Photos courtesy CISC Alberta

Left: The Water Centre is the first and largest civic office building to exceed Calgary's minimum LEED Silver standard. Steel was employed throughout the building for its reflectivity.

Middle: A 27-storey glass atrium—an architectural metaphor for judicial transparency—connects the two reinforced concrete towers of the Calgary Courts Centre using a system of structural steel bridges and trusses.

Right: At the Capital Health Centre in downtown Edmonton, the new entry features a cantilevered steel and glass canopy for the impression of an open raft floating over the interior and exterior spaces.

A civic office building with a five-storey, steel-clad, curved envelope was one of five winners at the Canadian Institute of Steel Construction's (CISC's) 2009 Alberta Steel Design Awards of Excellence. The biennial awards promote the structural steel industry by honouring innovative design, and the unique use of the metal in various applications.

The winners are:
• Architectural Award: The Water Centre (Calgary), submitted by Sturgess Architecture/Manasc Isaac Architects;
• Engineering Award: Calgary Courts Centre, submitted by CANA Management;
• Industrial Award: ASU Cold Box-Opti Canada (Fort McMurray), submitted by SDK et associes;
• Steel Edge Award: Capital Health Centre (Edmonton), submitted by Dub Architects; and
• Sustainability Award: University of Alberta–Triffo Hall (Edmonton), submitted by Johns Group2 Architecture Engineering.

CISC presented the awards last month in Edmonton.