What Ayres Associates does

Ayres Associates Inc. is a privately held, multi-specialty engineering and consulting firm headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, founded in 1959 and operating across 251-500 employees. The firm delivers integrated civil, environmental, geospatial, structural, mechanical/electrical/plumbing (MEP), landscape architecture, river and water resources, subsurface utility, transportation, and planning services to public- and private-sector clients through eleven offices in seven U.S. states (California, Colorado, Florida, North Carolina, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Wyoming).

The firm's technical backbone combines conventional engineering practice with a differentiated geospatial practice: aerial and mobile LIDAR, photogrammetric mapping, remote sensing, HD scanning, GIS, and the proprietary Ayres Lidar Online web application, an ArcGIS-hosted viewer that allows clients to consume LIDAR deliverables directly. Core engineering deliverables span bridge design and hydraulic analysis, roadway and interchange design, environmental assessment and remediation, MEP systems, landscape architecture, and structural inspection. The firm has documented project work with Wisconsin DOT (US 51/STH 29 corridor, STH 29/Brown CTH VV interchange), Florida DOT (SR 15), Wyoming Department of Administration and Information, and various Wisconsin counties and municipalities.

Ayres generates revenue through fee-for-service professional consulting engagements, won through competitive bidding and direct consultant selection by government agencies and commercial clients. Primary customer segments are Local Government, State/Federal/Tribal, and Development/Commercial, with secondary exposure to Education, Energy/Utilities/Tech, Healthcare/Senior Living, and Industrial/Manufacturing. The firm has supplemented operating cash with three consecutive years of SEC Regulation D exempt securities offerings (2023, 2024, 2025), each targeting $1,000,000 and selling roughly $575K-$590K - a pattern consistent with partner-level capital events rather than institutional growth financing. Marketing relies on a content-rich website with project case studies, industry publications, LinkedIn/Facebook/Instagram presence, and recurring award recognition from APWA Wisconsin, WisDOT, and ACEC Wisconsin.

Name

Ayres Associates

Legal name

Ayres Associates Inc.

Website

https://ayresassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1959

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Ayres Associates Inc. is a privately held, multi-specialty engineering and consulting firm (founded 1959, Eau Claire, WI) that delivers civil, environmental, geospatial, structural, transportation, and planning services to government and commercial clients across seven U.S. states via eleven regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering Consulting Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (54136), Landscape Architectural Services (541320)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Geotechnical & Subsurface Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

Keywords

• Civil engineering services
• Environmental consulting
• Geospatial mapping services
• Transportation engineering
• Landscape architecture

Headquarters

HQ city

Eau Claire

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices11 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 Engineering Consulting Services: Fee-for-service consulting engagements for civil engineering, environmental, geospatial, landscape architecture, transportation, and structural design projects for government and commercial clients.
2. Securities Exempt Offering: The company raised capital through SEC Regulation D exempt securities offerings in 2023 and 2024, with $1,000,000 total offering amounts in each filing.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ayres Associates is a multi-specialty architectural and engineering firm that delivers civil, environmental, geospatial, landscape architecture, MEP, structural, transportation, and water resources engineering and consulting services. The firm serves public and private clients nationwide through 11 regional offices across 7 U.S. states. Engagements are delivered as fee-for-service projects ranging from roadway and bridge design to environmental assessment, aerial mapping, and planning.

