International Masonry Institute | "JBC Masonry Innovation" | Official Rules

JBC MASONRY INNOVATION COMPETITION official rules

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR BE AWARDED A PRIZE. ALL FEDERAL, STATE, PROVINCIAL, LOCAL AND MUNCIPAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

Any questions regarding the Competition may be sent to the JBC Competition team at jbcaward@imiweb.org.

The JBC Masonry Innovation Competition (the “Competition”) is sponsored by the International Masonry Institute (“IMI”, or “Sponsor”). For purposes of the Competition and these terms and conditions (the “Official Rules”), “Sponsor” shall include Sponsor’s affiliates, related entities, and any other persons or entities directly involved with the Competition, and each of their respective officers, directors, employees, agents and other representatives.

1. Competition Overview

The Competition challenges practicing and aspiring architects and engineers to advance the future of masonry design and construction.

The complete Competition overview may be found in the Competition Brief, published at imiweb.org/jbcaward.

2. Eligibility

2.1 | Eligibility Criteria

All entrants, whether registering as an individual or as part of a team (each, an “Entrant”), must be at least eighteen (18) years of age (or whatever age is considered the age of majority in the jurisdiction of the Entrant’s residence, whichever is older) at the time of registration, and be a legal resident of the United States or Canada during the Competition Period. If requested by Sponsor, Entrants must provide Sponsor with a government-issued form of identification that confirms Entrants’ age. Residents of, and entities registered in, Quebec are not eligible to participate in this Competition. Employees, directors, officers, and trustees of Sponsor, and anyone involved in the production or administration of this competition (including members of the Jury (as defined in Section 5.1 below)), and any members of their immediate families (regardless of where they live) or households are not eligible. The Competition is open to the following: students enrolled in a design, architecture, or engineering program during the Competition Period (as defined in Section 3 below) (Entrants must provide Sponsor with proof of enrollment in a design, architecture, or engineering program; the sufficiency of such proof is determined in Sponsor’s sole discretion.); architects; engineers; and architectural and engineering firms

The additional eligibility criteria and requirements for Submissions based on completed projects are described in Section 4.3 (f).

2.2 | Categories

Entrants will choose from among the following categories at the time of registration:

(a) Students Category (Entrants must be enrolled in a valid design architecture, or engineering program during the Competition Period);

(b) Young Architects/Engineers Category (Entrants must be under forty (40) years of age at the time of registration. A firm may register as a team for this category; provided, however, that all members of the team are under forty (40) years of age at the time of registration.); and

Architecture/engineering firms, architects and engineers age 40 and over, and cross-category teams.

For each of the categories listed in (a) through (c) above, multidisciplinary teams are encouraged, and there is no limit on the number of participants per team; however, every team member must meet the eligibility criteria described in Section 2.1. Each team must designate one (1) team member who will serve as the point of contact during the Competition Period (the “Designated Representative”), and by doing so, each team member agrees and duly authorizes the Designated Representative to act on his or her behalf. Any team entries that do not comply with these Official Rules may not be eligible to participate in the Competition and/or be awarded a prize. Only 1 (one) entry is permitted per Entrant (whether an Entrant is an individual or member of a team).

3. Competition Period; Key Dates

Registration for the Competition opens at 12:00 AM ET on February 1, 2024 and concludes at 11:59 PM ET on July 31, 2024 (the “Registration Period”). After the Registration Period opens, Entrants may submit entries beginning at 12:00 AM ET on February 15, 2024 and ending at 11:59 PM EST on July 31, 2024 (the “Submission Period”) (the Registration Period and the Submission Period, collectively the “Competition Period”). Winners in each of the categories described in Section 2.2 will be selected on or before September 1, 2024 at 12:00 PM EST, and shall be notified by Sponsor thereafter.

4. How to Enter

4.1 | Step 1 – Registration

Individuals and entities meeting the eligibility criteria described in Section 2 may register for the Competition during the Registration Period by providing the information requested at jbc.awardsplatform.com. By registering for the Competition, each Entrant acknowledges that it has read and will comply with these Official Rules.

4.2 | Step – 2 Submission

(a) After registering for the Competition in accordance with Section 4.1, Entrants will be able to submit the deliverables described in Section 4.3 during the Submission Period at jbc.awardsplatform.com. Entrants can start and save their entries in-progress and return at any time using the login created during registration in Section 4.1.

(b) Entries must be submitted prior to the end of the Submission Period. No entries will be accepted after the end of the Submission Period, and no extensions will be granted. All entries must include the deliverables outlined in Section 4.3 (hereinafter, a “Submission”).

