U.S. Embassy and Consulate Projects

Multiple Locations Worldwide

Project Description

In 2001, Page began to pursue a new generation of design-build embassy projects offered by the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Overseas Building Operations (OBO). Since its first commission as the design partner for H.B. Zachary Co. on the New Embassy Compound (NEC) at Phnom Penh, Cambodia in 2002, Page has been a design partner on more than two dozen U.S. embassy and consular projects around the world.

Although the size, complexity and contract values vary greatly, all of these projects share certain characteristics. All are active U.S. diplomacy and consular affairs facilities, so setting the appropriate image and integrating local cultural references into the design are crucial considerations. Each compound contains a number of facility types ranging from the dignity of a chancery office building to more utilitarian parking, maintenance, storage and building services facilities; some aspects of modern embassy design involve sophisticated building technologies and intricate functional relationships. In addition to being designed according to extensive physical and technical security standards, each new State Department project is now designed according to LEED certification criteria.

Despite the inherent complexity of these projects, each is tied to a fixed cost and delivery schedule with multiple construction document packages being issued for government approval in order to mobilize the design-builder as quickly as possible. This calls for a very high level of project management discipline by the design team reinforced by a strong sense of personal dedication by each design team member. Page is fully committed to OBO’s Design Excellence program, integrating our unparalleled understanding of the myriad functional, technological, performance and security demands required of modern American overseas diplomatic facilities and grounds with the State Department’s well -articulated Guiding Principles of Design Excellence.

In 2005, B.L. Harbert International invited Page to become its embassy design partner, with an initial focus on African continent projects. To date this relationship has resulted in 13 OBO awards in African countries spanning the continent from the Kingdom of Morocco to the Republic of South Africa. The U.S. Embassy Compound in Brazzaville, Congo, was the world’s first LEED Gold certified diplomatic facility, and the U.S. Embassy Compound in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso was the first LEED certified building in West Africa—just two of the six LEED certified embassy compounds in Africa designed by Page.

The Page/Harbert team has delivered other major U.S. Embassy/Consulate projects elsewhere in the world such as Dubai, Helsinki, Islamabad, Jakarta, Karachi, Kyiv, Matamoros, Rabat, Vientiane and more. Page also served as designer for design-builder CCE, Inc., on OBO consular projects at Guayaquil, Ecuador and Canberra, Australia.

Media

“America’s Embassy Building Boom Fortifies Diplomacy, Security Abroad.” The Washington Diplomat, April 2012. Interview with Thomas McCarthy.

“US builds LEED embassy in Addis Ababa.” U.S. Green Building Council, Central California, February 2011.

"Bringing Security Design Home," Commercial Property Executive, 6 February 2012 [First of a series of guest columns by Principals James M. Wright and Thomas McCarthy]

"US Embassy, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso," Construction Review Online, December 2011 - January 2012, p. 13

More/

Awards

U.S. Embassy Compound / Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) Project Achievement Award

U.S. Embassy Compound / Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo
Associated Builders and Contractors Excellence in Design-Build Award
Associated Builders and Contractors Excellence in Sustainable Design Award

U.S. Consulate Compound / Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Alabama Chapter, Associated Builders and Contractors Excellence in Construction. Green Merit Award
Alabama Chapter, Associated Builders and Contractors Excellence in Construction. Mega $100 – 200 Million – OBELISK.

U.S. Embassy Compound / Islamabad, Pakistan
American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) Engineering Excellence Awards, National Recognition Award

U.S. Consulate Compound / Karachi, Pakistan
Associated Builders and Contractors National Excellence in Construction Awards - DBIA Special Award.
Associated Builders and Contractors National Excellence in Construction Awards Greener Tomorrow Award.

U.S. Embassy Compound / Khartoum, Republic of Sudan
Design-Build Institute of America, Best Overall Project.
Design-Build Institute of America, Public Sector Over $50 Million.

U.S. Embassy Compound / Monrovia, Liberia
ENR Global Merit Award, Government Building

U.S. Embassy Compound / Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Associated Builders and Contractors Award of Excellence – Institutional

U.S. Embassy and Consulate Projects

U.S. Embassy and Consulate Projects

U.S. Embassy and Consulate Projects

Multiple Locations Worldwide

Project Description

Awards

Publications + News

Related Services

People