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DTSTART;TZID=UTC:20260514T080000
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SUMMARY:Zak World of Facades USA\, Phoenix 2026
DESCRIPTION:Overview\nZak World of Facades returns to the United States for its 217th edition globally and its first edition in Phoenix\, Arizona. The one-day conference takes place on May 14\, 2026 at the Hyatt Regency Phoenix\, running from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. Organized by Zak Exhibitions and Conferences\, the event is part of a globally touring series dedicated to facade design\, engineering\, and building envelope technology. \nPhoenix marks a deliberate geographic choice: the Sonoran Desert context frames many of the day’s sessions around climate-specific facade performance\, desert thermal resilience\, and the challenge of designing building envelopes that prioritize human comfort in an extreme environment. The city’s rapid growth and its position as an emerging architectural market in the American Southwest give the event particular local relevance. \nFocus\nThe conference addresses the building envelope across three interconnected dimensions: performance\, sustainability\, and design. The Sonoran Desert climate provides a consistent contextual pressure running through the agenda\, with sessions engaging thermal comfort\, air barrier compliance\, solar shading strategies\, and the material choices available to practitioners working in extreme heat conditions. \nSustainability themes are woven through the technical sessions\, including discussions of embodied carbon alongside operational carbon\, the implications of the 2024 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) for envelope practice\, and the role of facade specification in decarbonizing the built environment. Alongside technical content\, the programme includes project-specific case studies from Phoenix and the wider desert Southwest\, connecting research and theory to built outcomes. \nThis edition will showcase sustainable innovations and challenges in the construction industry pertaining to the building envelope and will display the latest technological solutions.\nZak World of Facades\, Phoenix 2026 Official Description \nConference Agenda\n\n08:30 – 09:30\nDelegate Registration and Welcome Coffee\n\n\n09:30 – 09:40\nWelcome Address\n\n\n09:40 – 10:00\nBeyond Shade: Strategies for Comfort and Resilience in the Sonoran Desert\nJay Silverberg and Martha dePlazaola Abbott\, Gensler. Level-setting for contextual facade design\, thermal veils\, data centers inverted for climate\, and urban comfort interventions.\n\n\n10:00 – 10:20\n2024 IECC Implications for Practice: Advancing Building Thermal Envelope Performance Verification\nBrian Davie\, Walker Consultants. Expanded air barrier requirements\, whole-building air leakage compliance testing\, and envelope design verification criteria.\n\n\n10:20 – 10:40\nSustainability from Every Angle in the Building Envelope\nTobiasz Staszak\, Reynaers Aluminium. Operational and embodied carbon\, sustainability strategy\, and what genuinely makes a building envelope sustainable.\n\n\n10:40 – 11:05\nA Grid is a Grid is a Grid: Ray Phoenix\nNicholas Hofstede\, Johnston Marklee. Art-and-design-forward residential tower with a rigorous grid system\, strong color palette\, and singular desert skyline identity.\n\n\n11:05 – 11:55\nNetworking Tea and Coffee Break\n\n\n12:15 – 12:25\nGlobal Trends of Architectural Glass Facades\nBob Zhang\, Tianjin North Glass. Single and 3D curved glass design\, super jumbo glass and flatness\, new techniques in architectural glass.\n\n\n12:25 – 12:55\nSession to be Announced\nRachel Greene Rasmussen\, Architekton.\n\n\n12:55 – 13:35\nMaterials Making Big Impacts on Smaller Projects from Infill to Civic\nDiane Jacobs\, Holly Street Studio and James Trahan\, 180 Degrees Design + Build. Local regulations\, sustainability\, material performance\, and desert-hardy facades for occupant comfort.\n\n\n13:35 – 14:45\nNetworking Lunch\n\n\n14:45 – 15:10\nCentral Station: A Project for the City\nJohn Dimmel and Steve Valev\, Multistudio. Phoenix’s central transit terminal designed as a city extension with prefabricated facade\, self-shading envelope\, and deep overhangs calibrated for desert sun.\n\n\n15:10 – 15:30\nTaliesin West: Transitioning Back to a Roofing Solution Closer to What Wright Used\nRebecca Barron\, Director of Preservation\, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation. Replacing the acrylic translucent canvas roofing system with a sustainable\, desert-resilient alternative.