What Bermello Ajamil & Partners does

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) is a full-service architecture, engineering, planning, and landscape architecture firm founded in 1993 through the partnership of Willy A. Bermello and Luis Ajamil. Headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida, the firm operates seven offices across Florida, New York, California, and Copenhagen, with more than 160 staff and a project portfolio spanning six continents. BA is the largest Hispanic-owned A/E firm in Florida and has been ranked the #4 Top Architecture Firm in South Florida by the South Florida Business Journal for 13 consecutive years, accumulating more than 200 design awards over its 30-year history.

The firm's core capabilities span maritime/cruise infrastructure, aviation, healthcare, residential, commercial, municipal, transportation, and education sectors. Its maritime practice is the principal differentiator: BA has delivered 125+ maritime planning and engineering projects globally, including the world's first LEED Zero Energy cruise terminal (Galveston Terminal 10 for Royal Caribbean), the first LEED Gold v4 cruise terminal (NCL Terminal B at PortMiami), the PortMiami Terminal V Bulkhead, Nassau Cruise Port Global, Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, Celebration Key, and the inaugural purpose-built cruise terminal at Haifa Port, Israel. BA also operates one of the most robust cruise-port financial modeling practices in the world, with a proprietary library of cruise port usage agreements, MOUs, and concession structures used to support negotiations between cruise lines and port authorities.

BA generates revenue through project-based professional services fees across architecture, engineering, planning, landscape architecture, and construction administration. Pricing is negotiated per engagement based on scope, complexity, and client type (government, private, institutional), and revenue is non-recurring on individual projects but supported by long-term relationships with port authorities, cruise lines, healthcare systems, and real estate developers that produce repeat commissions and master-planning engagements. Projects range from small municipal commissions to large-scale cruise terminal and airport programs (e.g., FLL Terminal 5 with Gensler and HDR), with marquee engagements valued at $125M-$308M in construction value. In January 2024, BA was acquired by Woolpert and continues to operate under its existing brand.

Name

Bermello Ajamil & Partners

Legal name

Bermello Ajamil & Partners, Inc.

Website

https://bermelloajamil.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Bermello Ajamil & Partners is a Coral Gables-based, full-service architecture and engineering firm with 160+ staff across Florida, New York, California, and Copenhagen, specializing in cruise terminals, maritime infrastructure, aviation, healthcare, and mixed-use development for cruise lines, port authorities, and government clients worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architecture and Engineering Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Engineering Services (541330)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Project Management & Owner’s Engineering / Technical Consultancy (Spec Writing, Bid Support, Site Support) (IMAJAGAO)

Keywords

• Architecture engineering services
• Cruise terminal design
• Port master planning
• Marine engineering services
• Maritime infrastructure design

Headquarters

HQ city

Miami

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional Services Fees: BA generates revenue through fees for architecture, engineering, planning, landscape architecture, and construction administration services on a project-by-project basis. Projects range from small-scale municipal engagements to large-scale cruise terminal developments valued at hundreds of millions of dollars. Revenue is project-based and non-recurring, though the firm maintains long-term client relationships with port authorities and cruise lines that generate repeat engagements.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Bermello Ajamil & Partners is a full-service architecture, engineering, planning, and landscape architecture firm that delivers integrated design and consulting services across eight verticals: Maritime (cruise terminals, ports, marine engineering, marinas, waterfronts), Healthcare, Aviation, Residential, Commercial, Municipal, Transportation, and Education. The firm earns revenue through project-based professional service fees for design, master planning, feasibility and financial modeling, and construction administration, with marquee capabilities in cruise terminal design, port master planning, sustainable LEED-certified design, and cruise port concession negotiations.

Product overview

Bermello Ajamil & Partners (BA) is a full-service architecture, engineering, planning, and landscape architecture firm that operates as a platform of integrated service offerings rather than a single product. The firm provides specialized expertise across multiple verticals including Maritime (cruise facilities, marine engineering, marinas), Healthcare, Aviation, Residential (multi-family and student housing), Commercial, Municipal, Transportation, and Education sectors. Key product categories include Cruise Facilities Design (with flagship projects like Galveston Terminal 10, the world's first LEED Zero Energy cruise facility), Destination Development (private cruise islands), Strategic Master Planning, Market & Feasibility Studies, and Interior Design services. The firm is organized around core service offerings that clients engage for project design and development, with recent notable projects including Nassau Cruise Port Global, Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, and Celebration Key. BA was acquired by Woolpert in January 2024 and maintains offices in Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, New York, California, and Copenhagen.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cruise Facilities Design

Quantifiable outcome

• World's first LEED Zero Energy / net-zero energy cruise terminal at Galveston Wharves (Royal Caribbean)
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers21 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• WoolpertflagshipOthers · 25 January 2024Woolpert, a national architecture, engineering, and geospatial firm, acquired Bermello Ajamil & Partners in January 2024. BA continues to operate under the Bermello Ajamil brand while gaining access to Woolpert's broader professional services platform and resources.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Moffatt & Nichol: Long-standing maritime and waterfront engineering consultancy specializing in port, terminal, and coastal infrastructure. Highly comparable to BA's cruise/maritime practice, with similar project types (cruise terminals, berths, marinas, master plans) and a comparable scale of specialty A/E work for port authorities and cruise operators.
• Royal HaskoningDHV: Dutch-headquartered engineering consultancy with a strong maritime and port practice (船舶, ports, coastal engineering). Comparable to BA in cruise/port master planning and marine engineering, particularly relevant given BA's European office and cross-border cruise infrastructure engagements.
• COWI: Danish-headquartered engineering consultancy with a leading international maritime, port, and coastal engineering practice. Comparable to BA in cruise and port infrastructure design; particularly relevant overlap given BA's Copenhagen office and BA's engagements across Northern Europe.

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: Global multi-disciplinary A/E firm with a substantial maritime and waterfront practice competing for the same port authority and cruise terminal RFPs as BA. Broader scale and multi-disciplinary bundling make AECOM a frequent incumbent competitor on larger port programs.
• WSP: Global professional services firm with maritime, port, and waterfront engineering capabilities. Comparable to BA in maritime infrastructure design, but at materially larger scale and broader geographic reach — and now BA's parent company's peer group.
• Stantec: International A/E firm with active waterfront, port, and community-development practices. Overlaps with BA's cruise-adjacent waterfront, marina, and master planning work, particularly in the Caribbean and North American markets.
• Jacobs Solutions: Global professional services firm with maritime, port, and infrastructure capabilities. Competes with BA on larger port master plans and cruise-adjacent infrastructure programs where multi-disciplinary bundling is valued.
• Arcadis: Global design and consultancy firm with maritime, coastal resilience, and waterfront practices. Overlaps with BA in port-related design and master planning engagements, particularly in EMEA.
• HDR Inc. Employee-owned A/E firm with maritime, aviation, healthcare, and transportation practices. Directly comparable to BA across multiple verticals; has even partnered with BA on aviation projects such as Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Terminal 5 for JetBlue.
• Gensler: Global architecture and design firm with deep aviation, hospitality, and waterfront practices. Has partnered with BA on aviation projects and competes in adjacent commercial, hospitality, and large-scale terminal design engagements.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/bermelloajamil
• Facebookfacebook.com/bermelloajamil
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bermelloajamil
• Instagraminstagram.com/bermelloajamil

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bermello Ajamil & Partners