The J. Lloyd Kimbrough Award, named for AISC's first President, honors engineers and architects who are universally recognized as the pre-eminent steel designers of their era. This prestigious award is presented to an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to the structural steel industry through his or her design work. Note: Prior to 1999, this award was given to individuals who had made an outstanding contribution to the structural steel fabricating industry regardless of whether they were designers; in 1999, the Kimbrough Award was designated as being for designers only and separate awards were established for academics (Geerhard Haaijer Educator Award) and those who work in the steel industry (Robert P. Stupp Award for Leadership Excellence).

AISC is soliciting nominations for its 2025 awards, including the J. Lloyd Kimbrough Award, through July 15, 2024.

Each year, AISC presents Lifetime and Special Achievement Awards to exceptional industry professionals, designers, and educators. The 2025 winners will receive special recognition before the whole industry at NASCC: The Steel Conference in Louisville, Ky., April 2-4, 2025.

Submit a nomination

Guidelines 

The selection panel will consider the individual's:

• recognition by their peers as one of the pre-eminent steel designers of their era
• portfolio of significant, notable, innovative and original projects
• contribution to the advancement of the structural steel design industry

Please note: Nominees must be living at the time they are nominated. Also, because of the prestigious nature of this award, it is expected that this award will not be presented annually; rather, it will only be awarded when the selection panel believes that an individual is clearly worthy of this honor.

How to Enter 

Submit a nomination by July 15, 2024.

Congratulations to the recipient of the 2024 Kimbrough Award: Michael A. Grubb!

AISC is proud to present the J. Lloyd Kimbrough Award--which recognizes the pre-eminent steel designers of their era--to bridge industry legend Michael A. Grubb, PE, executive director at M.A. Grubb & Assoc., LLC.

"It’s hard to overstate Mike's contribution to American infrastructure over his career," said AISC President Charles J. Carter, SE, PE, PhD. "He's been a relentless contributor, and nobody can communicate the big picture and the details behind it better. AISC is proud to recognize his accomplishments."

Grubb has authored or co-authored 40 publications covering all aspects of steel girder bridge design--research work that consultant Karl H. Frank, PE, PhD, noted would satisfy tenure requirements at most universities. "Mike's publication record is extraordinary for a nonacademic," he noted in a nomination.

Grubb is just the 13th person to receive the Kimbrough Award since 1941.

Learn more

Past Recipients 

2024
Michael A. Grubb, M.A. Grubb & Assoc., LLC, Wexford, Pa.

2022
David I. Ruby, Ruby + Associates, Bingham Farms, Mich.

2012
John Kulicki, Modjeski and Masters, Mechanicsburg, Pa.

2009
Lawrence Griffis, Walter P Moore, Houston, Texas

2006
James M. Fisher, Computerized Structural Design, Milwaukee, Wis.

2001 
Leslie E. Robertson, Leslie E. Robertson, New York

1999
William J. LeMessurier, LeMessurier Consultants, Inc., Cambridge, Mass.

1973 
Fazlur R. Khan, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Chicago

1964
Othmar A. Ammann, Port of New York Authority, New York

1961 
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago

1959 
General Leif J. Sverdrup, Sverdrup & Parcell, St. Louis

1957 
David B. Steinman, Robinson and Steinman, New York

1941 
Robert Moses, New York City Commissioner of Parks, New York