AIA West Jersey Section News

The CANstruction Pennsauken 2017 Awards Reception was held this past Wednesday, February 22, 2017 at the Rutgers University Camden Campus. A panel of judges — including local architects, dietitians, community activists and representatives from the Food Bank of South Jersey — voted on categories including Most Cans, Structural Ingenuity, Best Meal, Best Use of Labels, and Best Original Design. In addition to these categories, there was a sixth award that was judged solely by the Food Bank of South Jersey representatives titled, Food Bank Favorite. AIA West Jersey sponsored team, Kitchen and Associates, took home the “Food Bank Favorite” trophy for [...]

On January 19th, AIA West Jersey and Graphisoft, producers of ARCHICAD, hosted a BIM, Wine & Cheese Inaugural Event at the Markeim Arts Center in Haddonfield, NJ. GRAPHISOFT BIM Specialist, Zoltan Toth, demonstrated ArchiCAD and BIMx softwares, offered best practices, and discussed BIM Return-on-Investment.  Attendees learned something new whether already a ArchiCAD user or just considering the move to BIM. The event featured a sampling of Hungarian wines from Palinkerie Winery. Hungarian wine is quickly becoming popular—it’s both a novelty on this side of the Atlantic yet also the product of a rich, 1,000-year-old winemaking tradition.  Wines were enjoyed with a selection of cheeses and [...]

As the holiday season comes to a close, we look to 2017 and the year ahead. AIA West Jersey will be introducing new members to the executive committee, and planning the year’s programming. In fact, a number of events are already in the works. Wine and Cheese Tasting / Inaugural: To kick the year off, AIA WJ will host a wine and cheese tasting event on January 19th co-sponsored by Graphisoft, producers of ARCHICAD one of the leading Building Information Modeling (BIM) software applications used by architects, designers and engineers. This event will feature a presentation of vineyard projects designed in [...]

It is that time of year, the online voting page for the 2016 AIA West Jersey Photography Competition is now open. Please, click the link below and vote for your favorite!  AIA WJ PHOTOGRAPHY COMPETITION VOTING SITE Voting is open to the public.  Please share the link with colleagues, friends and family.  Voting ends the Monday after Thanksgiving, November 28th. Votes will determine the 3 prize winning photographs, the cover image, and 12 “monthly” images that will be printed in the 2017 AIA-WJ Calendar. PRIZES: Each year three cash prizes are awarded for Overall Best Entry, Best Color, and Best Black & White, as follows: [...]

On October 27, 2016, Emerging Professionals gathered at Pinsetters Bar & Bowl in Merchantville, NJ for a seminar and social event hosted by Designplan Lighting Inc. and Illuminations Inc. Attendees were treated to a hands-on presentation by Renee Chaykin, LC, Northeast Regional Manager for Designplan.  The presentation including demonstration of new and best-selling light fixtures available for both residential and commercial use.  In addition to the lighting product displays, participants engaged in a thoughtful question and answer session. The discussion continued on the bowling lanes, as the Emerging Professionals and hosts rolled well into the evening in friendly, but spirited, competition. [...]

On September 27, 2016, Emerging Professionals from AIA West Jersey and Central Jersey Components gathered at the Taproom & Grille in Haddon Township, NJ for a seminar featuring Personal Financial Planning Basics for Emerging Professionals. Attendees learned about Budgeting, Insurance Protection, Retirement/401k Planning, College Planning and Investing for yourself and your business. The seminar was presided over by Jason Gabrieli, CFP of HFM Investment Advisers, an emerging professional in the financial planning industry.  The presentation featured excellent discussion among the participants. Light fare and cocktails were available during the networking portion of the event. For additional information about Emerging Professional events [...]

October is Emerging Professionals Month.  The following article was submitted by AIA West Jersey Member and Emerging Professional, Jeffrey Brummer, AIA, and recounts his experience as a design professional volunteer with Community Design Collaborative and the AEC Cares Project Philadelphia Project at the AIA National Convention 2016. Imagine that you had $300,000 worth of building materials and 150 willing volunteers. Could you transform a public recreation center that has been underfunded for decades? The answer to that question seems pretty easy, but how about completing the renovation in 10 hours? That was the challenge posed to me and six other design [...]

In case you missed it, on August 26th, 2016, AIA WJ Emerging Professionals Community hosted an EPiC Summer Social at Tuckahoe Brewing Company in Egg Harbor Township, NJ.  Attending members from the West Jersey, South Jersey and Jersey Shore chapters had a great time sharing ideas, discussing the upcoming Fall schedule, and sampling some of the locally produced beers. We also had the opportunity to take a stroll through the plant with company co-founder Matt McDevitt, who described the brewing process and ongoing growth of the company. Fun fact: Tuckahoe Brewing Company is part owned by a emerging professional architect, Jim McAfee, R.A. [...]

The 11th Annual AIA West Jersey Photography Competition has opened for entries. Submit your interesting images of everything architectural – from the buildings around the corner, to a current project to a place you visited. 2015 Best Overall Awardee - Bonn Apartments - Robert Auld, AIA ELIGIBILITY: Competition is open to all AIA members and affiliates, students and the general public. ENTRY DEADLINE: September 7, 2016 CATEGORIES: Color and Black & White AWARDS: All entries are narrowed by a jury to select the top finalists, these finalists are put online for a public vote to select the 3 prize winning photographs, the cover [...]

The AIA New Jersey Emerging Professionals Community (EPiC) met at the end of July for the first annual EPiC Leadership Summit.  Members of the executive committee and emerging professionals from each of New Jersey's six AIA sections were in attendance.  The group came together to clarify the community's vision for the remainder of 2016 and set goals for 2017.  AIA West Jersey was represented by Christopher McIntosh, Assoc. AIA (AIA WJ EPiC Section Director) and Mark Barone, AIA (AIA WJ President Elect). For more information about the AIA New Jersey Emerging Professionals Community, and upcoming state-wide EP activities visit our website: [...]