his understanding of both the architectural and the engineering approaches facilitate the communication of complex strategies...
Vice Chairman, TurkishGlass
Tansu Kumru has 30 years of experience in the glass sector and has been working for Şişecam which is currently one of the world’s leading glass manufacturers with production operations located in 14 countries on four continents. She is currently...
Managing Principal | Design Analytics, Elementa Engineering
Shreshth Nagpal’s professional focus over the past two decades has been to understand and model building performance that results from the interaction between envelope configuration, climatic context, functional requirements, conditioning systems, and occupant behavior. More recently, his doctoral research focused...
Associate, Bjarke Ingels Group
Sebastian Claussnitzer is an Associate at BIG’s New York office. He has extensive architectural experience with a range of commercial and residential projects in New York City, California, China, and Germany. Sebastian has expertise in strategic design and computation; he...
Vice President, Elkus Manfredi Architects
Architect and team leader, Vice President Ross Cameron, creates environments for learning, living, and working. Recent work includes Boston University’s Joan & Edgar Booth Theatre and College of Fine Arts Production Center, University of Southern Maine Portland Commons Residence Hall...
Associate Principal, Perkins Eastman
Roberto Garcia is an Associate Principal at Perkins Eastman. He brings over 28 years of experience as a project designer, project architect, graphic designer, and draftsperson on a variety of mixed-use commercial and residential projects. Roberto is currently involved in...
Executive Vice President, L&L Holding Co.
At L&L since 2017, Robert Israel leads and directs all aspects of the TSX Broadway project development’s design and construction activities, including budget, schedule and delivery of the newly created asset including the theater, retail and hotel uses. Robert was...
Principal, Morris Adjmi Architects
Morris Adjmi loves cities. As the founder and principal of MA, he is dedicated to understanding the history and complex forces that shape them to create buildings and environments that are contextual but unmistakably contemporary. The resulting work has become...
Exterior Envelope Supervisor, Pavarini McGovern
Michael Signorile is an expert in building envelopes, and is a critical member of all of PMG’s project teams. Michael is experienced in all phases of the design and construction process and has worked on projects ranging from residential and...
Principal, FXCollaborative
Michael Buesing, AIA, LEED AP, CPHD, is a Principal at FXCollaborative, a New York City-based architecture, interiors, and planning design firm. With more than 25 years of experience, he is instrumental in the design and coordination of planning, interiors, code,...
Associate Principal, Thornton Tomasetti
Melissa Wong is an Associate Principal in Thornton Tomasetti’s Façade Engineering practice. Based in New York, she has been leading the design and construction of façade and enclosure systems from residential & commercial developments, to prominent institutions throughout the east...
Associate Principal, Thornton Tomasetti
Marcin March is a Vice President in Thornton Tomasetti’s Façade Engineering practice. Originally based in the United Kingdom where he earned a master’s of engineering degree from the University of Oxford, Marcin has built a global portfolio of experience that...
Principal, FacadesX
Matt Capone is a design and construction professional driven to create projects which leave lasting positive impacts for our communities and environment. As the founder of facades X Inc. in 2015, Matt has worked on many prominent and complex projects...
Director - Architecture, Snøhetta
John is a licensed architect with over 20 years of experience working on large scale domestic and international projects. He brings significant early-phase design expertise to projects by collaborating with teams to establish a design vision and then creating an...
Group Sales Director, Accsys
John is responsible for Accsys Group Sales, managing a team across the globe. Following degrees in Forestry and Forest Products from University of Wales, Bangor and an MSc in Timber Engineering from the University of Maine, USA, John’s career in...
Principal & Founder, James Carpenter Design Associates
James Carpenter has worked at the intersection of architecture, fine art, and engineering for nearly 50 years, advancing a distinctive vision based on the use of natural light as the foundational element of the built environment. Originally studying architecture before...
Principal, Severud Associates
Benjamin Alper joined Severud Associates in 2005 as an engineer. He steadily progressed upward through the ranks and, in 2020, was promoted to associate principal. Throughout his career, Ben has taken on increasingly challenging projects such as the TSX Broadway...
Founder and Principal, Jungjohann
Hauke Jungjohann has more than 20 years of international practical experience as a civil engineer and architect in the world’s most innovative companies in the industry. In leadership positions at Buro Happold, Thornton Tomasetti and Knippers Helbig, he has worked...
