Member & Firm Updates
Staff Updates & Merit Award at AE Works
AE Works Welcomes Tom White and Mark Bertsch
AE Works is pleased to announce that Tom White has joined the firm as Vice President, Business Development for Western Pennsylvania. Tom brings more than 30 years of industry experience in the Pittsburgh area. AE Works also welcomes Mark Bertsch as Chief Financial Officer. With over 30 years of finance experience, Mark will oversee the firm’s financial operations.
AE Works’ Tiffany Haile Named to Leadership Pittsburgh Cohort
AE Works is excited to announce that Tiffany Haile, AICP, LEED AP, Principal, Planning + Project Services, has been chosen for the 2024-2025 Leadership Pittsburgh cohort! Leadership Pittsburgh’s program is a premier platform for senior leaders to dive deep into the fabric of our region, connect with influential figures, and tackle community challenges head-on. Tiffany will be joining an elite group of 65 leaders from September through June, gaining unparalleled insights and making significant strides in regional leadership.
University of Pittsburgh, Central Utility Building Receives AIA Pennsylvania Design Award of Merit
The recently completed University of Pittsburgh, Central Utility Building is the recipient of an AIA Pennsylvania Design Award of Merit. Jurors commended the idea that a utilitarian building could be treated with care and craft making this building stand out as a building worthy of architecture. The building design and detailing combined form and function creating iconic infrastructure that sustains our energetic and working landscapes.
New Hires, Events, & Community Engagement at CannonDesign
CannonDesign Welcomes Fred Vonderlage as FOS Business Development Representative
A seasoned business development professional with more than 15 years in architecture and construction, Fred has worked closely with professional services, real estate development, facility management, technology companies, municipal, healthcare, and higher education institutions. Fred serves on the board of a local non-profit, Computer Reach, contributing to initiatives that make a meaningful impact in Western Pennsylvania.
CannonDesign Open House
In an exciting moment for the firm, the CannonDesign Pittsburgh office held an Open House for its new office space in late September. The event was a major success with strong attendance from internal CannonDesigners, Pittsburgh-area clients, partners, community members, local media and more.
The new office consists of renovated space on the second floor of a historic building in Pittsburgh’s Strip District, a reinvigorated and thriving portion of the city. The workplace gives the team a dynamic hub for creative work, room for growth and a space to host client and community events.
Read more about the Open House in the Pittsburgh Business Times: CannonDesign celebrates new office in Strip District – Pittsburgh Business Times
CannonDesign Hosts ACE Program Students
CannonDesign had the pleasure of hosting a group of students from the Seneca Valley School District’s ACE Program. As part of their ongoing commitment to engaging with the next generation of architects, engineers, and construction professionals, they opened the doors of their new office to share insights and inspiration about the world of design.
The day was filled with meaningful conversations and hands-on activities. They kicked things off by discussing architecture and interior design within college environments, exploring the transition from academic life to the professional world. The team shared stories and guidance on navigating various career paths and making pivotal decisions beyond college.
To make the experience even more engaging, CannonDesign involved the students in a design challenge. They were tasked with reimagining an existing courtyard or creating a new open collaboration area for a school campus. The energy and creativity they brought to the challenge were truly inspiring, as they developed thoughtful and innovative ideas.
McKinley Architecture and Engineering Continues to Expand and Receive National Recognitions
McKinley Architecture and Engineering continues to expand and has increased employee size by 40 percent in the last two years.
Due to growth in their Pennsylvania location alone, they moved to a new office in Mars PA where their 24 employees now have the space to work individually or collaborate with team members. To increase service in the Pennsylvania market, the office has room for expansion but includes several “phone booths” for private meetings and areas where employees from other offices can visit and work. To amplify WV, they opened a new office in Middlebourne. This totals five offices, including Wheeling, Charleston, Martinsburg, and Middlebourne, WV, and Mars, PA.
For national recognitions, for the third consecutive year McKinley Architecture and Engineering has been named to the 2024 Circle of Excellence by PSMJ Resources, Inc., the world’s leading authority on architecture, engineering, and construction firm management.
PSMJ’s exclusive Circle of Excellence highlights successfully managed firms that demonstrate outstanding business achievements in areas such as profitability, overhead management, cash flow, productivity, business development, staff growth, and turnover in the architecture and engineering industry. The Circle of Excellence represents the top 20 percent of firms across the nation.
For the second year in a row, PSMJ also announced McKinley Architecture and Engineering is a top ten winner of the 2024 A/E/C Employer of Choice Award, the industry’s premier recognition of firms that have mastered workforce retention and productivity by achieving the highest level of employee engagement.
In addition, for the second year in a row, McKinley Architecture and Engineering was ranked in the Giants 400 list by Building Design and Construction as one of the top 100 Architecture and Engineering firms in 2024.
