AERMQ’s 30th annual congress will stand as a major moment for Cyrell AMP. Four Distinction Awards, four projects, four very different architectural signatures. Behind the trophies, there is something bigger at play: a Quebec architectural aluminum industry that can meet the most demanding briefs from architects and project owners across North America.
This article walks through the four award-winning projects, the technical challenges they raised, and what they reveal about where metal cladding is heading in Quebec.
AERMQ and the Distinction Awards: a benchmark for the industry
The Association des entrepreneurs en revêtement métallique du Québec (AERMQ) brings together the companies that fabricate and install metal cladding across the province. Its Distinction Awards, handed out at the annual congress, recognize work that stands out for execution quality, technical mastery and architectural value delivered to the project.
To mark its 30th anniversary, the association raised the bar even higher. Winning four awards in a single edition is not coincidence; it signals that a manufacturer has delivered consistent quality across projects with very different constraints. That is exactly what Cyrell AMP achieved this year, working hand in hand with four installation partners.
Project 1: Ozias-Leduc Secondary School, Music Pavilion
Designed by Héloïse Thibodeau Architecte and built with RMGL as installer, the Music Pavilion at Ozias-Leduc Secondary School embodies a strong trend in Quebec’s school buildings: educational architecture treated as architecture in its own right, not as a utility box. Music deserves a setting, and the building envelope becomes that setting.
The project stands out for its curved geometry, a serious technical challenge for aluminum component fabrication. Every piece had to be engineered to follow the curve without betraying the architect’s intent, which was to echo the heritage spirit of the place in a contemporary language.
Architectural aluminum was chosen here for its ability to deliver clean surfaces, sharp edges and long-term dimensional stability. Temperature swings between Quebec summers and winters are brutal on cladding systems. Aluminum holds the line without visible deformation, without corrosion, and without heavy maintenance for the school board.
The shop-to-site coordination between Cyrell AMP and RMGL produced precise alignments on long facades, where the smallest deviation reads from ten metres just as clearly as from a hundred.
Project 2: Rabeau School
Designed by Ruccolo + Faubert architectes and Coex, and delivered with Groupe BR on installation, the Rabeau School project posed a classic but demanding challenge: reconciling a public budget with elevated architectural expectations, on an institutional building meant to serve for decades.
The answer came through detailed design work on the aluminum components: panels, junctions, returns, accessories. When every piece is thought through up front, installation gets faster and cleaner, and the finished look keeps its aesthetic promises. This is exactly the industrialized custom-work approach Cyrell AMP has defended from day one: the precision of a craftsman, the discipline of a factory.
The bold yellow chosen for the envelope turns the building into a truly motivating learning environment for children. A confident colour, fully owned, proving that a public budget does not have to mean giving up on architecture that speaks to its users.
Project 3: NEGCS
Designed by Coarchitecture and GLCRM, and completed with Vulcain on installation, the NEGCS project shows Cyrell AMP’s ability to deliver on buildings where performance comes first, without giving up on visual quality.
The project stands out for a bold dialogue between materials: brushed stainless steel, mirror-polished stainless steel, strong volumetric play. The fully perforated bike shelters evoke a wave-like motion and give the site an immediately recognizable visual signature. Making these finishes coexist smoothly demands tight coordination across all trades.
On this kind of project, architectural aluminum plays several roles at once: weather protection, contribution to energy performance, visual identity of the site. The coordination between engineering, fabricator and installer is what separates cladding that lasts thirty years from cladding that needs rework in ten.
Project 4: Hydro-Québec
Working on a Hydro-Québec building, with MGS Métal on installation, means accepting a specification that leaves no room for approximation. Standards are strict, schedules are tight, durability expectations are very high.
The Distinction Award received for this project rewards a flawless execution, from technical drawings to final installation. It also sends a strong signal to the market: major public clients can rely on the Quebec architectural aluminum industry for their most sensitive buildings.
What these four awards reveal about architectural aluminum in 2026
Four projects, four contexts, one material. Architectural aluminum stands out for four main reasons:
- Durability: a well-designed cladding system easily exceeds thirty years of service in the Quebec climate.
- Precision: shop fabrication enables tolerances that are impossible to match with other materials at the same scale.
- Aesthetic flexibility: finishes, colours, textures and formats open a very wide field for architects.
- Alignment with sustainable building goals: recyclability, longevity, low maintenance.
These four Distinction Awards also confirm something simple: the final quality of an aluminum envelope depends as much on the fabricator as on the installer. This is why Cyrell AMP works closely with installation partners upstream, at the design stage whenever possible.
Recognition for a whole team
These four Distinction Awards belong as much to the Cyrell AMP teams as to our installation partners: RMGL, Groupe BR, Vulcain and MGS Métal. They also belong to the architects who placed their trust in us: Héloïse Thibodeau Architecte, Ruccolo + Faubert architectes, Coex, Coarchitecture and GLCRM.
A special thanks to our employees, whose daily shop work makes this level of quality possible, and to our loyal painting partners Anacolor, DJ Peinture Industrielle and Alumico. Finish is the first thing the eye reads on a building, and their expertise is what separates a correct cladding from an award-winning one.
For architects and building professionals considering custom aluminum cladding for upcoming projects: the most reliable way to judge a fabricator is to look at delivered work. These four projects are a good place to start.
Let's talk about your next project
Cyrell AMP fabricates custom architectural aluminum panels and components for architects and project owners across North America. Whether it’s a technical question, a project in design phase or an RFP in preparation, our team is reachable through cyrell.qc.ca.