Low Carbon Glass Program Manager, Saint-Gobain
François Guillemot has held several management positions in Research & Development for the Building Flat Glass Activity of Saint-Gobain over 10 years: innovation, surface chemistry, wet coatings, process expertize for mirror and laminated glass. He has recently headed his career...
Senior Project Manager, Bjarke Ingels Group
Flora Bao is an Architect with 16 years of experience as a Designer and Project Manager. She received her Bachelor of Architecture from Carnegie Mellon University. Her architectural career began at Kohn Pedersen Fox in NY as a Junior Designer,...
Engineering Manager - Façades | Americas, LendLease
Mr. Berger has over 24 years of façade project management and engineering experience as both a construction manager and façade contractor on numerous signature New York City structures. In his role as Engineering Manager – Facades – Americas for Lendlease,...
VacuMax Product Manager, Vitro Architectural Glass
Daniel Sutton is a Product Manager within the Marketing and Innovations Group at Vitro Architectural Glass and was formerly the National Architectural Manager for the Great Lakes Region. Daniel brings years of design and sustainability experience, having worked with stakeholders...
Senior Associate | AI Product Lead, Walter P Moore
Dan Reynolds has spent the majority of his career engineering complex projects that are generally considered “specialty structures” due to aspects requiring advanced analysis methods. He is driven by the challenge of capturing a designer’s intent by using creativity empowered...
Associate Principal, Hatfield Group
Cori Kwitkin, PE, LEED Green Associate is Associate Principal at Hatfield Group. She has over two decades of experience in structural design, analysis, and project management on buildings ranging from super-talls, hospitality developments, and restaurants to stadiums and academic hubs....
Design Partner, SOM
Based in New York, Chris Cooper is an ambitious design leader who brings foresight, elegance, tectonic rigor, and artful experiences to his buildings. Throughout his two decades at SOM, he has led projects with a careful attention to scale, sustainability,...
Senior Project Manager, Werner Sobek
Charlotte Escudier has been a Senior Project Manager at Werner Sobek New York since 2020. She also worked for 8 years at Eckersley O’Callaghan New York and has more than ten years of experience designing high end structural glass projects,...
Vice President & General Manager, Turner Construction
As VP and General Manager, Charlie Whitney is responsible for developing and overseeing short- and long-term strategic plans that affirm Turner’s position as one of New York City’s largest and most trusted construction service providers. In this capacity, he oversees...
Associate Professor, MIT Departments of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering
Caitlin Mueller is a researcher and educator who works at the creative interface of architecture, structural engineering, and computation. She is currently an Associate Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Department of Architecture and Department of Civil and Environmental...
Associate, Heintges
Brian Delaney is an Associate at Heintges, and joined the firm in 2017. During this time, he has worked on major projects in the New York City area, including Citigroup’s Trading Headquarters reclad, The Edge at 30 Hudson Yards, and...
Partner, Diller Scofidio + Renfro
Benjamin Gilmartin joined Diller Scofidio + Renfro (DS+R) in 2004 and became a partner in 2015. Ben led the redesign of Alice Tully Hall, multiple public spaces within the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts campus, and the Berkeley Art...
Architectural Specification Sales Representative, AkzoNobel Powder Coatings
Arturo Lugo is an architect who, over ten years ago, developed a passion for coatings and supporting the design and construction industry in selecting perfect colors and specifications for projects. Arturo was born and raised in Puerto Rico, graduated Architecture...
Senior Principal, Heintges
Areta Pawlynsky, AIA, has overseen complex facades in the United States, Asia, and the Middle East since joining the firm in 1991. Areta is interested in exploring the energy efficiency, technical capabilities, and design potential of cladding materials and systems....
Chief Technology Officer, Principal, FXCollaborative
As FXCollaborative’s Chief Technology Officer, Alexandra leads the firm’s Digital Practice group, overseeing design technologies, information technologies, and business technologies. Alexandra has been instrumental in the development of digital methodologies and processes, and aims to further improve project delivery through...
Regional Architectural Manager - East Coast, Guardian Glass
Alan Kinder is the Regional Architectural Manager covering the East Coast for Guardian Glass. In his current position he leads a team of Architectural Design Managers that work directly with design professionals to assist with project review and provide guidance...
Chairman of the Board, Boston Valley Terra Cotta
John Krouse is the COB of Boston Valley Terra Cotta in Orchard Park, NY, as well as a Ceramic Engineer by trade. Boston Valley specializes in the manufacture of architectural terra cotta for both historic restoration and new construction, emerging...