4.3 | Submission Deliverables

Each Submission must include the following deliverables. Failure to include any of the deliverables listed in this Section 4.3 may result in an Entrant’s disqualification, in Sponsor’s sole discretion:

(a) Two digital presentation boards depicting your project. Include plans, sections, details, BIM images, 3D images, and any other information needed to explain your design solution. Digital boards should be landscape-oriented at 24″(h) X 36″(w) and saved as JPEGs at 150 dpi resolution in RGB mode.

(b) A project statement (1200 words maximum) that explains how the Entrant’s design solution rethinks the innovative potential of masonry and addresses the program requirements outlined in the Competition Brief.

(c) Technology used in the Entrant’s solution, as requested on the entry form. Participants are highly encouraged to use BIM for Masonry (BIM-M) tools to develop their concepts. Entrants can find detailed information and links to BIM-M plugins and resources in the “Designing Your Solution” section of the Competition Brief.

(d) Contact information for each of the Entrants, as requested on the entry form, including name, profession, title, phone number, name of company, firm or academic institution (as applicable), address (including street address, city, state, territory or province, zip code and country) and email address.

(e) Proof of current enrollment in a design, architecture, or engineering program (for Student Category Entrants only).

(f) Completed Projects. Submissions based on completed projects must include all of the deliverables as described in Section 4.3. In addition, they must have been built or restored within five (5) years of the start of the Registration Period.

Participants are encouraged to submit all information they consider necessary to explain their solution above and beyond the required deliverables, including, but not limited to, video, images, written, or multimedia content.

By submitting an entry, each Entrant, whether registering as an individual or as part of a team, confirms that he, she, or they have read, understand and agree to comply with and be bound by these Official Rules.

4.4 | Lost or Incomplete Entries

Entrants assume all risk of lost, late, misdirected, incomplete, or illegible entries. Incomplete, corrupted, garbled, misdirected or otherwise illegible entries, or entries without contact information, or agreement to these Official Rules, are void and will not be accepted.

4.5 | Submission Content Restrictions

DO NOT SUBMIT ANY INFORMATION THAT IS CONFIDENTIAL OR PROPRIETARY OR CONTAINS A TRADE SECRET. INFORMATION SUBMITTED WILL NOT BE KEPT CONFIDENTIAL AND MAY BE USED AND DISCLOSED BY SPONSOR FOR ANY PURPOSE PERMITTED BY THESE OFFICIAL RULES AND APPLICABLE LAW;
Submissions must not include images or voices of any person other than Entrants unless Entrant has obtained written consent;
Submissions may not include or display third party trademarks, logos, or other indicia of origin;
Submissions must not contain material that violates or infringes another’s rights, including but not limited to privacy, publicity, or intellectual property rights, or that constitutes infringement, or that breaches a contract of Entrant with any third party;
Submissions and all components thereof must be entirely original work created by the Entrant;
Submissions must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene, hateful, tortuous, defamatory, slanderous, derogatory, or libelous;
Submissions must not contain material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred, or harm against any group or individual, or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age; and
Submissions must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of, or contrary to the laws or regulations in any state, province or country where the Submission is created or in the United States.
Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify, at its sole discretion, any Submission which contravenes these restrictions.

5. Selection of Winners

5.1 | Jury Panel

Each Submission will be evaluated by the panel of architects and leaders from the masonry design and construction industry identified on the Competition Website (the “Jury”). The decision of the Jury is final and binding on all Entrants. The Jury is chosen by Sponsor, and Sponsor reserves the right to remove or replace any member of the Jury in Sponsor’s sole discretion.

5.2 | Evaluation Criteria

The Jury described in Section 5.1 above will evaluate each Submission based on the following elements:

(a) Innovation (45%): The idea provides a groundbreaking proposal for positioning masonry. The idea generates added value or usefulness, improvement, or increases masonry’s relevance.

(b) Execution of idea (30%): The idea is clearly communicated and understood.

In the event of a tie, the Submission with the highest score in subsection (a) above will be the winner. In the event that two (2) or more Submissions remained tied for the highest score after this tiebreak, the prize for the relevant category will be awarded in equal parts between all Entrants (and their school or program, if applicable) associated with the Submissions tied for the highest score.

5.3 | Notification of Winners

Each Winner (as defined below) will be notified by Sponsor via the e-mail address and/or telephone number provided by the Winner at time of entry. All Winners must reply to such notification within seven (7) days from the date of notification, or the applicable prize may be forfeited, and an alternate Winner may be selected.

