NEW YORK, N.Y. — International design and architecture firms Perkins Eastman and Ehrenkrantz Eckstut & Kuhn Architects (EE&K) have agreed to merge their practices.

The merger will significantly strengthen both practices and is a natural outgrowth of their respective histories and long mutual respect, officials said. The combined international practice will total nearly 600 employees, adding expanded capabilities and client value. The firms will consolidate their New York, Washington DC, and China practices.

“EE&K brings an internationally respected large-scale architectural design practice as well as a 50-year record of innovative educational facility design, a distinguished portfolio of historic preservation and adaptive reuse, and a growing practice in China and Vietnam,” Bradford Perkins FAIA, chairman of Perkins Eastman, said. “This merger will be transformative for both practices, and will create an international firm with expanded reach, enhanced capabilities, and value for our clients.”

Both firms said they believe that the design of the built environment is critical to the quality of life and that skilled architects play a critical role. Both have a portfolio of large-scale developments that share a set of common values: the objective of creating new urban places that foster vibrant public communities. Projects are designed to become authentic parts of the larger whole of their encompassing communities — aesthetically, culturally, and historically — true places that enrich the urban fabric, the firms said.

Stan Eckstut FAIA, chairman of EE&K, added: “We have wanted to expand our architectural capabilities. One of our special strengths has been the conceptualization and design of large-scale mixed-use urban projects. Perkins Eastman — as one of the largest architectural firms — provides proven capabilities in all of the major building types that make up our large-scale designs so that we can implement more of those projects. Moreover, they bring added strength to our core interests in educational facilities, campus planning, and building design as well as our growing international practice.”