Study Architecture 
ProPEL Rules
Eligibility
An ACSA member school, faculty sponsor is required to enroll students by completing an online registration form prior to registration by April 7, 2021. Because the support of AISC is largely derived from steel companies whose markets are mainly in the U.S., the ACSA/AISC Steel Design Student Competition is open to students and/or student teams from ACSA Full and Candidate Member Schools, as well as ACSA Affiliate Members Schools from the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
All student entrants are required to work under the direction of a faculty sponsor. Entries will be accepted for individuals as well as teams. Teams must be limited to a maximum of five students. Submissions should be principally the product of work in a design studio or related class.
Use of Steel
Steel must be used as the primary structural material. Design proposals must contain at least one space/element that requires long-span steel structure, with special emphasis placed on innovation in steel design. The most compelling proposals will inevitably integrate the use of steel into the design of the project at multiple levels, from primary structure to building envelope and tectonic details.
Building Code
Refer to the International Building Code and the local zoning ordinance for information on parking requirements, height restrictions, setbacks, easements, flood, egress and fire containment. All proposals must be designed to meet requirements for accessibility; for guidelines, refer to the Americans with Disabilities Act and the principles of Universal Design.
Judging Criteria
Submissions must clearly represent the selected program. In addressing the specific issues of the design challenge, submissions must clearly demonstrate the design solution’s response to the following requirements:
- An elegant expressive understanding of the material–structural steel–deployed with maximum innovative potential with a minimum of one long-span space
- A strong conceptual strategy translated into a coherent integrated design proposal
- An articulate mastery of formal concepts and aesthetic values
- A compelling response to the physical and cultural context of the scheme
- A mature awareness of and an innovative approach to sustainability as a convergence of social, economic and environmental issues
- A thorough appreciation of human needs and social responsibilities
Registration
Faculty Sponsor
A faculty sponsor is required to enroll students by completing an online registration form prior to submission by April 7, 2021. Complete one online form for each individual student or team of students participating. Students or teams wishing to enter the competition on their own must have a faculty sponsor, who should complete the online registration form. There is no entry or submission fee to participate in the competition. Please add the email address competitions@acsa-arch.org & ACSACompetition@mirasmart.com to your address book to ensure that you receive all emails regarding your participation in the competition.
During registration faculty will have the ability to add students and create teams. Registration is required by April 7, 2021, but can be changed, edited and added to until a student begins their final submission.
Faculty Responsibility
The administration of the competition at each institution is left to the discretion of the faculty within the guidelines set forth in this document. Work on the competition should be structured over the course of one semester during the 2020-2021 academic year.
Each faculty sponsor is expected to develop a system to evaluate the students’ work using the criteria set forth in this program. The evaluation process should be an integral part of the design process, encouraging students to scrutinize their work in a manner similar to that of the jury.
Submissions
Digital Submission Format
Submissions must be presented on four 20” x 20” digital boards, no more than 20MB. All boards are required to be uploaded through the ACSA website as JPEG files. The names of student participants, their schools, or faculty sponsors, must NOT appear on the boards, or in the project title or project title file name(s).
Digital Essay or Abstract
A brief essay, 300 words maximum, is required as part of the submission describing the most important concepts of the design project. Keep in mind that the presentation should graphically convey the design solution and context, and not rely on the design essay to convey a basic understanding of the project. The names of student participants, their schools, or faculty sponsors, must NOT appear in the design essay. This abstract is included in the final online submission, completed by the student(s) in a simple copy/paste text box.
Program Summary
Required Submission Documents
Submissions must include (but are not limited to) the following required drawings:
- Three-dimensional representations – in the form of axonometrics, perspectives showing the proposal in its context, montages and/or physical model photographs – to illustrate the character of the project;
- Site plan showing proposal in its context of surrounding buildings and topography, together with details of access/circulation;
- Building/site sections sufficient to show site context and major spatial and program elements;
- Floor plans to show program elements, spatial adjacencies and navigation strategies;
- Large scale drawing(s), either orthographic or three dimensional, illustrating:
- the use and detailing of steel for building structure and/or envelope
- integrated design
Incomplete or undocumented entries will be disqualified. All drawings should be presented at a scale appropriate to the design solution and include a graphic scale. The site plan should include a north arrow.
Online Project Submission
After the faculty sponsor completes the online registration, each student will receive a confirmation email, which will include a link to complete the online submission. The student is required to submit the final entries that must be uploaded through the ACSA Competition website at www.acsa-arch.org by 11:59 pm, Pacific Time, on June 2, 2021. If the submission is from a team of students, all student team members will have the ability to upload the digital files. Once the final submit button is pressed no additional edits, uploads, or changes can be made. You may “save” your submission and return to complete. Please note: The submission is not complete until the “complete this submission” button has been pressed. For team projects, each member of team projects may submit the final project, but each project should be submitted only once. Once the final submission is uploaded and submitted, each student will receive a confirmation email notification.
The final submission upload must contain the following:
- Completed online registration including all team members and faculty sponsors,
- Each of the four 20”x20” boards uploaded individually as high resolution JPEG files, no more than 20MB each,
- A design essay or abstract (300 words maximum)
- A program summary diagram/text of spaces and areas (150 words maximum).
The names of student participants, their schools and faculty sponsors must NOT appear on the boards, abstract, program summary, or in the file name.
Winning projects will be required to submit high-resolution original files/images for use in competition publications and exhibit materials. By uploading your files, you agree that the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) has the rights to use your winning submission, images and materials in a summary publication, online and in promotional and exhibition resources. ACSA will attribute authorship of the winning design to you, your team, faculty and affiliation. Additionally, you hereby warrant that the submission is original and that you are the author(s) of the submission.
Sponsor
Questions
Edwin Hernández
Programs Coordinator
ehernandez@acsa-arch.org
202.785.2324
Eric W. Ellis
Senior Director of Operations and Programs
202-785-2324
eellis@acsa-arch.org
