The Copper Development Association (CDA) is seeking outstanding copper building projects for submission to the 2026 North American Copper in Architecture Awards, a program that recognizes and promotes outstanding application of architectural copper alloys.
Make it easy on the Judges!
Remember, in most cases the Judges have not seen the projects-- Your submitted photos, both overall view and details are what will make up their minds.
Make sure to include completed project photos—landscaping in, scaffolding and ladders removed so they do not obscure view of the copper
Yes, especially with detailed Historic Restoration work a few close up photographs to substantiate the complexity of the work are great—but they will need to see quality overall views.
Photos are also key to getting ultimate publicity—A magazine wants a cover photo of a good looking building!
The best photos by far are from professional photographers. It’s essential to for us to have publicity rights to utilize these images after all, it’s these same photos which will demonstrate your work to the trades and to general public.
Project Write Up:
Remember—it is a North American Copper in Architecture award make sure the write up covers the copper components of the project.
Sustainability: Always a key factor—illuminate sustainable aspects of the project. Is it LEED rated? Net Zero? Did copper components (even if not strictly “architectural”) contribute? For instance efficient lighting and related controls—likely relies on copper, likely PV arrays, battery storage, etc.
Key Partners
Physical awards go to the few key partners associated with the copper/copper alloy portion of the work.
Usually these are the architect or building envelope consulting engineer and the system fabricator/installer.
Other partners are mentioned, but do not receive physical awards.
Copper Manufacturer: This goes for copper alloy (like brass or bronze), too. Who made the copper? Not the distributor, or the roof panel manufacturer—the copper mill. The distributor or panel manufacturer will know this.
No North American Copper Mills produce Lead Coated material. No need to submit LCC projects, they are not considered.
Painted copper— Occasionally we get submissions of ornamental copper work, typically restoration projects, where the copper is painted. Make sure most of the submission photos are of the bare, unpainted, copper.
Project completion: Three years before submission deadline. Contact us with questions as we know there are some projects where rather small portions, unrelated to the copper, may be completed later.
Resubmissions— If you feel a project deserves a second chance and still fits within the completion deadline, feel free to resubmit. Some years have tougher entrant fields than others. However, please check with the award manager—they are happy to discuss why a project may not have been top ranked, and help save you time and effort. Perhaps it was completed too long ago? Is it lead coated material? Were the photo’s poor? Extreme performance concerns—like roofs of substantially too low slope for the building’s climate? Some of these factors (like photos) can be corrected with a resubmission, others may be insurmountable. If in doubt, check.
Questions:
For more information, please contact: Patricia w/GreenHouse Digital + PR at nacia@awards.copperalliance.us 708.428.6385