GRAPHISOFT Announces Winners of Inaugural ARCHICAD Student Design Competition

GRAPHISOFT North America, in partnership with award-winning ARCHICAD firm, Kitchen & Associates (K&A) and AIA West Jersey, announced the winners of the inaugural student design competition. The competition coincided with the annual American Institute of Architects (AIA) Convention in Philadelphia.

Students from across the United States, currently enrolled in architectural or interior design programs (graduate and undergraduate), were challenged to design temporary, mobile visitor centers in ARCHICAD, using shipping containers, which could be situated in popular event locations across Philadelphia, the AIA Conference host city. The top three mobile visitor center designs received a total of $3,000 in cash prizes. Numerous entries were received from universities and colleges across the United States.

"The students approached the challenge with a unique perspective. ARCHICAD gave our winner the tools he needed to shine,” said Jason Lutz, president, AIA West Jersey. "When the BIM tool fuels design freedom and supports creativity—success is nearly a guarantee.”

First place and a cash award of $1,500 went to Alessandro Pupillo, a graduate of Broward College’s two-year Architecture program. Pupillo plans to enter Florida Atlantic University in the fall to continue his education in Architecture. Second place went to Trevor Houghton, a junior studying Construction Management at California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo. The third place winner was Akinet Nagdive, a graduate of Iowa State University’s Architecture program, class of 2016.

Pupillo received formal ARCHICAD training at Broward after first learning AutoCAD at the high school level. Pupillo says he found the transition from that software to ARCHICAD’s 3D modeling to be a simple one.

“ARCHICAD is extremely user-friendly. I was able to build on experience with AutoCAD and made good use of the competition design template. I have had the opportunity to use a variety of BIM software and can say that I really enjoy working with ARCHICAD.”

Pupillo’s rendering caught the attention of the distinguished judging panel, assembled from GRAPHISOFT staff, ARCHICAD professors, AIA West Jersey board members, and K&A staff. Review of the entries by such an esteemed panel gave the competitors the opportunity to have their skills evaluated by those in the industry who are actively seeking new talent.

“In a competitive job market, students need a well-rounded exposure to BIM solutions. For us and many firms like us, ARCHICAD skills are in high demand,” explained Stephen Schoch, managing principal at K&A. “We hope to add to our workforce from the entrant pool, because they bring high value to an existing workflow.”

To see the winning design and to learn more about the grand prize winner, please visit the GRAPHISOFT North America blog, BIM Engine by ARCHICAD.