Architectural Design Manager, Guardian Glass
Danielle Tyson is the Architectural Design Manager covering the New York City area for Guardian Glass. In her current position she works directly with design professionals to assist with project review and provide guidance on glass and glazing selections for...
Façade Manager, Cosentino North America
Brendan Mercier began with Cosentino in 2015 as an architect & design sales manager, selling multiple applications, including facades. In 2017 he took on additional responsibility as the façade application specialist in the Northeast region and in 2019 became the...
Principal | Director, New Construction Façades, SOCOTEC
With over 20 years of building envelope expertise, Mr. Popadynec’sbreadth of his experience spans consulting, design, testing, manufacturing, installation, special inspection and rehabilitation, with a focus primarily on new construction. Assisting clients from the conceptual stages of a project through...
Marketing Manager, Kuraray America
Alberto Alarcon is the Marketing Manager in the Advanced Interlayer Solutions Division of Kuraray; he is located in New York City and is responsible of the Northeast Coast of the US. Alberto, through the Trosifol® and Sentryglas® interlayers for laminated...
Managing Partner, Hofmann Façades Group
Philipp Hofmann is the Managing Partner at HOFMANN FAÇADES GROUP. He has over 20 years of experience in the façades and construction industry, gaining knowledge and experience both domestically and abroad in the design, manufacturing, unitization and installation of primarily...
UK Head of Specification, Effisus
Miguel Silva has a relevant past experience of more than 20 years in the construction industry covering a wide range of façade systems in the weatherproofing thematic as well as special refurbishment, recladding and remedial works. With over 100 major...
Principal & Managing Director, Walter P Moore
Erik Verboon is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of the Walter P Moore New York office. Trained in both architecture and engineering, Erik brings a deep global experience with a focus on the design of complex and high performance building...
Principal, TECHNE
Sameer Kumar is a Principal of Techne. With over 20 years of experience as an architect and a façade specialist, Sameer has distinguished himself as an emergent leader at the nexus of architectural design, engineering, fabrication, and material and process...
Principal, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)
Christoph Timm leads SOM’s Enclosure Group, a practice embedded among the design and engineering studios in the firm’s New York office that focuses on the design of building enclosures and facades. With more than two decades of experience in the...
Associate Principal | Façade Engineering and Building Physics, Arup
Tali Mejicovsky is an Associate Principal at Arup in New York and Façade Skills Leader across four façade groups in the Americas (Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Toronto). She has more than 20 years of façade experience around...
Managing Director, knippershelbig
Roman Schieber joined knippershelbig in 2007 and is now a managing director. Leading the knippershelbig Facades team in Europe and North America allows Roman the opportunity to work on unique, challenging projects all over the world. His association to structural...
Conference Agenda
  • Creating a new identity through façade replacement
  • How architects are diversifying their material palette, allowing stone, metal panel and complex glazing interlayers to deliver performance and beauty
  • Complexities of executing façade recladding goals while keeping the existing embedded carbon-intensive building structure
  • Optimizing construction of a bespoke façade consisting of over 9,000 unique aluminum panels
  • Expressing the athleticism of Olympians and Paralympians through a façade that flexes and twists over the building’s dynamic pinwheel form
  • The choice of anodized aluminum, animated by the extraordinary light quality in Colorado Springs, giving the building another sense of motion and dynamism
  • Due to its malleable form and variable appearance, architectural terra cotta can be fabricated to restore the value of our historic buildings
  • This flexibility also makes architectural ceramics the preferred choice for technologically challenging designs, applicable to a multitude of façade attachment systems and construction methods
  • As a completely natural material, architectural terra cotta’s low embodied energy and long-lasting durability offer an eco-friendly solution for high-performance façades
  • Identifying building code requirements governing the use of combustible materials in exterior walls
  • Defining the concept of fireblocking and how it can be achieved
  • Exploring examples of fireblocking in cavity walls with foam plastic insulation
  • Reviewing the limitations of composite cladding materials featuring combustible components, such as insulated metal panels
  • A quick take on materials and solutions for complex projects
  • Exploring façade opacities that drive performance and identity
  • Exploring façade opacities that drive performance and identity
  • Material restraint and dual use as a means to holistically reduce embodied carbon
