Performance-Based
Façade Design
22–24 Sept. 2027 | Venice, Italy
2027
Seminar and Workshop on
Value in Façades: More with Less
Off-site Activities & Grand Finale
22–24 Sept. 2027
Venice, Italy
Certificate of Learning
CPD
Façade Promenade
Venice Art Kilometer
May–Nov. 2027
About PBFD
Performance-Based Façade Design (PBFD) is an international platform that brings developers, architects, façade designers, manufacturers, researchers and standards experts together in Venice, to compare how façades perform and how that performance is specified, tested and delivered.
PBFD was founded and is curated by Angela Mejorin with an Advisory Group. Four editions have taken place since 2023; PBFD 2027 is the fifth and last annual edition, before PBFD becomes biennial.
An independent programme
Programme content is selected by PBFD and its Advisory Group, and publications remain with the Editorial Boards of the Springer Nature and ASTM projects. Sponsors are supported by the curator to gain visibility at the conference; they do not shape what is presented in the peer-reviewed programme. Keynote and special-guest choices are made together with the patron.
Why attend PBFD 2027?
Five editions in Venice
2023
1st edition
Keynote by Heintges. More than sixty façade experts from three continents. Seminar on hazard mitigation, sustainability and energy efficiency; workshop in partnership with ISO; off-site at Fornace Orsoni.
2024
2nd edition
Keynote by Staticus. Sold out with 100 participants. Workshops on Design Tools & AI for Façade Design and on Façades & Sustainability; off-site programme at Tomba Brion and the Blackwater Testing Lab.
2025
3rd edition
Launch of the PBFD Advisory Group, with 100 participants. Keynotes by ZHA, Koltay Façades and Werner Sobek; debates on Façades as Drivers of Sustainable Development; off-site tour at the Simeon factory and De Stefani Winery.
2026
4th edition
110 participants. Keynotes by Kengo Kuma & Associates, Populous, UNStudio, Covivio and ETH Zurich; workshop in editorial partnership with ASTM International.
2027
5th edition
22–24 September 2027, Venice. The fifth edition, with 150 participants expected.
PBFD 2026 in review
110
participants
6
keynotes
25
speakers
18
countries
4
continents
75
organisations
3
off-site technical visits
Keynotes. Silvia Prandelli (Populous), Balázs Bognár (Kengo Kuma & Associates), Astrid Piber (UNStudio), Francesca Vagliani (Covivio), Andrei Koshelev (ETH Zurich) and Massimo Colomban (Permasteelisa).
Participants by country. Italy 26%, United States 16%, United Kingdom 12%, Canada 8%, Switzerland 7%, Germany 6% and other countries 25%: Belgium, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Denmark, Romania, the United Arab Emirates, Lithuania, Belarus, the Netherlands and Spain.
By professional category. Consultants 37%, suppliers 22%, manufacturers 14%, architects 11%, academics 10%, standardisation 4% and developers 2%. Owners and developers are the audience PBFD 2027 wants to grow.
See PBFD 2026 in review | Organisations in the room, 2023–2026
Immerse yourself in the cutting-edge world of façade technology at this exclusive initiative.
This is not just an event; it's a catalyst for the transformation of the industry.
Be part of this experience that redefines the landscape of façade design.