HFW Companies

What HFW Companies does

The HFW Companies is a privately held professional services firm founded in 2020 by Michael Hein, Matthew Westphal, and Daniel Forguson that builds and operates a national network of architecture and engineering (AE) firms under a "House of Brands" model. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas (relocated from St. Louis in 2026), HFW acquires and partners with legacy regional AE firms — currently 10 to 11 partner firms including Miller Legg, HSQ Group, CRANSTON, 4Ward Land Surveying, INVISION, GastingerWalker&, Taney Engineering, Kuo & Associates, KFM, Southwest Engineers, and Macgregor Associates Architects — while preserving each firm's brand identity and regional client relationships. Partner firms collectively employ 700+ professionals across 17 states plus the U.S. Virgin Islands and offer architecture, civil and structural engineering, landscape architecture, planning, interior design, land surveying, and environmental consulting services to public-sector, institutional, and private-development clients.

HFW's core product is an internal operations platform providing partner firms with shared HR, recruiting, business development, project management/controls, and finance services, along with access to capital for growth and cross-firm collaboration on larger projects. Revenue is generated through professional services fees billed by the partner firms on a project-by-project basis across markets including education, healthcare, municipal government, transportation, water/wastewater, data centers, and commercial/industrial development. The firm's go-to-market combines organic growth within partner firms with disciplined M&A, supported by a dedicated corporate development function and a Chief Growth Officer role.

Financial scale, as disclosed through Engineering News-Record's Top 500 AEC Design Firms rankings, has grown from a $90.9 million debut (2023) to $128 million (2024) and $117.4 million (2025), with ENR ranking climbing from No. 281 to No. 169 over the same period. Customer segments are diversified across public-sector infrastructure, institutional facilities, and private development, with no single customer dominating revenue. The company is privately held by its three co-founders with no disclosed institutional investor or external equity capital.

Name

HFW Companies

Legal name

The HFW Companies, LLC

Website

https://hfwcompanies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

HFW Companies is a privately held professional services firm that builds a national network of architecture and engineering firms under a House of Brands model. Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Dallas, it operates through 10-11 partner firms with 700+ employees across 17 states, providing shared operations, capital, and growth resources.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices26 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 Revenue: HFW generates revenue through its network of architecture and engineering partner firms offering civil engineering, structural engineering, architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, land surveying, and planning services to public and private sector clients.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

HFW Companies is a professional services firm that builds and operates a national network of architecture and engineering (AE) firms under a "House of Brands" model. The company provides partner firms with an operations platform spanning HR, recruiting, business development, project management/controls, finance, and IT, while partner firms independently deliver architecture, civil/structural engineering, landscape architecture, interior design, land surveying, planning, and environmental consulting services to public and private sector clients.

Product overview

HFW Companies is a professional services firm founded in 2020 that operates as a national network of architecture and engineering (AE) firms under a 'House of Brands' model. The company acquires and partners with legacy AE firms while maintaining their brand identities. HFW provides an internal operations platform offering HR, recruiting, business development, project management/controls, and finance support. The portfolio includes 11 partner firms: Miller Legg, HSQ Group, CRANSTON, 4Ward Land Surveying, INVISION, GastingerWalker&, Taney Engineering, Kuo & Associates, KFM, Southwest Engineers, and Macgregor Associates Architects (MAA). Services span architecture, civil/structural engineering, landscape architecture, planning, interior design, land surveying, and environmental consulting across markets including education, healthcare, municipal, transportation, water/wastewater, data centers, and commercial development. The company ranks No. 169 on ENR's Top 500 AEC firms (2026) with $117.4 million in combined revenue.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HFW Operations Platform Core internal platform that equips HFW's partner firms with HR, recruiting, business development, project management/controls, finance, IT, and operational support, enabling partner firms to focus on client relationships and project delivery.
• Miller Legg Award-winning consulting firm providing engineering, landscape architecture, urban design, planning, environmental consulting, surveying, subsurface utility engineering, and GIS services to communities, government, institutions, transportation, and federal clients since 1965.
• HSQ Group Multi-disciplinary civil engineering firm founded in 2004 providing transportation/roadway design, land development planning, drainage, water/sewer, surveying, construction management, and inspection services to Florida municipalities and developers.
• CRANSTON Civil and structural engineering, landscape architecture, planning, and surveying firm serving Southeast communities since 1967, with experience in residential communities, canal systems, dams, park infrastructure, municipal, education, medical, roads, and bridges.
• 4Ward Land Surveying Professional land surveying company providing ALTA/ACSM land title surveys, topographic surveys, easement descriptions, subdivision plats, horizontal/vertical control, bathymetric/hydrographic surveys, and GIS mapping for Texas projects since 2009.
• INVISION Planning, architecture, and interiors design firm serving the Midwest since 1914 with national expansion, offering specialized design services spanning pre-design, design, and post-design phases for education, healthcare, corporate, sports/recreation, hospitality, housing, workplace, municipal, cultural, and industrial facilities.
• GastingerWalker& Architecture, interior design, construction management, space planning, and historic rehabilitation firm serving clients since 1981 across 45 states, with national clients including AMC Theatres, Allstate, SunLife, Amsurg, and Spectrum Retirement Communities.
• Taney Engineering Full-service civil engineering and land surveying company serving Las Vegas and Nevada since 2002, providing land planning/development, UAV drone services, land auction due-diligence, 3D site planning, and flood-control engineering.
• Kuo & Associates (KUO) Award-winning civil engineering and land surveying firm supporting infrastructure growth across Southeast Texas since 1985, providing sustainable infrastructure design for water resource management, transportation, site development, and surveying markets.
• KFM Civil engineering firm launched in 2019 with offices in Dallas and Austin, providing civil engineering, land planning, landscape architecture, and due diligence for retail, mixed-use, single-family, multifamily, industrial, and office development throughout Texas.
• Southwest Engineers Civil engineering firm founded in 1978 serving utility districts, municipalities, counties, and entities throughout Central Texas, providing water systems design, residential subdivisions, multi-family and mixed-use developments, commercial projects, and land/right-of-way acquisition services.
• Macgregor Associates Architects / INVISION Studio Architecture firm delivering specialized large-scale office and industrial architecture planning and design nationally since 1987, specializing in data centers, distribution/fulfillment centers, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, corporate headquarters, and office buildings.

