International Sustainability Design Competition

Words: Dan Kamys

International Sustainability Design Competition

Potomac Valley Brick (PVB) announced a call for entries for a new international architectural green design competition. In Brick-stainable: Re-thinking Brick, entrants will be asked to design a hypothetical net-zero energy building using clay masonry as a primary material.

Brick-stainable: Re-thinking Brick hopes to attract interest from a broad pool of entrants, including architects and engineers as well as non-traditional candidates, such as environmental engineers, product designers and material scientists. The competition even includes a category for materials studies or assemblies, in addition to its building design element.

PVB has named a $10,000 grand prize. An award ceremony will be held at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C, on Jan. 27, 2009. Entrants will have a first-hand introduction to the competition during DesignDC 2009: Architects Leading Change, held July 14 – 16 at the Walter Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., where Potomac Valley Brick will unveil the PVB/Brick-stainable information center, offering detailed information on the competition and insight to their product range.??For more information, email ericka@spinLLC.com.

Elevating Masonry: Old Habits, Familiar Tools, and the Real Reason Masonry Contractors Aren’t Making the Switch
May 2026

Ask a masonry contractor how they run their jobsite, and the answer probably sounds familiar: paper logs, a flurry of texts, maybe a shared email thread. It works until it doesn’t. And yet, even as purpose-built field management software has become more a

Erin Koets
MAP Partner
Read More
The Cornerstone of Craftsmanship: Nurturing Masonry Talent Through Competition
May 2026

In the evolving landscape of skilled trades, masonry stands as a testament to enduring craftsmanship and dedication. Yet, the question of how to cultivate and showcase this vital expertise remains paramount. While the bright lights of national competition

Robert Melgaard
Resources
Read More
There’s the Typical Way to Brace a Wall. And Then There’s a Better Way.
May 2026

Wall bracing is one of the most important safety considerations on any masonry jobsite, yet it is often treated as a task that happens after the wall is built. Crews return, equipment is brought in, and time is set aside to secure walls that have already

Abigail Spung
MAP Partner
Read More
Remembering Harry McGraw
May 2026

The masonry industry has lost one of its great teachers and craftsmen with the passing of Harry Edward McGraw, who died April 26, 2026, in Houston, Texas, at the age of 93.

Dan Kamys
Read More