6. Prize Information

The Jury shall select one (1) winner in each of the three (3) categories described in Section 2.2 (each, a “Winner”); however, Sponsor reserves the right not to award a prize in any of the categories in the event the Submission(s) received do/does not, at minimum, score at least 75% percent in the evaluation criteria set forth in Section 5.2. Sponsor may also, at its sole discretion, choose to award non-monetary honorable mentions in each of the three (3) categories. Prizes for each of the categories are as follows:

6.1 | Prizes

(a) Student Category – The Winner of this category shall receive $5,000.00, and the school or program in which the Winner is enrolled during the Competition Period also shall receive $5,000.00. In the event the Winner of this category is a team comprised of multiple members, the $5,000.00 prize shall be split in equal shares among the team members; and the $5,000.00 prize for the school or program shall be split in equal shares among the schools or programs represented by each team member.

(b) Young Architects/Engineers – The Winner of this category shall receive $10,000.00. In the event the Winner of this category is a team comprised of multiple members, the $10,000.00 prize shall be split in equal shares among the team members.

(c) A/E Firms, Individual Architects/Engineers – The Winner of this category shall receive $10,000.00. In the event the Winner of this category is a team comprised of multiple members, the $10,000.00 prize shall be split in equal shares among the team members.

6.2 | Travel and Accommodations

The Winners shall be honored at an awards ceremony to be held in October 2024. Where a Winner resides more than two hundred and fifty (250) miles from the location of the awards ceremony, Sponsor shall provide and arrange, for up to two (2) team members from each winning category: (a) round-trip economy-coach class commercial air transportation from a major U.S. or Canadian gateway airport nearest to the Winner’s residence to Miami, Florida; (b) two (2) nights’ standard accommodations at a minimum three (3) star hotel located in or near the city in which the awards ceremony takes place (two (2) rooms, single occupancy); and (c) ground transportation between the airport and the hotel described in subsection (b) above.

6.3 | No Substitution; Other Prize Information

There is no substitution for the prizes described in this Section 6, except that Sponsor reserves the right to substitute a prize or portion of prize of comparable value. Prizes are not transferrable, and all prize details are at Sponsor’s sole discretion.

7. Publicity; Personal Information

7.1 | Publicity

Unless prohibited by law, entry into this Competition constitutes permission for Sponsor to use each Entrant’s (including all team members’) name, address (city and state or province), and or/likeness for advertising and trade purposes without further compensation or right of review or approval, worldwide, in perpetuity, in all forms of media now known and hereinafter devised, including, without limitation, the internet. Entrants’ names, likenesses and photos and videos from the Submission may be posted online at Sponsor’s website, on Sponsor’s social media channels, and other locations, as well as used at events Sponsor may host or attend. Each Entrant hereby expressly consents to such uses.

7.2 | Personal Information

Entrants acknowledge and agree that Sponsor and its authorized agents may collect, process, store, use and disclose Entrants’ personal information (including, name, email address, phone number and physical address, and in the case of Winners, social security numbers and other financial information) for the purposes and within the context of this Competition. In addition, winners will be disclosed on Sponsor’s website and each Winner consents to the disclosure of his or her name to persons who request such information in accordance with Section 14 below. By entering this Competition, Entrants consent to such collection, process, storage, use, and disclosure of Entrant’s personal information, which may be used by Sponsor in order to contact the Winners, check an Entrant’s identity and contact information, or to otherwise verify an Entrant’s eligibility to participate in the Competition or to receive any prize, and as required or permitted by applicable law. The personal information that Sponsor collects is stored and processed on servers in the United States. By participating in the Competition, Entrants acknowledge their personal information will be transferred to the United States and that applicable United States laws might permit United States governments, courts, law enforcement or regulatory agencies to access such information. Additional information about how Sponsor will collect and use Entrants’ personal information can be found at https://www.imiweb.org/imi-privacy-policy.

8. Waiver Of Claim; Entrants’ Representations and Warranties; Rights in Submission

8.1 | Waiver of Legal Claims

By participating in this Competition, each Entrant (including all team members) agrees to be bound by the decisions of Sponsor and waives any and all legal claims against Sponsor and agrees not to bring any such claims against Sponsor at any time in the future. This includes, but is not limited to, claims for violation of publicity rights, claims based on moral rights, claims for intrusion, claims for defamation, claims for fraud, claims for infliction of emotional distress, and claims for copyright or other intellectual property infringement, whether those claims may be based on statutory or common law.

