Behind every facade design is a team of architects, engineers, fabricators, material specialists, and installers working together to produce successful building envelopes. From pre-construction to installation, the world of facade design has become a niche market for firms and individuals with specialized knowledge of building exteriors.
As a result, the Archinect editorial team has featured and highlighted a wide array of unique facade designs and experts. From UNStudio's curved glass display facade in Amsterdam to Faulders Studio's Wynwood Garage facade in Miami, each project executes a level of highly technical design engineering.
Variations of facade design result from skilled architects and engineers passionate about building envelopes and creating performance-based solutions. One such example is Brooklyn-based studio MW-Skins. Their specialty in developing and implementing innovative facade solutions has led them to work with some of the world's top firms like SHoP Architects, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, GF55, and Spacesmith, to name a few.
Founding Principal Markus Wilmers, a facade designer and architect, started MW-Skins in 2019. Wilmers has over a decade of expertise in facade design, energy efficiency, and innovative material strategies and has situated his firm as the "studio for facades."
The studio's skill set is defined as "new and innovative material strategies for energy efficiency and envelope strategies for challenging architectural forms" while giving weight to the "aesthetics and character of a building." Each project MW-Skins works on covers various scopes of facade production. Along with his team of facade design experts, Wilmers incorporates multiple aspects of engineering and material innovations — from custom curtain wall design to performance analysis, schematic design, fabrication, and installation oversight.
As the team expands, Wilmers shares that the studio is currently searching for a Facade Designer/Facade Architect to join their office. Their ideal candidate should have a strong technical background and a degree in architecture or engineering. Knowledge of building envelopes, different facades, and enclosure systems is vital in addition to excellent proficiency and experience with AutoCAD, Rhino, Revit, and code requirements. "We have a far-reaching portfolio, which includes all scales of luxury residential work, high-end office developments, and celebrated cultural work," shares MW-Skins. "Our team prides itself on our design-focused approach to facades and to cultivating a collaborative studio atmosphere to produce the highest quality."
Understanding what it takes to become a facade designer includes a specific set of skills and a passion for creating solutions to complex design problems. The specialty of facade design continues to grow and evolve within the AEC industry. To learn more about opportunities in pursuing a role in facade design, click here. To read more of Archinect's editorial coverage on facades, see below.
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Great read!
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