Women in the Allied Professions Panel | NYU 181 Mercer: Facade Design Technology

How does an innovative, state-of-the-art university complex get executed? Join the AIANY Women in Architecture Committee for an engaging panel discussion on NYU’s 181 Mercer Street. Learn from the women-led design and construction team about how high-performance façade systems were developed, documented, and delivered. Speakers will share photos and stories tracing the process from concept to mockups to fabrication to site installation.

Speakers:
Marielys De Leon-Minaya, Project Manager, Turner Construction Company
Samantha Leung, AIA, Associate, Heintges
Mayine Yu, AIA, Associate Partner, Davis Brody Bond
Zinat Yusufzai, AIA, Principal, Kieran Timberlake

Moderator:
Jessica Young, RA, Principal, Heintges

About the Speakers:
Marielys De León-Minaya is a Project Manager at NYU 181 Mercer for Turner Construction’s New York Office. De León-Minaya is responsible for the day-to-day performance of the project, including managing the project team and project budget.

Samantha Leung is an Associate at Heintges. Since joining the firm in 2019, she has been involved with the technical development and construction of innovative enclosure systems in the US. Throughout her time with the firm, Leung has gained extensive exposure with various facade types, including unitized curtain wall, stone and metal panel rainscreens, precast systems, and storefronts for a variety of program types including healthcare, private residences, and commercial skyscrapers. She is a licensed architect in the State of New York and holds a Master’s degree in Architecture from Columbia University.

Mayine Yu has been with Davis Brody Bond since 1999. Her primary focus on each project is the design, detailing, and construction of exterior systems and the integration of this technical knowledge into the requirements of interior building systems in laboratory, healthcare, and academic institutional projects. Yu has also been involved the firm’s work for the US Department of State on the renovation and upgrade of embassies worldwide. She is the author of Skins, Envelopes, and Enclosures: Concepts for Designing Building Exteriors, Routledge, 2014.

Zinat Yusufzai is a Principal at KieranTimberlake with over 20 years of experience. She has worked on many of the firm’s award-winning projects, and enjoys synthesizing complex environmental, technical, and aesthetic goals into cohesive and elegant spaces. Outside of project work, Yusufzai is a dedicated mentor within the firm, sharing her knowledge and experience widely. Yusufzai received a Bachelor of Arts in Religion at Oberlin College and a Master of Architecture from Virginia Tech.

Jessica Young has collaborated on complex, high-profile facades across the US since joining Heintges in 2005. Young has extensive experience managing academic and cultural projects with a focus on marrying building envelope performance with the architect’s aesthetic vision. She is excited about opportunities to integrate opaque materials into facade design to meet the challenges of increasingly stringent energy codes, sustainability initiatives, and occupant comfort. Young holds a Master’s degree in Architecture from Columbia University GSAPP.

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