8.2 | Ownership of Submission; Grant of Rights

Each Entrant represents and warrants that: (i) it is the author and owner of the Submission and has all rights in the Submission, and (ii) that all Submissions are original to the Entrant and are not subject to any third party’s intellectual property rights. Entrant shall indemnify Sponsor for any liability or costs incurred by a breach of this subsection.

8.3 | Grant of License

By submitting a Submission, each Entrant (including all team members) hereby grants Sponsor and the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (“BAC”) a royalty-free, irrevocable, perpetual, nonexclusive, transferable license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display the Submission in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, and to incorporate it into other works, in any and all media form of communication, including written, audio, video, photographic and other electronic media, whether now existing or hereafter developed, for purposes of evaluation, promotion, marketing and other related purposes of the Competition, as deemed appropriate by Sponsor or BAC (for example, Sponsor may elect to build a model or produce a sample of a Submission for purposes of evaluation and demonstration). For avoidance of doubt, the license in this section applies to all materials included in the Submission, but does not grant Sponsor or BAC the right to develop and/or commercialize the contents of the Submission. If requested, Entrant will sign any documentation that may be required for Sponsor or its designees to make use of the non-exclusive rights Entrant is granting to use the Submission. Each Entrant further agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Sponsor from and against any claims, lawsuits, liabilities or expenses (including attorney’s fees) arising out or related to Entrant’s Submission or violation by Entrant of these Official Rules. Except where prohibited or restricted by law, each Entrant hereby irrevocably waives in favor of Sponsor, BAC and their respective successors, assigns and licensees any moral rights each Entrant may have in or to such Entrant’s Submission with respect to Sponsor’s or BAC’s exercise of its rights under the license granted above.

8.4 | No Royalties or Payments

Except where prohibited or restricted by law, Entrants waive any right to royalties or other payment for Sponsor’s or BAC’s use of the Submission as set forth herein, and also waive all rights to inspect or approve Sponsor’s or BAC’s use of the Submission in accordance with these Official Rules.

8.5 | No Obligation to Publish

Entry into this Competition and agreement to these terms does not obligate Sponsor or BAC to publish any Submissions.

10. Right To Void / Terminate / Suspend / Modify

Sponsor reserves the right to suspend or modify this Competition, or these Official Rules, in whole or in part, at any time and without notice or obligation, at Sponsor’s sole and absolute discretion. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, if the Competition, or any part thereof, is not capable of running as planned for any reason, including but not limited to infection by computer virus, bugs, tampering, unauthorized intervention, fraud, programming errors, or technical failures, which, in the sole opinion of Sponsor, corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity or proper conduct of this Competition, Sponsor may, in its sole discretion, void any suspect entries and: (a) terminate the Competition, or any portion thereof; (b) modify or suspend the Competition, or any portion thereof, to address the impairment and then resume the Competition, or relevant portion, in a manner that best conforms to the spirit of these Official Rules; and/or (c) award any prize from among the eligible, non-suspect entries received up to the time of the impairment in accordance with the selection criteria discussed above.

11. Waivers And Releases; Limitation Of Liability

11.1 | WAIVERS AND RELEASES

BY ENTERING THE COMPETITION, ENTRANTS (INCLUDING ALL TEAM MEMBERS) AGREE: (A) TO BE BOUND BY THESE OFFICIAL RULES AND DECISIONS OF Sponsor; (B) TO WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO CLAIM AMBIGUITY IN THE COMPETITION OR THESE OFFICIAL RULES; (C) THAT THEY MAY BE CONTACTED IN PERSON, BY PHONE OR BY EMAIL, WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPETITION; AND (D) THAT Sponsor, BAC, AND ITS AND THEIR AFFILIATES AND RELATED COMPANIES, SUBSIDIARIES, DIVISIONS, AND ITS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, SHAREHOLDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, REPRESENTATIVES AND ALL OTHERS ASSOCIATED WITH THE DEVELOPMENT AND EXECUTION OF THIS COMPETITION (including the JURY) (THE “RELEASED PARTIES”), HAVE NO LIABILITY WHATSOEVER FOR, AND ENTRANTS SHALL HOLD HARMLESS AND RELEASE THE RELEASED PARTIES FROM, ANY AND ALL LIABILITY FOR ANY PRESENT OR FUTURE INJURIES, CLAIMS, LOSSES, DAMAGES, COSTS OR EXPENSES OF ANY KIND (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES) TO PERSONS OR PROPERTY ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO (X) ENTRY OR PARTICIPATION (OR INABILITY TO ENTER OR PARTICIPATE) IN THIS COMPETITION, INCLUDING ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE COMPETITON WEBSITE; (Y) ANY CLAIMS BASED ON PERSONALITY RIGHTS, DEFAMATION OR PRIZE DELIVERY; OR (Z) THE ACCEPTANCE, POSSESSION, USE, OR MISUSE OF A PRIZE (OR INABILITY TO ACCEPT, POSSESS OR USE A PRIZE), INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LIABILITY FOR PERSONAL INJURY, BODILY INJURY (INCLUDING WRONGFUL DEATH), DAMAGE TO PROPERTY, AND DAMAGE OR LOSS OF ANY OTHER KIND. Sponsor IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR PRIZE QUALITY OR UTILITY, AND MAKES NO WARRANTIES, DIRECT OR IMPLIED, RELATING TO ANY PRIZE AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABLITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR USE.

