Five of the world’s leading technical universities have agreed to act as partners of the Holcim Foundation: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), Switzerland; Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Boston, USA; Tongji University (TJU), Shanghai, China; the University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil; and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa.

To facilitate the work of the juries (thus reducing the time required from the renowned jurors), pre-assessment teams at each partner university first screen all entries to ensure that they are intelligible. As entries were allowed only in English, French, Spanish or Portuguese, some participants touched the limits of their foreign language skills.

Target issues for sustainable construction

The juries review every submission according to five main criteria: the five target issues by which the Holcim Foundation defines sustainable construction. The pre-appraisal teams briefly note to what extent they think each project meets the target issues – giving juries a valuable indication of what to pay special attention to in each entry. 

Head of the Technical Competence Center of the Holcim Foundation, Professor Dr. Hans-Rudolf Schalcher, Head of the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich) said that the pre-appraisal is not a pre-selection process.

“Of course the jury members are completely independent,” says Schalcher. “They will personally judge every project – up to the last one.”

From regional to global Awards

The winners of the competition will be recognized in September and October 2005 at five regional Awards ceremonies. Prize money totals USD 220,000 for each region. The three top projects from each region will automatically qualify for the global Holcim Awards competition to be announced in April 2006 in Bangkok, with prize money of USD 900,000.

In the global assessment phase, the Award winners will be selected by a jury of independent specialists representing all regions.

The Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction promotes innovative approaches to sustainable construction mainly through international Awards competitions. Architectural excellence and enhanced quality of life are integral parts of the Holcim Foundation’s vision of sustainable construction.

The Holcim Foundation is supported by, but independent of the commercial interests of Holcim, one of the world’s leading suppliers of cement, aggregates (crushed stone, gravel and sand), concrete and construction-related services. The Group holds majority and minority interests in more than 70 countries on all continents.