\n\n\n15:40 – 16:20\nLife Sciences Facades Demand Specialized Treatment\nAlex Korter (CO Architects)\, James Hatch (Kovach)\, Joe Lisiewski II (Arizona State University)\, John Meredith (HDR)\, Xandon Keating (City of Phoenix).\n\n\n16:30 – 17:00\nRefreshments and Networking\n\nSpeakers\n\nJay SilverbergDesign Principal\, Gensler Phoenix\nMartha dePlazaola AbbottCo-Managing Director Principal\, Gensler Phoenix\nBrian DavieSenior Building Enclosure Consultant\, Walker Consultants\nTobiasz StaszakArea Manager North America\, Reynaers Aluminium\nNicholas HofstedeManaging Director\, Johnston Marklee\nBob ZhangCommercial Director\, Tianjin North Glass\nChris O’HaraSenior Principal\, Studio NYL / Lerch Bates\nRachel Greene RasmussenPartner\, Architekton\nDiane Jacobs FAIAFounding Principal\, Holly Street Studio\nJames TrahanPresident\, 180 Degrees Design + Build\nJohn DimmelVice President\, Multistudio\nSteve ValevAssociate Principal\, Multistudio\nRebecca BarronDirector of Preservation\, Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation / Taliesin West\nAlex KorterPrincipal\, CO Architects\nJames HatchPresident and CSO\, Kovach\nJoe Lisiewski IIAssistant VP and University Architect\, Arizona State University\nJohn MeredithAssociate Education and Science Principal\, HDR\nXandon KeatingDeputy Economic Development Director\, City of Phoenix\n\nSponsors\nConfirmed sponsors include Reynaers Aluminium\, American Fiber Cement Corporation\, AGC\, Dri-Design\, Hydro Extrusion\, Kolbe Windows\, North Glass\, Taktl\, Viracon\, Vitro Glazings\, Island Facades\, and Bavius Technologie\, covering the primary material and system categories represented in contemporary facade construction. \nAudience\nThe conference targets architects\, facade engineers\, building envelope consultants\, contractors\, developers\, and product manufacturers active in the US Southwest market. Its single-day format and focused agenda make it relevant for practitioners seeking technical updates on code compliance\, material innovation\, and climate-responsive design strategies specific to arid and desert environments. \nEvent Details\n\n\n\nDate\nMay 14\, 2026\n\n\nHours\n8:00 am – 5:00 pm\n\n\nVenue\nHyatt Regency Phoenix\, Phoenix\, Arizona\, USA\n\n\nEdition\n217th edition globally / 1st edition in Phoenix\n\n\nEvent Type\nOne-day conference and networking\n\n\nAdmission / Fees\nNot publicly listed — contact organizer via facades.us.com/phx/ for registration and delegate fees\n\n\nOrganizer\nZak Exhibitions and Conferences\n\n\nOfficial Page\nfacades.us.com/phx/\n\n\n\n\n✦ ArchUp Editorial Insight\nPhoenix is a productive choice for a facade conference. The Sonoran Desert imposes demands on building envelopes that most temperate-climate markets rarely confront at the same intensity: extreme solar gain\, extreme thermal mass requirements\, the tension between transparency and thermal protection\, and the cost of cooling in a grid increasingly strained by summer peak loads. The speaker list for this edition reflects genuine local expertise\, from Gensler’s Phoenix office to Multistudio’s Central Station project and the Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation’s preservation work at Taliesin West. The inclusion of Taliesin West as a case study is particularly pointed: Wright’s translucent canvas roofing system was itself a specific response to the desert\, and the effort to replace it with a sustainable equivalent without losing its spatial character is exactly the kind of problem where facade engineering and conservation thinking must work together. Whether the day’s discussions produce insights that travel beyond the Southwest context depends on how explicitly speakers frame their desert-specific conclusions as transferable design principles. \n\n\nClosing Note\nZak World of Facades has built its global reach through consistency: the same format\, applied in different cities\, accumulates a comparable cross-section of local expertise and product knowledge in each market. The Phoenix edition arrives at a moment when the American Southwest is one of the most climatically pressured and architecturally active regions in the country\, making the building envelope a genuinely urgent subject rather than a technical specialty.
URL:https://archup.net/event/zak-world-of-facades-usa-phoenix-2026/
LOCATION:Hyatt Regency Phoenix\, 122 N 2nd St Phoenix\, AZ 85004\, Phoenix\, AZ\, -\, United States
CATEGORIES:Conferences,Workshops
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://archup.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/1920x990-phx-26.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="Zak Group":MAILTO:info@zakgroup.com
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