Shaw Contract Group Australia announced the winners of its Design Is... Market Award program.

The five winning Australian design firms are Jackson Clements Burrows, Gilmore Interior Design, Curtis + Whitfeld, Graphite Architects and Roxby Architects. 

Now in its tenth year, Shaw Contract Group’s Design Is… Award program honours architecture and design firms that are redefining design concepts around the globe.

According to Shaw Contract Group Australia General Manager, Paul McCosker, the five winning entries represented the highest calibre of work. More than 477 entries were received from 30 countries and evaluated by a global panel of judges, who selected 48 winners including 28 Australian and New Zealand entries. Five of these entries have now advanced to the Global Award program.

Twenty distinguished members of the design community evaluated each project based on its design solutions beyond aesthetic quality. The Design Is... Market Award winners were selected for seven segments including large office, mid-size office, small office, education, healthcare, retail and hospitality, and government.

Market Award winners will be featured in Shaw Contract Group’s annual NeoCon magazine as well as on their website. The public can also vote for their favourite projects in the People’s Choice category, with voting closing Friday 10th July, 2014.

Global Award winners will be announced in September and promoted through marketing materials, media promotion and an advertisement campaign in leading architecture and design publications.

Two representatives from each winning firm will also receive a trip to NeoCon, the largest commercial interiors show in North America, taking place in Chicago in 2016. Winning firms also receive $2,000 to donate to the school or organisation of their choice.

Since 2006, Shaw Contract Group has donated over $98,000 through the Design Is… Award program to support design education and social responsibility.