We’re thrilled to announce that two of our standout projects have been honored with awards, recognizing the creativity, collaboration and impact behind each design. These accolades not only celebrate the hard work of our teams but also highlight HERA’s commitment to pushing boundaries and delivering meaningful laboratory projects to our clients.
The University of Kentucky Chemistry-Physics Building Third Floor Renovation was recognized by AIA Kentucky with an Honor Award for Design Excellence. The award recognizes a transformative renovation that turned the 1960s structure into a vibrant, light-filled research hub that embodies sustainability and collaboration.
The design team renovated the 48,000-sf third floor and replaced the building envelope all while remaining occupied. The Honor Award is the highest honor awarded in the AIA Kentucky awards program. The jury praised the project as “a fresh, forward-looking symbol of progress and purpose.”
Architect: Omni Architects
Structural engineer: Brown + Kubican
Mechanical & electrical engineer: CMTA, Inc.
Civil engineer: Element Design
General contractor: Wehr Constructors, Inc.
The University of Pennsylvania Laboratory for Energy Science and Technology was recognized at the Façade Tectonics Institute’s 2025 Vitruvian Honors & Awards program in the Façade System Integration category. The program recognizes outstanding projects that have made extraordinary contributions to facade design, engineering, fabrication, installation, and lifecycle performance.
The 110,000-sf iconic building serves as a locus for pioneering energy research and education and supports the expansion of core research. HERA provided laboratory programming, planning and design on the project. We are proud to be design team member for a laboratory building that is pushing ingenuity in building envelope design.
Design architect: Behnisch Architeken
Façade engineering: Knippershelbig
Climate engineering: Transsolar:
Architectural lighting design: LAM Partners:
General contractor: LFDriscoll:
Façade contractors: Lindner Group with Advanced Glass and Metal
ETFE membrane shades: VectorFoiltec