To round out awards, Inc. magazine recently revealed that McKinley Architecture and Engineering is on its annual Inc. 5000 list for the fifth year in a row, the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in America.
Promotions & Firm of the Year Award at mossArchitects
mossArchitects Promotes 5 Staff Members
Vice Presidents Katie LaForest, AIA and Darren Lloyd, AIA were promoted to Principals, Senior Interior Designer Gina Konopack and Architect Katie Seftas were promoted to Associate Principals, and Marketing Director Tara Vargo, was promoted to Associate.
mossArchitects Honored with AIA Pennsylvania 2024 Architecture Firm Award
mossArchitects, a premier architecture firm known for its innovative approach to design and community-centered projects, has been awarded the prestigious AIA Pennsylvania Architecture Firm Award for 2024. This honor celebrates the firm’s exceptional contributions to the architecture field, ongoing leadership, and commitment to designing transformative spaces that elevate communities across Pennsylvania.
The AIA Pennsylvania Architecture Firm Award is the highest honor given to an architectural firm by the AIA PA chapter, recognizing exceptional design, exemplary practice, and a sustained commitment to architecture’s impact on society. mossArchitects joins an esteemed group of firms who have set new standards in architectural practice, demonstrating a dedication to quality and excellence.
Founded by Andrew Moss, AIA, mossArchitects is a firm that celebrates the uniqueness of each project and every member of the project team. They approach projects with a sense of challenge and adventure coupled with a curated design process – resulting in exemplary solutions that enhance the built environment. Recent projects include the award-winning Pusadee’s Garden restaurant in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood and the Penn Atlantic Building, a unique arts focused mixed-use building, situated at the junction of three East End Pittsburgh neighborhoods.
Notably, mossArchitects is the first Pittsburgh-based firm to receive this award, marking a historic achievement for both the firm and the city.
SmithGroup Team Wins Big at the 2024 HCD Healthcare Design Expo & Conference
A design team from SmithGroup was selected as the 2024 Healthcare Design Breaking Through competition winner at the HCD Healthcare Design Expo & Conference. The Breaking Through competition is all about pushing the boundaries of design innovation, challenging teams to develop their most imaginative and inspiring concepts for the future of healthcare delivery – without the usual constraints of budget, schedule, or codes.
Decaf Hospital is a closed loop, self-sustaining hypothetical hospital + ecosystem that the team envisioned for the future. Healing is interwoven into the campus – nourishing food and medicinal plants are grown onsite, co-located with clean energy sources and water retention and purification infrastructure. Waste from the hospital is converted into energy in the campus’s waste-to-energy plant, and medical waste incineration could be powered by energy and heat from this process.
Traditional hospitals are energy and resource intensive, but Decaf aims to produce more than it consumes embodying the concepts “leave no trace” and “first, do no harm.” It’s called Decaf as an analogy to the decarbonization process; decaffeination extracts unwanted products (caffeine) from the coffee bean just as decarbonization eliminates carbon from the built environment.
SmithGroup’s Cassidy Roberts, AIA and Neil Abrams collaborated with team members across multiple time zones for months together on this project.
Meet 3 Architecture Firms that Help Bring Pittsburgh Restaurants to Life
In Pittsburgh, a handful of design firms have become key players in crafting the city’s evolving food spaces. They help new and experienced restaurateurs choose locations, navigate potential pitfalls and transform their visions into spaces that bring Pittsburgh’s evolving culinary identity to life.
In the second installment in an occasional series that goes behind the scenes at Pittsburgh restaurants, the Pittsburgh Post Gazette explores the work of three architecture firms — mossArchitects, The Downtown Design Company and Wildman Chalmers Design — that have helped shape some of Pittsburgh’s most notable dining destinations. Read the article here.
AIA Pittsburgh EPiC Firms
At the 2024 AIA Pennsylvania Architectural Excellence Awards Broadcast Reveal, 17 Pittsburgh firms were recognized as 2024 EPiC Firms. The EPiC Firm Recognition, facilitated by the Emerging Professionals Committee (EPiC), recognizes firms for their commitment to the professional development of emerging professionals and young architects with an assessment of firm culture and support in four critical areas: (1) licensure, (2) leadership and professional development, (3) career advancement opportunity, and (4) commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Congratulations to the following Pittsburgh firms that received EPiC recognition:
- AE Works/WTW Architects
- CannonDesign
- DesignGroup
- Desmone
- evolveEA
- EwingCole
- Fukui Architects PC
- GBBN Architects
- HDG Architects
- IKM Architecture
- Stantec Architecture and Engineering
- LGA Partners, LP
- Perfido Weiskopf Wagstaff + Goettel
- Perkins Eastman
- Rothschild Doyno Collaborative
- R3A Architecture
- SchraderGroup Architecture
Projects
Project Updates from AE Works
Duquesne University, College of Osteopathic Medicine Opens, Welcoming Its Inaugural Class
This state-of-the-art college of medicine recently opened and is designed to provide an innovative and collaborative environment for future healthcare professionals. The building marks a significant milestone in advancing medical education and healthcare in the Pittsburgh region. WTW Architects, now AE Works, served as the local associate architect for the project.
