Award Nominations

Nominations for the North Carolina Structural Engineers Association 2026 Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards Now Open! Winners will be presented at an awards ceremony during the SEA of NC 2026 Annual Conference to be held on September 30th to October 2nd, 2026 at the Benton Convention Center Marriott, Winston Salem. Click here to download criteria and entry instructions

PURPOSE
The purpose of the SEA of NC Excellence in Structural Engineering Awards program is to publicly acknowledge outstanding achievement in creative design, technical innovation, best practices and demonstrated contributions to the public and/or the profession.  Additionally, it is the intent of the SEA of NC Awards program to educate the public as to the contributions of Structural Engineers to the built environment and public safety.

AWARD CATEGORIES

Awards will be judged on the technical aspects of the project.  An Award of Excellence will be awarded in each award category.  The jury may consider additional awards in each category for both small and large projects so that projects of all scales may be properly recognized for their excellence.  The number of awards given will be a result of the judges’ scoring.  Awards may or may not be given in each category listed below.  Projects may be entered in ONE category only.

 Special-Use Structures:  Excellence in the structural engineering analysis, design and/or construction of a special-use project. Examples include non-building structures, such as a temporary movie set, an artificial rock-climbing wall and sculptural work of art.

  1. Historic Preservation:  Excellence in the achievement of creative, innovative, and precedent-setting approaches to structural engineering in the rehabilitation and preservation of a significant historic structure. Entrants in this category are encouraged to convey their approach to structural design within the context of the governing appropriate agencies for historical preservation and/or restoration.
  2. Retrofit/Alteration Under $10MM:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the evaluation and/or design of a retrofit project or alteration of an existing structure.  Includes seismic strengthening, additions, tenant improvements and other structural building alterations.
  3. Retrofit/Alteration Over $10MM:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the evaluation and/or design of a retrofit project or alteration of an existing structure.  Includes seismic strengthening, additions, tenant improvements and other structural building alterations.
  4. Best Project New Construction Under $5 Million:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the design of a new construction project.
  5. Best Project New Construction Between $5-$25 Million:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the design of a new construction project.
  6. Best Project New Construction Between $25-$100 Million:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the design of a new construction project.
  7. Best Project New Construction Over $100 Million:  Excellence in the use of conventional and/or innovative technology in the design of a new construction project.
  8. Engineer of the Year – Can be nominated by SEA of NC members or selected by the Executive Board for the engineer who has made outstanding contributions to the SEA of NC and the structural engineering profession.  We encourage nominations to include not only professional information but achievements outside of engineering.

 Project entries will be judged in the category in which it was entered.  However, the jury has the option to move a project into a different category.

 JUDGING CRITERIA

Entries will be judged on demonstrated excellence and achievement in structural engineering including the following criteria:
  • Design Creativity
  • Technical Innovation
  • System Efficiency and Economy
  • Constructability
  • Complexity of Problems Solved
  • Sustainability
  • Quality of Execution
  • Significant Contribution to the Public and Profession

  RULES OF ELIGIBILITY

  1. Projects may be of any size, type, or location.
  2. The project entry must have been constructed or substantially completed between June 1, 2025, and December 31, 2026. 
  3. At least one member of the design team, research team, or a principal of the firm responsible for the entry, shall be a SEA of NC Member in good standing.
  4. Entrants may submit more than one project.
  5. Projects previously submitted that did not receive an award are eligible for re-submission.
  6. Each entry submission is required to include written permission of the project Engineer-of-Record and/or the Responsible Engineer with the submission materials before entry will be considered by the Awards Jury.

  

 ENTRY INSTRUCTIONS

All entries must include the following:

1.    Entry Form (enclosed)

2.    A minimum of two (2) electronic photos

3.    Project Summary (limited to one page)

4.    $75 Entry Fee – all proceeds are ear-marked for the SEA of NC Scholarship Program.

5.    Entries may be sent electronically or mailed in.  All entries must include the required entry fee to be considered.

  DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES

Entries with all supporting materials, forms and fees must be received by Friday, August 28th, 2026, by mail or electronic submission.  Entry forms are included in this packet of information.  The entry information packet and forms may also be downloaded from the SEA of NC website (www.seaofnc.org). 

 For any questions Brian Moskow can be reached at the following:  E-Mail [email protected] or [email protected]

Entry fee can be paid here

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