216th Edition – Zak World of Façades USA

This will be the 216th edition globally and the 1st edition in Phoenix which will showcase sustainable innovations and challenges in the construction industry pertaining to the building envelope and will also display latest technological solutions.

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Speakers & Panelists
Julie Garcia
Vice President, McCarthy Building Companies
Julie Garcia is Vice President of Preconstruction for McCarthy Building Companies’ Southwest Region, where she oversees preconstruction, estimating, and design phase services across one of the country’s most active commercial construction markets. With more than two decades of experience, Julie...
Donald Lawson
LUMIFLON® Technical Development Chemist, AGC Chemicals Americas
Donald Lawson earned a B.S. in Chemistry from Illinois State University and brings more than 40 years of leadership in advanced coatings formulation. Don is widely recognized for advancing fluoropolymer technologies that improve façade life‑cycle performance through extended service life,...
Peter W. Rutti
Chief Design Officer | Managing Principal, DLR Group
Peter Rutii is the Chief Design Officer and an advisory member of DLR Group’s Board of Directors. Hei directs all aspects of DLR Group’s integrated design practice and guides the firm in fulfilling its promise to elevate the human experience...
Sin Hei Kwok
Founder, LOFTSPHX STUDIO
Sin Hei Kwok is the founder of LOFTSPHX STUDIO, an architect-led development, design, and construction practice specializing in small-lot infill housing near the urban core of Phoenix. His work explores alternative typologies for compact multifamily residential development, offering design-forward, buildable,...
Cassie Saba
Arizona Higher Education Core Market Lead, DPR Construction
Cassie Saba serves as the Arizona Higher Education Core Market Lead at DPR Construction and has spent 21 years focused on delivering innovative higher‑education projects. With experience across field operations, preconstruction, design management, and prefabrication, she brings a strong appreciation...
Rachel Green Rasmussen
Principal and Partner, Architekton
Rachel Green Rasmussen is a Principal and Partner at Architekton in Tempe, where she has contributed to innovative architectural design since 2007. She specializes in educational, cultural, and community-focused projects, with an emphasis on sustainable, climate-responsive solutions rooted in Arizona’s...
John Meredith
Associate Education & Science Principal, HDR
John Meredith has been involved in the design and construction industry for more than 20 years across multiple project scales and types. John spent 13 years at Arizona State University, during a time of extensive expansion and renovation across 5...
Diane Jacobs
Founding Principal, Holly Street Studio
Diane Jacobs, FAIA is founding principal of Holly Street Studio, a Phoenix based practice dedicated to creating transformative public spaces for municipal and institutional clients. As leader of the design team, she brings a holistic approach to problem solving and...
John Anderson
Partner | Principal, 180 Degrees Design + Build
John Anderson, AIA NCARB, is an Arizona native who attended Arizona State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Design and a Master of Architecture with honors. John holds a National Council of Architectural Registration Boards certificate, is...
Joe Lisiewski II
Assistant VP | University Architect, Arizona State University
Joe Lisiewski is the Assistant Vice President for the Office of the University Architect, a unit of Facilities Development and Management at Arizona State University. Joe is a graduate of Temple University with a Bachelor of Architecture degree. He holds...
James Hatch
President & Chief Strategy Officer, Kovach
James Hatch is President | Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) at Kovach, where he helps lead the company’s long-term strategic direction, innovation initiatives, and client-focused growth across the building envelope industry. With more than 15 years of experience in architectural cladding...
Xandon Keating
Deputy Economic Development Director, City of Phoenix
Xandon Keating leads the City of Phoenix’s Community and Economic Development community development efforts with a specialized team focused on driving real estate investment in the City’s critical areas for redevelopment. Xandon is responsible for managing the Downtown Redevelopment Area...
Steve Valev
Associate Principal, Multistudio
An Arizona resident for more than 30 years, Steve Valev has worked across the desert landscape with a deep interest in urban design and the social, cultural, and political forces that shape place. As an Associate Principal and Senior Project...
Nicholas Hofstede
Managing Director, Johnston Marklee
Nicholas Hofstede, AIA is Managing Director of Johnston Marklee, based in Los Angeles. He leads the development of cultural, commercial, and residential projects with a focus on architecture for the arts. In over 19 years at JML Nicholas has led...
Brian Davie
Senior Building Enclosure Consultant, Walker Consultants
Brian is a seasoned architect and consultant with 30 years of expertise in building enclosure consulting, commissioning, sustainability, and energy performance. His portfolio spans a broad range of project types, including K–12 and higher education facilities, healthcare environments, commercial office...
Jay Silverberg
Design Principal, Gensler
Jay Silverberg serves as the Design Principal of Gensler’s Phoenix office, where he advances an experience-based design approach centered on sustainability, innovation, and meaningful placemaking. With extensive experience across mixed-use environments, entertainment districts, higher education, museums, cultural institutions, and office...
Martha dePlazaola Abbott
Co-Managing Director Principal, Gensler
Martha dePlazaola Abbott is a Principal and the Co-Managing Director of Gensler’s Phoenix office. With over 30 years of experience, Martha’s comprehensive portfolio includes a myriad of “Work-Life” projects encompassing mixed use, multi-family, hospitality, retail and office, from both the...
Tobiasz Staszak
Area Manager - North America, Reynaers Aluminium
Tobiasz Staszak is Area Manager North America at Reynaers Aluminum focused on developing a successful growing market. Having a background in the building industry for 14 years, gaining experience in technology, sales, and value proposition development. For the last 5...
Bob Zhang
Commercial Director, Tianjin North Glass
Bob joined Northglass in 2012. For the first two years He worked on the technical side, then moved to project management and worked on the Apple Park project. In 2015, He came to the US and started the Northglass US...
Chris O’Hara
Senior Principal - Structural and Facade Design, Studio NYL, a Lerch Bates Company
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....
Alex Korter
Principal, CO Architects
Alex Korter is a principal at CO Architects and leads the firm’s Building Facades Group. With over 25 years of international experience, he specializes in strategic planning, design, technical coordination, and leadership of academic, healthcare, commercial and civic projects. With...
Conference Agenda
  • Level setting for contextual facade design
  • A thermal veil in the desert
  • The data center turned inside out
  • Prioritizing human comfort through urban intervention
Speakers:
  • Expanded air barrier design and documentation requirements
  • Air leakage compliance – testing the whole building, dwelling and sleeping units
  • Building thermal envelope design and construction verification criteria
Speakers:
  • Sustainability strategy
  • The importance of operational carbon and embodied carbon: Need to go hand in hand to decarbonise
  • What really makes a building sustainable
Speakers:
  • Ray is an art and design-forward apartment endeavor that incorporates distinctive artists, architects, communal spaces, and commercial tenants as a contextual, local response
  • A rigorous approach to a tall residential building ties together the combination of a stout podium under a slender tower through careful proportions and detailing of a grid system
  • The strong color palette and horizontal bias of the grid create a singular identity within the skyline of this desert landscape
Speakers:
  • Using computational design to not just sculpt and fabricate unique shade elements but also optimize shading strategies with view quality, including building massing, orientation and shade elements
  • Shading strategies that enhance the design while protecting the vision glazing
Speakers:
  • Multi-curved glass
  • High-end curtain wall glass panel
  • Customization
Speakers:
  • Climate as a design driver: Understanding extreme environmental forces, heat, solar exposure, diurnal swing, and how they shape façade strategies from day one
  • Calibration over reaction: Moving beyond one-size-fits-all solutions to finely tuned envelopes that balance performance, cost, constructability, design intent, and clients' goals
  • Translating Performance into Experience: Considerations that expand beyond the spreadsheet and consider how façade decisions impact your comfort through access to daylight, views, and the intuitive way people inhabit the space
Speakers:
  • Creative façade design solutions that don't get VE'ed out
  • Desert-hardy façades that increase occupant comfort
  • Navigating local regulations, sustainability, and material performance

