Perkins+Will has announced that it will be merging with the Copenhagen-based firm Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects; the two have been in negotiation since summer of 2017. The former aims to diversify its global talent, expand its cultural and civic practice, and reinforce the caliber of its design portfolio, while the latter aims to expand into new geographic markets, grow its client base, and apply groundbreaking design research to practice.

Since its founding in 1986, Schmidt Hammer Lassen Architects has become one of Denmark's largest architectural firms and is best known for their highly sustainable cultural and civic architecture, particularly libraries. Some of their best known works include the 1999 extension of the Copenhagen Royal Library, the International Criminal Court building in The Hague, and the 2013 RIBA award–winning University of Aberdeen New Library.

According the Perkins+Will CEO Phil Harrison, "part of what makes this partnership so special is that Perkins+Will and Schmidt Hammer Lassen share a common set of values: design excellence, sustainability, innovation, and the highest level of client service. We also maintain the same design ethos, believing that exceptional architecture is always democratic and in the service of the greater good. We’re compatible at every level.”

Bjarne Hammer, a founding partner at Schmidt Hammer Lassen, echoed this sentiment stating that "our firms share a clear mission: through architecture and design, we make a positive difference in the world and in the lives of others. We both believe strongly in the transformative, healing power of design to address some of the most pressing social and environmental issues of our time. And, we both thrive in a design culture that encourages collaboration.”

Schmidt Hammer Lassen’s offices in Denmark are to become Perkins+Will’s European bridgehead. Their CEO Bente Damgaard, who sees the acquisition as a "recognition of Danish architecture in an international context," will stay on with company as will all founding and practice partners. The Denmark studio will also retain the Schmidt Hammer Lassen name.