John C. (Jack) Mascaro, the chairman of Mascaro Construction Company, L.P., has been awarded the James Kling Fellowship Award from the AIA-MBA Joint Committee in recognition of the high standards Mascaro has maintained for the industry while fostering a community spirit among design and construction professionals.
“A primary focus of the AIA-MBA Joint Committee is dialogue and collaboration between architects and contractors,” says Joseph Chaffin, AIA of the AIA-MBA Joint Committee. “This nomination is based on Jack Mascaro’s longstanding commitment to fostering a more collaborative environment and achieving the best outcomes for our client partners and our community.”
The James Kling Fellowship Award is given each year alternately to an architect or contractor, who, through their action and example, provide both members of the AIA and the MBA standards of excellence to strive for in an effort to bridge the gap between the two sides.
Jack Mascaro has long-promoted the Best Value selection process with government agencies, where designers and contractors are selected based on qualifications rather than price. Mascaro believes the traditional bidding process hinders architects because it forces them to make sacrifices for the sake of being competitive. When the selection process for contractors and architects is based on qualifications there is a better foundation to build trust between industries. When professional differences arise on a project using this qualifications-based selection process, in Mascaro’s experience, they are much more likely to be resolved without litigation.
Mascaro also promotes this philosophy through his involvement in industry organizations. He is a member of the executive board for the Builders’ Guild of Western Pennsylvania and Past President of the Board of Directors of the Master Builders’ Association of Western Pennsylvania.
“Behind any of the great jobs that we’ve had is the concept of trust,” says Mascaro. “Trust is the ‘secret sauce’ for collaboration between the professions.”
Jack Mascaro, recipient of the 2019 James Kling Fellowship Award from the AIA-MBA Joint Committee.