Product overview

Ayres Associates is a civil engineering and geospatial consulting firm offering a comprehensive portfolio of engineering and technical services. The company operates as a unified service provider combining civil/municipal engineering, environmental services, geospatial technologies (including aerial mapping, Lidar, and GIS), landscape architecture, MEP engineering, planning and economic development, river engineering, structural design and inspection, subsurface utility engineering, and transportation services. The firm also offers a proprietary web application called Ayres Lidar Online for viewing Lidar data. Services are delivered through multiple offices across the Midwest, Southeast, and West regions of the United States.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Civil + Municipal Engineering Civil engineering services for municipal infrastructure projects including roadway, storm sewer, and utility design for local governments and developers.
• Environmental Services Environmental consulting including brownfield redevelopment, environmental impact assessments, permitting, groundwater hydrology, landfill engineering, and soil remediation for government and commercial clients.
• Geospatial Services Nationally recognized aerial mapping, land surveying, GIS, mobile LIDAR, photogrammetric mapping, and remote sensing services for infrastructure and planning projects.
• Landscape Architecture Landscape architecture services including park planning, downtown/urban design, ecosystem services, playground design, trail design, and 3D visualization for municipalities and developers.
• Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing (MEP) Engineering Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineering services delivered through Ayres MEP Advantage for facility and infrastructure projects.
• Planning + Economic Development Planning and economic development consulting services supporting community growth, strategic planning, and development projects for municipalities and private clients.
• River Engineering + Water Resources River engineering and water resources management including hydraulics, dam removal, flood protection, and watershed analysis.
• Structural Design + Inspection Structural design, analysis, and inspection services for bridges, buildings, and infrastructure using HD scanning technology for asset assessment.
• Subsurface Utility Engineering Subsurface utility engineering including utility mapping, coordination, and designation for roadway and infrastructure projects.
• Transportation Services Transportation engineering covering construction engineering, roadway design, traffic engineering, and transportation support services for state DOTs and local agencies.
• Ayres Lidar Online Interactive web application for viewing and analyzing LIDAR data online, supporting geospatial project deliverables for clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Award-winning projects: Waukesha CTH L Improvements (2015 APWA Wisconsin Project of the Year); North Webster Avenue (2020 APWA Wisconsin Project of the Year); STH 29/Brown CTH VV Interchange (2022 WisDOT Outstanding Highway Construction Award, 2023 ACEC Wisconsin State Finalist)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing partnership with WisDOT for transportation infrastructure projects including highway design, interchange construction, and bridge projects across Wisconsin. The firm serves as consultant for major corridor projects including US 51 expansion and STH 29 improvements.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• HDR Inc. Multi-discipline engineering and consulting firm with deep transportation, water, and environmental practices serving state DOTs and municipalities. Highly comparable in service breadth, client mix, and project-based consulting model to Ayres, though substantially larger.
• MSA Professional Services: Midwest-based multi-discipline A&E consulting firm of comparable size, serving local governments with civil, transportation, environmental, water, and structural services. Closest scaled peer to Ayres by geography, service mix, and clientele.
• Short Elliott Hendrickson (SEH): Employee-owned Midwest A&E firm offering civil, structural, environmental, water resources, transportation, and planning services to public clients. Directly comparable to Ayres on geography, service mix, and ownership structure.
• Bolton & Menk: Upper-Midwest consulting firm of similar size serving municipalities, counties, and state agencies with transportation, municipal engineering, planning, environmental, and surveying services. Closely comparable on regional focus and public-sector concentration.
• raSmith: Wisconsin-based engineering consulting firm providing civil, structural, geospatial, and land surveying services to public and private clients. Directly overlaps Ayres on Midwest presence, surveying/geospatial capabilities, and structural design.
• Michael Baker International: Engineering, consulting, and advisory firm heavily concentrated in transportation, water, and infrastructure work for public-sector clients. Comparable in client mix and core service lines, though larger and national in scope.

Broad incumbents

• Stantec: Large global infrastructure design and consulting firm covering transportation, water, environmental, and community development — directly overlapping Ayres' services but at a far larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• WSP Global: Global professional services firm providing transportation, environmental, and infrastructure engineering consulting to public agencies. Comparable services but at substantially larger scale and global reach.
• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting firm with major transportation, water, and environmental practices serving state DOTs and federal clients. Overlaps Ayres' offerings as a much larger, broader incumbent.
• Kimley-Horn: Large private planning and engineering design consultancy serving public and private clients across transportation, land development, environmental, and water. Comparable services and private-company status, though significantly larger.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ayresassociatesinc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/48330
• Instagraminstagram.com/ayres.inc
• Xx.com/ayresinc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

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 Ayres Associates