The Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul has been standing in Montreal’s luxurious Square Mile since 1931. At the time it was built, little or no consideration was given to the sustainability of the building materials. But when the roof needed renovating nearly 80 years later, times had changed and so too, approaches to construction.

NEW YORK, N.Y. ─The Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul has been standing in Montreal’s luxurious Square Mile since 1931. At the time it was built, little or no consideration was given to the sustainability of the building materials. But when the roof needed renovating nearly 80 years later, times had changed and so too, approaches to construction. Considerations of sustainability and historic preservation went hand in hand for the installation of an insulated 17,500-square-foot copper batten-seam roof system that sought to retain the building’s gothic revival style and capture notable custom details.

The Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul restoration is just one of the outstanding projects being recognized with a 2011North American Copper in Architecture Award (NACIA) by the Copper Development Association (CDA) and the Canadian Copper & Brass Development Association (CCBDA).

In addition to showcasing the beauty, longevity and workability that is offered by mankind’s oldest metal, sustainability was a running theme among the project submissions, proving that now more than ever, sustainability is a focal point when choosing copper for a commercial or residential project.

The range of entries this year included educational facilities, residences, a performing arts center, and a sports recreation center among other commendable architectural applications of copper.

The 2011 North American Copper in Architecture awards program honors a third category this year. In addition to New Construction and Renovation/Restoration, judges have added the Ornamental Applications category in 2011.

In the New Construction category, awards went to:

Arizona State University of Nursing and Health Innovation Phase 2, Phoenix, Ariz.
Application: The copper panels on the outside of the building utilize three different profiles in a randomly repeating pattern to create texture and unique shadowing.
Architect: SmithGroup, Phoenix, Ariz.
General Contractor: DPR Construction, Phoenix, Ariz.
Copper Fabricator/Installer: Kovach Inc., Chandler, Ariz.

Apollo Development Corporation Riverpoint Center, Phoenix, Ariz.
Application: Three types of copper panels - vertical standing seam, vertical flat seam and horizontal flat seam - were used to accentuate the verticality of the building facades.
Architect: SmithGroup and Carpenter Sellers Del Gatto Architects, Phoenix, Ariz.
Owner: Apollo Group Inc., Phoenix, Ariz.
General Contractor: Sundt, Tempe, Ariz.
Sheet Metal Contractor: Kovach, Inc., Chandler, Ariz.

Hylton Performing Arts Center at George Mason University, Fairfax, Va.
Application: The copper work involved a unique architectural design consisting of curved and angled walls while the roof is fully cladded in copper.
Sheet Metal Contractor: The James Myers Company, Inc., Beltsville, Md.
Principal Engineer: Restoration Engineering, Inc., Fairfax, Va.

Laird Norton Addition at the Winona County History Center, Winona, Minn.
Application: The exterior copper cladding is a series of custom panels having an exposed mill finish that allows the copper to weather gradually for its natural patina.
Architect: HGA, Minneapolis, Minn.
General Contractor: Alvin E. Benike, Inc., Rochester, Minn.
Sheet Metal Contractor: M.G. McGrath Inc., Maplewood, Minn.

Massachusetts House, Lenox, Mass.
Application: Copper is featured both on the project’s interior and exterior, with copper clad roof, dormers, and chimney. Copper is also used for the fireplace and box bays containing bookshelves in the living room.
Architect: McInturff Architects, Bethesda, Md.
General Contractor: Quadresign, Chatham, N.Y.
Sheet Metal Contractor: D.J. Wooliver & Sons Inc., Lanesborough, Mass.

Restoration/Renovation:
Boulder House, Boulder, Colo.
Application: The residential project includes copper half round gutters with hidden brass hangers, solid copper entry doors, copper garage doors, as well as copper trim around all windows.
Architect: Steven Dodd Architect Inc., Boulder, Colo.
Contractor/Installer: Trimac West LLC, Longmont, Colo.

H.S. 615 Chelsea Vocational High School, New York, N.Y.
Application: The detailed copper work included 14,000 square feet of 20 ounce copper in the cornices, integrated gutters and downspouts, vertical standing seam panels on the interior face of the parapets, flashing and snow guards.
Project Manager: OMNI Architects, P.C., New York, N.Y.
General Contractor: Technico Construction Services, Inc., Long Island City, N.Y.
Sheet Metal Contractor: B&B Sheet Metal Inc., Long Island City, N.Y.

Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, Montreal, Canada
Application: The 77-year-old copper roof was replaced with a 17,500 square-foot copper batten seam roof with notable custom detail.
Architect: DFS Inc. Architecture & Design, Montreal
Sheet Metal Contractor: Couverture Montreal Nord Ltee., Saint-Leonard

Beaty Lundin Visitor Centre, Britannia Beach, B.C. Canada
Application: The new Centre is clad in a combination of dark-stained horizontal wood cladding, and pre-patinated copper panels.
Architect: TRB Architecture Inc., Vancouver, B.C.
General Contractor: Parkwood Construction Ltd, Burnaby, B.C.
Copper Fabricators: KPS-Keith Panel Systems, North Vancouver, B.C.
Design Artists: Felt Studio, Toronto, B.C.

Trent Community Sport & Recreation Centre, Peterborough, Ontario
Application: This LEED Silver building used copper to define a large folded roof element, as well as for re-cladding parts of the building, enabling the boundary between new and old to be further blurred.
Architect: Shore Tilbe Perkins + Will, Toronto
Sheet Metal Contractor: Commercial Sheet Metal Inc., Mississauga
General Contractor: Graham Construction and Engineering Inc., Alberta

Ornamental Applications:
Loeb Visitors Center, Newport, R.I.
Application: The railing of the grand stairs is made of nickel silver (a copper alloy, white in color) tubing, bent to a graceful curve.
Architect: Northeast Collaborative Architects, LLC, Newport, R.I.
General Contractor: H.V. Collins Company, Providence, R.I.
Fabricator: South Side Design & Building, Brooklyn, N.Y.

Hawaiian temple Remodel, Honolulu, Hawaii
Application: For a recreation of the baptismal font for the temple, the entire platform was created from a combination of fully machined bronze components, cast bronze components and glass.
Architect: Allen Architectural Inc., Talladega, Ala.

The projects were judged by a panel of architectural and copper industry experts. Entries were evaluated based upon overall building design, integration of copper, craft of copper installation and excellence in innovation or historic restoration.

“Once again, we are encouraged by the number of architects using architectural copper for both new and existing residential and commercial projects,” said CDA vice president of building & construction, Andy Kireta Jr. “This year we wanted to focus on the sustainable side of copper, and all of the projects do a great job in showcasing why copper is one of the greenest metals.” The NACIA program is intended to increase public awareness and promote the excellence in architectural copper design for buildings constructed throughout the United States and Canada.