Laval, Quebec — In competition with MAPEI subsidiaries worldwide, MAPEI Canada won a prize for Best Project in the 2024 International Reference Grand Prix. The winning entry was a masonry restoration project at the McGill University Strathcona Building, located in Montreal, Québec, Canada.

A Victoria-era building, the Strathcona had deteriorating masonry that needed structural-strengthening. MAPEI’s fiber-reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) was applied to rehabilitate the building envelope, using a total of 12 products from the Structural Strengthening and Concrete Restoration Systems product lines.

Congratulations to MAPEI coordinators Luca Albertario, Michel Lafortune, Baltazar Basabe and especially the project's main coordinator, Engineering and Architectural Sales Representative Hamza Ouziame, who submitted the winning entry.

The Strathcona’s deteriorating interior walls were composed of terracotta bricks dating from the 19th century, which served a structural purpose that was common at the time of its construction. “The engineers were looking for a fiber-reinforced polymer [FRP] solution and were happily surprised to find MAPEI now has a fiber-reinforced cementitious matrix [FRCM] option designed for masonry,” Ouziame said.

“Heritage buildings in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City and elsewhere that need structural strengthening will benefit greatly from this FRCM system solution – if we want to preserve them,” Ouziame added, saying that he was delighted to learn of the project receiving the coveted Best Project award from the parent company jury.

Two other Canadian projects received honorable mention in the International Reference Grand Prix competition: the "Triumph" Basketball Court Artistic Resurfacing (also in Montreal, submitted by Julie Paré), and the Westin Bear Mountain Resort and Spa renovation in Victoria, B.C., submitted by David E. Kelsberg.

Our neighboring subsidiary, MAPEI USA (Americas), also won an award for Best Project: The Habitat for Humanity 3D-printed Homes, in Newport News, Virginia.

The International Reference Grand Prix celebrates outstanding projects from around the globe that demonstrate the versatility and effectiveness of MAPEI's products in different construction applications.

About MAPEI
Founded in 1937 in Milan, MAPEI is now one of the world’s leading manufacturers of chemical products for the building industry and has contributed to the construction of some of the most important architectural and infrastructure works worldwide. With 102 subsidiaries operating in 57 countries and 90 manufacturing plants in 35 nations, MAPEI Group employs about 11,900 staff worldwide. The foundations for the success of the company are specialization, internationalization, research & development, and sustainability.

Headquartered in Deerfield Beach (Florida), MAPEI North America consists of the subsidiaries MAPEI Corporation (for the USA), MAPEI Inc. (for Canada) and MAPEI Caribe (for Puerto Rico and other Caribbean islands), whose 28 facilities collectively have a workforce of about 1,800 employees. MAPEI facilities have been certified to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 quality standards. An environmentally conscious manufacturer that reinvests 5% of its revenue into R&D, MAPEI offers training for architects, contractors, installers and distributors through the MAPEI Technical Institute. For more about MAPEI, visit www.mapei.com or call 1-800-42-MAPEI (1-800-426-2734).