U.S. Embassy Campus
Pristina, Kosovo
Mechanical, Electrical, and Site Design was provided by Mason & Hanger at the U.S. Embassy Campus in Pristina, Kosovo.
As an award-winning project with numerous sustainability features that integrate energy and water systems, the site utilizes harvested rainwater and treated effluent to serve as a heat sink for a central ground-source heat pump system. The campus is operating at nearly net zero for annual water use and is almost 40% more energy efficient than typical, code-compliant buildings. This project received LEED® Gold certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.
The U.S. Embassy campus at Pristina project presented unique challenges as well as opportunities for the engineering design team and illustrates the multiple benefits of early analysis and coordination in achieving efficient, resilient, and elegant campuses. A detailed planning study and simulations were performed prior to design in order to optimize the buildings on the site and to ensure each design strategy contributed to multiple program objectives making sure not to deplete Pristina’s limited resources or negatively impact its fragile infrastructure.
The embassy is located on a 12-acre site in central Pristina. The campus includes a seven-story chancery office building, Marine security guard residence, a support annex, utility building, and facilities for the embassy community. The campus is centered around a large water feature that serves as a collection reservoir for site stormwater as well as effluent from the site’s wastewater treatment plant. The site is nearly net zero for annual water use and almost 40% more energy efficient than typical, code-compliant buildings; all while providing a quiet, pleasing environment, a home for native plant and animal species, and reduced operating and maintenance costs.
The project won Grand Awards for engineering excellence from both ACEC USA & ACEC Virginia.
Photos courtesy of Davis Brody Bond