2026 Awards Judges

Sara Arbós Torrent is the CEO of Bellapart Group, where she leads the company’s vision of pushing the boundaries of architectural engineering. With a background that bridges advanced technical research and executive management, she brings both analytical rigour and entrepreneurial drive to the business. Passionate about innovation and international collaboration, she has played a key role in positioning Bellapart as a trusted partner in delivering iconic, high-performance façade and structural glass projects worldwide.

Katherine Chan, MSFE is a façade engineer and educator. Her strength lies in realizing design intent, while emphasizing the user experience and juggling complex geometric configurations. A self-propelled desire for thorough analysis and a propensity for detail has enabled her to advocate for innovative approaches and materials.

Currently, she is a Principal and a Project Manager at Walter P Moore where she focuses on the development of façade design from an integrated approach. Kat has a degree in Structural Engineering from Columbia University, where she teaches as part of Adjunct Faculty in GSAPP. Kat also teaches at the Pratt Institute and has guest lectured at MIT and Hofstra University. Past project experience includes Studio Gang’s Gilder Center, expansion to New York City’s American Museum of Natural History, Safdie Architect’s Singapore Changi Airport Jewel, Grimshaw’s Sustainability Pavilion for the Dubai World Expo, and Omaha Performing Arts Center Steelhouse and Tenaska Center for Arts Engagement by Ennead and Holland Basham Architects in Omaha, NE.

Kat is President and Founding Co-Chair of the Society of Façade Engineering North America Hub, fostering community, networking and knowledge sharing to promote the awareness and appreciation for façade engineering.

Laura is Head of Sustainability at Staticus, where she leads the implementation of Staticus’ corporate sustainability strategy. With a consulting background that spans facade engineering and sustainability across Australia, Asia, and Europe, she brings both deep technical expertise and a drive for meaningful change to the business. Passionate about lifecycle and circular facade design, she has played a key role in advancing sustainable building envelopes through international conference speaking and industry publications.

Amy Doherty has worked in the façade industry for four decades, with a career spanning everything from design to project management and aftercare. Since 2005 she has been Head of FaçadeCare in the UK for Permasteelisa Group, leading a team that specialises in façade maintenance, cleaning and refurbishment. She has in-depth knowledge of all types of cladding and glass specifications, scientific approaches to detecting issues before they escalate, and coordinating teams working safely at height. She has extensive experience in refurbishment and renovation, including of listed buildings, working closely with architects, designers, engineers and installation experts. Her philosophy? Maintain, repair, replace.

John founded EFAS in 2024 after an 11-year tenure with Lendlease as Global Head of Façades. Through EFAS he offers strategic façade advice to businesses, government agencies, and trade bodies across the globe. He has 40 years’ experience in the façade industry and has had the privilege to be involved in many prestigious facade projects around the world. John particularly likes volunteering some of his time to the CWCT, SFE and some guest lecturing on the MSc Façade Engineering course.

Mark is chartered engineer with over a decade of experience in building physics and façade engineering. Mark started his career in building design as a building science engineer in Canada, working on building condition assessments, façade remediation projects, and new-build construction, responsible for façade condition investigations, remedial designs and project oversight. Mark later moved to London where he joined the WSP façade engineering team, applying his technical expertise and lessons learnt from Canada to the London skyline.

More recently, Mark joined the team of industry experts at CWCT where his more academic and first-principles approach to façade engineering is utilised to help develop and inform new guidance and his experience could be passed on to the Masters of Façade Engineer students as part of the lecturing team.

Emma joined the team at BentallGreenOak in 2021 having previously worked at Tishman Speyer within the Design and Construction team.

Emma’s focus is on driving development and refurbishment initiatives and is currently the BGO European EDI lead. Current projects include The Waterman and 105 Victoria Street. Former projects include 25 Shoe Lane and Smithson Plaza.

Emma is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Building and has a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Liverpool.

Alexis (Lex) Harrison is an expert in brick and architectural ceramics, and is a façade and product designer dedicated to reducing the environmental impact of masonry facades. He designs innovative new-build facades as well as heritage interventions. Lex is a proponent of materials reclamation and circular economy, has designed façade system products, as well as bespoke solutions with leading architects globally. He undertakes failure investigations and Expert Witness work, and works hard to improve the safety of systems such as brick slip cladding.

In 1983, Chris co‑founded Wintech and guided the company to become the UK’s largest Façade Engineering Consultancy. Under his leadership, Wintech has grown to over 130 industry specialists and evolved into a fully integrated multidisciplinary practice. Today, the business brings together expertise in Civil Engineering, Structural Engineering, Fire Engineering, Building Services, Façade Engineering, Façade Access Consultancy and Geomatic Surveying.

Chris is a keen advocate of professional training of façade engineers, differentiation of those qualified and the promotion of the discipline of façade engineering as a recognised profession and science.

Chris was a founding member of the Society of Façade Engineering, a former Chairman, a Fellow of the Society and established its annual SFE competition.

Simone is Head of Façade Engineering at AKT II, with global experience delivering complex projects, stadia and cultural venues. Known for design excellence and multidisciplinary collaboration, Simone brings deep expertise in façade building physics, structural detailing, and parametric design—ensuring creative, high-performance solutions remain central to contemporary façade innovation. 

Andy Seman is an Associate Principal with Adamson's Toronto office; he brings to our team diverse architectural experience in London and North America, and special expertise in complex building envelopes. He has worked on many prestigious commercial buildings in London, New York, Chicago, and Silicon Valley – both speculative developments such as 151 North Franklin and 425 Park Avenue, as well as owner/occupier headquarters buildings for the BBC, Google, Goldman Sachs, Pfizer, and others.

Andy has enjoyed the privilege of working on large-scale developments and campuses that involved modification of the surrounding landscape and existing urban fabric, including East Harbour in Toronto, the London Bridge Quarter and Canary Wharf in London, and, prior to joining Adamson, London’s Paternoster Square and Broadgate. His ongoing projects include major developments in London’s financial hub.