  • Why reducing embodied carbon in building materials such as silicones is important for reducing greenhouse gases
  • Key elements of the PAS 2060 standard to help ensure verified carbon neutrality
  • Recognizing carbon-neutral silicone sealants that are available for three different building façade applications
  • Identifying benefits that project-specific carbon neutrality service can offer architects, design consultants and building owners
  • Exploring how civic and commercial goals are merged through the façade
  • "Waveform" glazing serves design and performance objectives, allowing for oversized glass units without need for vertical mullions
  • Understanding how light is the catalyst in public engagement, whether in adaptive reuse or new construction
  • Designing & executing the largest and most technologically advanced media façade in Times Square
  • Logistics of preserving the landmarked Palace Theatre façade as it was elevated 30 feet
  • Retrofit/recladding of part of original underlying hotel structure

Michael Signorile

  • Contrast and coexistence
  • Inspiration and innovation
  • A modern interpretation
  • Reimagined façade with expressed framing
  • Expressive structural design of reimagined canopy
  • Integration with existing conditions and challenges
  • Dynamically controlling daylight & heat at the skin of the building
  • Fast, sophisticated controls are critical for occupants to function in rapid, drastically changing conditions
  • No aesthetic or cost compromises due to Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which includes an Investment Tax Credit (ITC) as part of the Dynamic Glass Act
  • Façade design with ultracompact surfacing
  • Integrating into curtain wall and unitized systems
  • Sustainable manufacturing practices
  • Innovative curtain wall solutions
  • New technologies in rainscreens
  • Project management services
  • How new regulations spur creativity, bringing more innovative solutions to markets
  • Learn how machine learning & robotics improve productivity, streamline workflows by creating economies of scale
  • Use data analysis to show benefits of triple glazing, daylighting, PV, glare mitigation so they're not VE’ed out of design
  • Creating industry-wide data sets, using collaborative digital tools, reducing embodied carbon

Caitlin Mueller

  • An approach to creating human-centered workplaces
  • Designing façades to maximize daylight and harvest energy
  • Minimizing the use of red list materials for a healthier indoor environment
  • High performance double-façades: How much complexity do we need to be efficient?
  • Low-embodied carbon single-façades: Efficiency by simplicity
  • The future of façades: Is high performance about energy savings or about resiliency?
  • Coatings industry performance standards
  • Powder vs. Liquid coatings characteristics
  • Sustainability factors
  • Case studies and examples
  • Breather & AVCL membrane & system
  • Overview on solutions fully tested and approved, since 2011
  • The importance of weatherproofing design with case studies
  • Adding value to the projects with advanced glass solutions
  • Contributing to the future of our planet with sustainable products and technologies
  • Customized glass production for the most demanding projects
  • Collaborating with artist Jose Parla on the custom façade artwork at Far Rockaway Writer’s Library
  • A dive into the technical process of translating artwork into production art files for fabrication
  • Parallels in our library work: between Far Rockaway Writer’s Library and Alexandria Library in Egypt
  • Optimizing the use of tension to reduce material and improve transparency of glass walls spanning 30-65 feet
  • Detailing strategies with case studies to limit cost while providing clean steel supported façades with minimal AESS needs
  • Strategies for prefabrication and limiting field work on custom long span glass walls
  • Understanding glass supply chain
  • Project variables and advanced glass analysis
  • Dissecting local laws and impact on glass selections
  • Glass: A potential hazard to birds
  • NYC Local Law 15 of 2020
  • BirdSecure: A laminated glazing solution
  • What are the components of a VIG and how are they different from a traditional IGU
  • The performance of vacuum insulating glass compared to traditional glass configurations
  • Energy modeling and the implementation of building performance standards across the country
  • Developments in greener manufacturing and recycling processes
  • Reskinning existing buildings as a highly resilient option
  • Glass with inherent carbon reducing properties: smart, triple glazing, PV, bird-safe
  • Adding value to properties by increasing usable floor space and increasing occupants’ wellness

Christoph Timm

  • Façade design development and research to support building form and program
  • Glass that is transparent from the exterior and allows explicit viewing vs. glass that shields/screen from the exterior while also allowing views out (frit on #1 surface)
  • Importance of samples and mockups to confirm design and research
  • Vigilance in manufacturing and construction
  • Overview, development, performance and sustainable roots
  • Color grey providing a predictable solution for uncoated wood façades
  • Project precedents, large commercial and mass timber buildings
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