
[EN] Five international companies will present project proposals for the landmark Muscat Municipality Design Competition, launched to set new benchmarks in urban development and enhance Muscat’s cityscape while preserving its rich cultural heritage.
[AR] ستستعرض خمس شركات دولية مشاريعها المقترحة في مسابقة بلدية مسقط للتصميم، التي أطلقتها البلدية لإرساء معايير جديدة يُحتذى بها في مجال التطوير العمراني، بما يُسهم في إثراء المشهد الحضري، والمحافظة على الموروث الثقافي، وتعزيز مكانة محافظة مسقط كوجهة عالمية رائدة.
Country: Belgium / France
Representative: Xaveer De Geyter, Founder & Principal Architect
Established: 1988
Notable Projects:
-Melopee School, Ghent – A stacked, multifunctional school merging education, play, and community in a compact port site
-Antwerp Province Headquarters – A twisting civic building with sustainable façade strategies and an elevated public base
Studio Focus:
Founded after a decade at OMA, XDGA is an internationally recognized firm based in Brussels and Paris. The practice works across architecture and urbanism, with a strong emphasis on structural clarity, spatial experimentation, and social complexity. Known for bold yet pragmatic designs, XDGA has built a reputation for rethinking typologies in dense and evolving contexts.
Contact:
Square Sainctelette 12, Brussels, Belgium • [email protected] www.xdga.be
Country: United Kingdom / Italy
Representative: Paolo Vimercati, Director
Founded: 2020 (after 16 years at Grimshaw Architects)
Notable Experience:
– Led major international infrastructure and urban-design projects across UK, France, Italy, Albania, China, Middle East povdesign.co
Studio Focus:
POV — also known as 24PV — specializes in urban, architectural, and landscape strategies that prioritize environmental and human balance. They are engaged in placemaking, regeneration, and sustainable urban transformation.
Other Roles:
Paolo lectures internationally (London, Paris, Milan, Tirana) and serves as Director of Regeneration & Placemaking at Lombardini22
Country: Germany
Representative: Thomas Busse, Dipl.-Ing. Architect, Managing Director – International & Frankfurt Office
Established: roots from 1935; KSP Engel formalized later
Major Projects:
Role & Focus:
Since 2017, Busse leads international business, guiding KSP’s global expansion, including office openings in China and Europe. He balances design leadership, competition strategy (2014-17), and sustainability-based urban development.
Country: Belgium
Representative: Sir Dr. Ir. Philippe Samyn, Founding Partner
Established: 1980
Signature Projects:
Practice Profile:
An integrated architecture-engineering practice of ~50 staff, co-founded with affiliated structural firms (FTI, DAE, AirSR). Samyn’s holistic, efficiency-driven ethos—melding geometry, structure, materials, and energy—defines his work.
Background & Recognition:
Civil engineer (MIT ’73); PhD (Liège ’99); design partner since early 1980s. Decorated as Commander of the Order of Leopold (2007), Belgian Knight (2012), and Mies van der Rohe nominee.
Country: North Macedonia
Representative: Besian Mehmeti, Founder & Principal Architect
Established: 2012
Notable Projects:
Studio Focus:
Based in Skopje and active across the Western Balkans, BMA is a multi-disciplinary creative hub specializing in residential, educational, and public architecture. They emphasize contextual sensitivity, collaborative design, and innovative material use.
Contact:
Lazar Trpovski 67A, Skopje, North Macedonia • [email protected] bma.mk





