|
The Largest Architecture Firms in California
San Francisco-based Gensler, with $305 million in revenue
last year, again tops California Construction's list of the
55 largest architecture firms doing business in California.
Other firms in the top five, in order: Seattle-based NBBJ;
Omaha, Neb.-based HDR; Newport Beach-based Wimberly, Allison,
Tong & Goo; and Anshen + Allen of San Francisco.
By Paul Napolitano
The giant has grown taller.
Gensler ranks first this year on California Construction's
list of the largest architecture firms doing business in California
in 2004. The San Francisco-based firm increased its revenue
from $256 million in 2003 to $305 million in '04.
Gensler, which has 27 offices in the United States-including
six in California, is predicting revenue to reach $375 million
in 2005.
Rounding out the top five firms on this year's list are Seattle-based
NBBJ ($139.5 million); Omaha, Neb.-based HDR ($81.9 million);
Newport Beach-based Wimberly, Allison, Tong & Goo (69.9
million); and Anshen + Allen of San Francisco ($69.2 million).
Fifty-five firms appear on the list, a ranking that is done
every October. Firms submitted annual revenue and other information
throughout the summer months to California Construction. The
ranking appears on the following pages of this issue.
"We have a lot of little projects and we have a fair
amount of big ones," said Rob Jernigan, principal of
the buildings and campuses group in Gensler's Santa Monica
office.
He said the Santa Monica office alone sends out an average
of 3,000 invoices a month.
"We've got four or five primary cylinders, and when
one is down, hopefully, two or three are up," Jernigan
said of his firm's overall activity. "Right now, most
all the cylinders are up."
Currently, Gensler is in the design phase on a $350-million
hotel/condo tower in downtown Los Angeles, and is working
on the master plan for a $130-million expansion of the Los
Angeles County Museum of Art. Two of its largest projects
under construction include 2000 Avenue of the Stars, a $150-million
Class A office building in Century City, and the multi-phase
expansion of Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport.
Strong markets for many of the firms on this year's list
are health care and education-spawned by stringent seismic-code
mandates for existing hospitals and billions of dollars in
school-bond programs. A growing economy in California is another
chief contributor to revenue gains.
"We feel that [health care and education] are long-term
growth markets," said Praful Kulkarni, CEO and president
of Newport Beach-based gkkworks.
Kulkarni's firm is ranked No. 39. Revenue at the 14-year-old
firm is expected to reach $13. 1 million by year's end, more
than double 2002 revenue of $6.1 million.
One of gkkworks' largest projects in design is Los Angeles
Biomedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
in Torrance, a $34-million job.
"With the graying of America-especially in California-and
with our growth in population, we don't see any decline in
the health-care market coming," Kulkarni said.
Alameda-based MBH Architects (No. 16) also gained revenue
in the past year, primarily due to large projects generated
by Orlando, Fla.-based Hilton Grand Vacations Club. MBH is
in design with a sprawling 415-unit time-share resort in Oahu,
Hawaii. And two MBH/Hilton Grand projects-a $65-million complex
in Waikoloa, Hawaii, and a $600-million resort in Las Vegas-are
under construction.
"They've been very good to us," MBH founding principal
John McNulty said of his firm's relationship with Hilton Grand.
"We got involved with them in the mid-'90s when we became
one of the architects on the Paris Hilton in Las Vegas. As
Hilton evolved its interest in time shares, we latched on
and became part of its team.
"McNulty described the size of Hilton Grand's current
crop of projects as huge, but said its project flow is ordinary.
"In good times and bad, people like to go to Las Vegas,
people like to go to Hawaii," he added. "I think
[Hilton] has become more astute at selling the concept of
a time share to the public. They've made it easy to trade
and swap and utilize the world as a vacation spot."
Some firms new to California have been pleased by the size
of the welcome mat.
In 2002, Minneapolis-based KKE Architects (No. 53) opened
up its first West Coast office in Newport Beach. A year later,
it launched an office in Pasadena.
The firm's revenue climb has been steady: $1 million in '02,
$2 million in '03 and $3.5 million in '04. KKE predicted revenue
to reach $8 million this year.
Brian Arial, KKE managing director for California and Las
Vegas, credited his firm's ability to cultivate strong relationships
for "a ton" of repeat business.
"We have 10 active projects now with Hopkins Real Estate
Group," Arial said from his office in Pasadena. "Back
in 2002, we formed a small relationship with them and have
been able to cultivate that into a multi-project relationship."
A steady stream of people from the Los Angeles and San Francisco
areas who are seeking less expensive homes to buy are creating
brawny residential, retail and school construction markets
in the San Joaquin Valley.
The education market has attributed to a sharp increase in
revenue for Fresno-based Darden Architects (No. 30). About
80 percent of Darden Architects' revenue comes from the education
market. The company's revenue rocketed to $14.6 million in
2004, up from $8.6 million in '03. Darden is predicting revenue
of $15 million for '05.
"We're not on a gravy train in terms of profitability,
but there certainly has been growth," said Ed Darden
Jr., president of the firm bearing his name.
Ontario-based HMC Architects (No. 6), another power player
in the health care and education markets, also experienced
a significant rise in revenue.
HMC earned $57.5 million in 2004, up from $49.9 million in
'03. The firm predicted revenue of $60.7 million in '05.
HMC is considering acquisitions of other architecture firms
outside California.
"There's so much going on in California right now that
we don't want to divert our attention away from our clients,"
said HMC President Randy Peterson. "We have the desire
in the long term, however, to go beyond our California-Nevada
borders and get into some other locations."
Click here
for the list>>
|
print this page
e-mail this page
