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.
