Last Updated 5/9/2012
MESSAGE FROM OBO DIRECTOR LYDIA MUNIZ
We fly the flag at over 270 diplomatic missions, primarily embassies and consulates. Diplomatic facilities are platforms from which the United States generates influence throughout the world, but they also embody the physical presence of the United States beyond our borders and are iconic symbols of the values and aspirations of the American people. The vast majority of people in the world will never have the privilege of visiting our country. For many millions of people, our embassies and consulates are as close as they will ever come to the United States. Our buildings should represent American ideals–from dignity and stability to openness and innovation.
The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO) has much to be proud of as we look back on past accomplishments. We have come a long way since the August 1998 bombings of the United States embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. Since 1999, as part of the Department’s Capital Security Construction Program, OBO has completed 89 new diplomatic facilities and has an additional 43 projects in design and construction. The program has successfully moved more than 27,000 people into new diplomatic facilities, furthering OBO’s mission to provide safe, secure and functional facilities that represent the U.S. government to the host nation and support our staff in achieving U.S. foreign policy objectives.
As Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton said in her welcoming remarks to State Department employees in 2009, “This is going to be a challenging time and it will require 21st century tools and solutions to meet our problems and seize our opportunities.” At OBO, it is our strong belief that Design Excellence is both a tool and a solution to advance a new generation of secure, high-performance, sustainable diplomatic and consular facilities that support the conduct of American diplomacy.
Design Excellence is a holistic approach to OBO’s work, drawing upon expertise in many areas–project management, architecture, engineering, construction, security, urban design, landscape architecture, interior design, art, sustainability, maintenance, and operations. Implementation of Design Excellence enhances our ability to provide outstanding facilities representing American values and the best of American talent, innovation, and technology. In achieving this goal, we will provide the best value for the American taxpayer and the U.S. government tenants of our diplomatic facilities.
This initiative will lead to a coordinated set of processes that allow OBO to achieve ever-higher degrees of excellence. As our implementation progresses, OBO will update this website with new programs and procedures.
I am proud that we have made Design Excellence the way forward for OBO.
NEW AND UPDATED PAGES
Design Excellence - Updated 3/23/2012
Planning - Updated 3/23/2012
Operations & Maintenance - Updated 3/23/2012
Design - Updated 3/23/2012
Construction - Updated 3/23/2012