11.2 | LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

Sponsor IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR (A) FAILURE OF ANY E-MAIL TO BE RECEIVED BY OR FROM SPONSOR FOR ANY REASON, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO: TRAFFIC CONGESTION ON THE INTERNET OR ON ANY WEBSITE OR COMBINATION THEREOF, TECHNICAL INCOMPATIBILITY, OR BECAUSE OF A WINNER’S PRIVACY OR SPAM FILTER SETTINGS WHICH MAY DIVERT ANY NOTIFICATION OR OTHER E-MAIL, INCLUDING ANY WINNER NOTIFICATION E-MAIL, TO A SPAM OR JUNK FOLDER; (B) ANY TECHNICAL OR HUMAN ERROR WHICH MAY OCCUR IN THE PROCESSING OF SUBMISSIONS IN, OR FULFILLMENT OF, THE COMPETITION; (C) THEFT, DESTRUCTION, LOSS OR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, OR ALTERATION OF, ENTRIES; (D) ANY PROBLEMS WITH, OR MALFUNCTIONS OR FAILURES OF, TELEPHONE NETWORKS OR LINES, COMPUTERS OR COMPUTER ON-LINE SYSTEMS, SERVERS OR PROVIDERS, COMPUTER EQUIPMENT, SOFTWARE, VIRUSES OR BUGS; (E) GARBLED TRANSMISSIONS OR MISCOMMUNICATIONS; (F); DAMAGE TO A USER’S COMPUTER EQUIPMENT (SOFTWARE OR HARDWARE) OCCASIONED BY PARTICIPATION OR DOWNLOADING OF MATERIALS RELATED TO THIS SWEEPSTAKES; (G) PRINTING, DISTRIBUTION, PROGRAMMING OR PRODUCTION ERRORS, AND ANY OTHER ERRORS OR MALFUNCTIONS OF ANY KIND, WHETHER HUMAN, MECHANICAL, ELECTRONIC OR OTHERWISE; OR (H) TECHNICAL, PICTORIAL, TYPOGRAPHICAL OR EDITORIAL ERRORS OR OMISSIONS CONTAINED HEREIN.

12. Applicable Law, Jurisdiction, Binding Arbitration

This contest is void where prohibited. Except where prohibited or restricted by law, as a condition of participating in this Competition, Entrants expressly consent and agree that any and all disputes, claims, and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Competition, or any other event whatsoever respective to the relationship between Sponsor and Entrant (each, a “Claim”), are to be settled by final and binding arbitration in accordance with the rules of the American Arbitration Association (“AAA”) before a single arbitrator in the District of Columbia. Except where prohibited or restricted by law, any and all Claims shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action; the arbitrator may not consolidate or join the claims of other persons or parties who may be similarly situated. If any of this arbitration provision is deemed to be invalid, unenforceable or legal, or otherwise conflicts with the rules of AAA, then the balance of this mandatory arbitration provision shall remain in effect and shall be construed in accordance with its terms as if the invalid, unenforceable, illegal or conflicting provision were not contained herein. Any and all claims, judgments, and awards will be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs incurred, and in no event shall include attorneys’ fees. TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, EACH ENTRANT HEREBY WAIVES ALL RIGHTS TO CLAIM PUNATIVE, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.

All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of Entrants and Sponsor in connection with the Competition, will be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the District of Columbia without giving effect to any choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the District of Columbia or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the District of Columbia.

13. Severability

If any provision(s) of these Official Rules are held to be invalid or unenforceable, all remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

14. Winner Information

The names of the Winners may be obtained by sending an email to jbcaward@imiweb.org.

15. Language

These Official Rules are written in the English language, but Sponsor may, at its sole and absolute discretion, provide versions in one or more other languages. Entrant agrees that the English language version of these Official Rules shall control and prevail over all other language versions (if any).

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