Austin, TX, November 19, 2025 - QCP is honored to announce that we've received a 2025 APA Award of Excellence for our contributions to the city of Sunnyvale's new Civic Center, designed by SmithGroup. The Architectural Precast Association (APA)'s annual awards program "recognizes excellence in design, manufacturing and craftsmanship of architectural precast concrete structures and individual components," according to the APA website.

An unprecedented undertaking, this project was a true standout—and one that required maintaining extremely tight tolerances and ensuring consistency and uniformity in color and finish for both glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC) and standard reinforced concrete (SRC).

"The Sunnyvale Civic Center challenged our team to push the boundaries of GFRC fabrication while maintaining the precision and visual consistency expected in public civic architecture," says Ricardo Lopez, QCP's Quality Assurance & Technical Manager. "Though understated in appearance, the project’s success depended on complex coordination, attention to detail, and multi-discipline collaboration. It stands as a testament to the value of architectural precast in enhancing community spaces with durability, beauty, and precision."

Earlier this year, we spoke with Todd Kohli, Senior Principal and Landscape Architect at SmithGroup, about this special project. To complete SmithGroup's vision, the design focused on connecting the idea of tree roots in the natural world with the concept of community roots, which resulted in precast concrete benches with intentional, sinuous curves, plus an amphitheater with an integrated lighting system.

“It’s all for gathering,” Kohli shared. “All of the open space elements will draw people together in this democratic plaza where they can gather, hold rallies and demonstrations, and celebrate the many factors that make Sunnyvale so vibrant and unique.”