September 1, 2009 – Rockville, MD

Potomac Valley Brick (PVB) named four sustainable design academic and industry professionals to the “Brick-Stainable: Re-Thinking Brick” competition jury. “Brick-Stainable” asks a participant to design a net-zero energy building using clay masonry as the primary material.

The jury includes Carnegie Melon Architecture Professor Vivian Loftness, University of Maryland School of Architecture Dean and Architecture Professor Garth Rockcastle, Material Scientist Kara Johnson, and AXIM Director of Marketing Martin Vachon.

Professor Loftness’ 30 years of experience includes influencing the Adaptable Workplace Lab at the U.S. General Services Administration and the Laboratory for Cognition at Electricity de France. Loftness received the 2002 American Institute of Architecture Students’ National Educator Honor Award and the 2003 U.S. Green Building Council’s Sacred Tree Award.

Dean Rockcastle has initiated efforts to expand and cross-connect the offerings of the University of Maryland’s School of Architecture. His most recent architectural accomplishment is the 155,000-square-foot, $41.5 million University of Minnesota Regis Center for Art. .

Kara Johnson has worked for design and innovation consulting firm IDEO since 2000, and inspires designers and clients to think differently about material products. She holds a PhD in Materials Engineering from the University of Cambridge.

Martin Vachon serves as director of marketing for self-consolidating concrete (SCC) technology leader AXIM. Vachon worked in Europe to develop specialty admixtures and SCC design software, and helped write the Precast Concrete Institute’s Interim Guidelines for the use of SCC.

The “Brick-stainable” jurors’ choice will receive a $10,000.00 grand prize at the award ceremony at the National Building Museum on January 27, 2010. Current entries have come from six countries, and the registration has been extended to September 30.