AE Works Designs New Community Hub for Center of Life
AE Works is honored to lead the design of the new Center of Life Community Hub at Hazelwood Green, a transformative project focused on expanding educational, arts, health, and wellness resources for Pittsburgh’s Hazelwood neighborhood and surrounding areas. This project will create a dynamic, multi-use facility to empower local residents and foster community growth.
AE Works Designs New Headquarters for the Veterans Leadership Program
For the past decade, AE Works has proudly supported the Veterans Leadership Program (VLP). Recently, we celebrated the groundbreaking of their new Headquarters where AE Works will continue our partnership as the architectural and engineering firm for the project. The rehabilitated facility will serve as VLP’s operational headquarters, providing area Veterans with one-stop access to the continuum of services provided by VLP and their community partners.
AE Works Completes the ALCOSAN Environmental Compliance Facility
The recently completed laboratory facility was planned, designed and developed to support the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority’s (ALCOSAN) climate resilience charge and re-imagine laboratory operations. Every detail of this facility was explored and purposefully designed to enable operational efficiency, laboratory best practices and provide a sustainable and economically smart investment that will continue to serve the region for a long time.
New Projects from DRAW Collective
New Science Building at PennWest California
Construction is expected to begin in early 2025 on the new, $38.9 million Science Building on the PennWest California campus. Designed by DRAW Collective, the 68,000 square foot facility will replace two aging science buildings and become a signature feature at the campus entrance, near its main building.
Envisioned over a decade ago during a master planning effort led by DRAW’s Principal and Higher Education Studio Leader, Christopher Brown, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, the building is designed to reflect the university’s rich architectural heritage while fostering collaboration and innovation. It will house modern labs and classrooms for Biology, Physics, and Chemistry, arranged to encourage interdisciplinary learning.
The project, managed by the Pennsylvania Department of General Services, follows LEAN design protocols for efficient construction and includes a diverse architectural and engineering team.
Steel Valley School District Breaks Ground on New Elementary School
DRAW Collective is thrilled to celebrate the start of construction on the new Steel Valley Elementary School. To celebrate the milestone, current students from Barrett and Park elementary schools joined administrators and school board members in late September to mark the occasion with a groundbreaking ceremony open to the community. The new building is the result of over three years of collaboration with DRAW Collective resulting in a design that prioritizes safety, security, and innovative learning environments, with the goal of empowering educators and providing individualized support to students. The new school is anticipated to open for the 2026-2027 school year and will unite Steel Valley’s kindergarten through fifth grade students under one roof for the first time in district history.
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank by evolveEA & Pfaffmann + Associates Achieves LEED Gold Certification
One of the Pittsburgh region’s largest buildings run by a charitable organization has achieved a Gold level certification under the US Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) for New Construction rating system. Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank’s newly renovated and expanded facility is contributing to the organization’s mission to leverage the power of community to achieve lasting solutions to hunger and its root causes. The original building was a 95,000 SF former steel-mill that made history when it opened twenty-four years ago as the first LEED-certified building in Pittsburgh and the first LEED-certified food bank in the United States. The expansion project increased the size of the facility to 130,000 SF, adding new offices and more cooler space to house fresh produce. Its history of elevating the issue of environmental sustainability made the choice to design and build its new space to LEED Gold standards an easy one.
The renovated Food Bank serves as a Community Resiliency Hub, with the ability to provide surrounding areas with a variety of emergency services in times of crisis. As part of the expansion project, a new converter captures the heat exhaust from food coolers and helps heat the building. The Food Bank also partners with an organization that has a biodigester to turn food waste into fertilizer for use at the organic Food Bank farm, and a rainwater collection system.. These strategies helped the project earn points toward the LEED certification, as did the incorporation of building products with positive environmental and health attributes. The project is simulated to use over 25% less energy and over 30% less water than a comparable building, while over 85% of the construction waste was diverted from landfills.
“Through an in-depth goal-setting process at the start of the project, everyone was clear that we wanted to build upon the original pioneering LEED certification. It’s been a long road and we are pleased that we were able to exceed expectations and achieve LEED Gold certification,” stated Marc Mondor, AIA, LEED Fellow, Principal with evolveEA.
The new Food Bank project was designed by architects Pfaffmann + Associates, with Iams Consulting as engineer and Massaco Construction as contractor. The sustainability process and LEED Gold certification was managed by evolveEA.