Diane Jacobs

Speakers:
  • How Central Station will be the central transit bus and light rail terminal in the heart of downtown Phoenix, with over one million transit patrons visiting a year
  • The project was designed not as an object, but simply as an extension of the city, where people can seamlessly meander in and out without barriers
  • The prefabricated building façade is designed specifically for the local desert climate with proper orientation, a self-shading building façade, deep overhangs to protect transit patrons on the ground level, and places to escape the harshness of the desert sun
Speakers:
  • Researching modern products to design an energy efficient roof assembly that maintains the aesthetics of the original design
  • Incorporating the use of digital and 3D printing technologies for prototyping and detailing
  • Testing and developing a system that’s not only suitable at Taliesin West, but a widely-used sustainable building solution that stands up to desert elements
Speakers:
  • FEVE resins in powder coatings
  • Life cycle (cost analysis)
  • Architectural applications
Speakers:
  • Importance of daylighting vs. harsh desert climate
  • High performance systems providing natural ventilation or airtightness in controlled environments
  • Opportunities for cutting edge designs reflective of innovative research

John Meredith

Speakers:
Event Details
  • 216th Edition – Zak World of Façades USA, May 14, 2026
  • Start Date
    May 14, 2026 8:00 am
  • End Date
    May 14, 2026 5:00 pm
  • Status
    Upcoming
  • Location
  • Venue
  • Category
    • Sponsors

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