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• Miller LeggcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAward-winning consulting firm since 1965 providing engineering, landscape architecture, urban design, planning, environmental consulting, and geospatial expertise. Offices in Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Port St. Lucie, and Tampa, Florida.
• HSQ GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-disciplinary civil engineering firm founded in 2004, providing transportation/roadway design, land development planning, drainage, water/sewer, surveying, and construction management services to Florida municipalities and developers.
• CRANSTONcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivil and structural engineering, landscape architecture, planning, and surveying firm serving Southeast communities since 1967. Offices in Augusta GA, Midlands SC, Charleston SC, and Hilton Head SC.
• 4Ward Land SurveyingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProfessional land surveying company providing technology-driven services for commercial, residential, and public works projects in Texas since 2009. Acquired Delta Survey Group in Austin.
• INVISIONflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerIowa-based planning, architecture, and interior design firm founded in 1914 with national expansion strategy. Has acquired Macgregor Associates Architects (MAA) and RDB. Offices in Iowa, Florida, Texas, and Georgia.
• GastingerWalker&coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture, interior design, construction management, space planning, and historic rehabilitation firm since 1981, licensed in 45 states. Offices in Kansas City MO and Chicago IL.
• Taney EngineeringcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivil engineering and land surveying firm serving Las Vegas region since 2000. Known for flood-control engineering and renewable energy expertise. 75 employees.
• Kuo & Associates (KUO)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivil engineering and surveying firm serving Houston and Southeast Texas since 1985. 35 professionals providing water resource management, transportation, site development, and land surveying.
• KFMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivil engineering firm founded in 2019 with 75 employees. Provides civil engineering, land planning, landscape architecture, and due diligence for Texas development projects.
• Southwest EngineerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCivil engineering firm founded in 1978, serving Central Texas from offices in Gonzales, Buda, Bastrop, Round Rock, and Cuero. Specializes in water systems, wastewater, land development, and right-of-way acquisition. 75+ employees.
• Macgregor Associates Architects (MAA) / INVISION StudiocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerArchitecture firm since 1987, employing 41 professionals specializing in data centers, distribution centers, warehouses, manufacturing facilities, and corporate headquarters. Ranked 9th largest industrial-sector architecture firm in 2024.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Stantec: Stantec is a global publicly traded AE consulting firm with a similar portfolio of architecture, civil/structural engineering, planning, surveying, and environmental services — a scaled incumbent against whom HFW competes for enterprise clients.
• WSP Global: WSP Global is a global professional services firm in the AE space, built largely via acquisition of regional firms — comparable in services and acquisition-led growth strategy but at vastly greater scale.
• Jacobs Solutions: Jacobs is a large global professional services firm spanning critical infrastructure, water, transportation, and environmental consulting — HFW directly competes with Jacobs for talent (COO Steven Summers came from Jacobs) and on many project pursuits.

Direct peers

• TRC Companies: TRC is a publicly traded engineering, environmental, and infrastructure consulting firm that has grown through acquisition of specialized firms — comparable in its multi-disciplinary AE services and roll-up growth approach.
• Weston & Sampson: Weston & Sampson is an ESOP-owned engineering, environmental, and design firm serving the Northeast — comparable as a mid-sized multi-disciplinary AE firm, though operating in a region HFW has yet to enter.
• Brown and Caldwell: Brown and Caldwell is an employee-owned environmental engineering and science firm specializing in water/wastewater — directly comparable to several HFW partner firms (Southwest Engineers, Taney Engineering, CRANSTON) operating in the same water infrastructure niche.
• Kleinfelder: Kleinfelder is a PE-backed (Stonepeak) national engineering, architecture, and science consulting firm built via acquisition of regional AE firms — a direct operating-model parallel to HFW's House of Brands approach.
• SLR Consulting: SLR Consulting is a PE-backed (Charterhouse Capital) global environmental and engineering consultancy built through acquisition of regional firms — a close structural parallel to HFW's PE-style roll-up of mid-sized AE firms.
• NV5 Global: NV5 Global is a publicly traded technical engineering and consulting roll-up that acquires niche infrastructure, environmental, and geospatial firms — closely comparable to HFW's strategy of acquiring regional AE firms while preserving brand identity and layering on shared infrastructure.
• Haley & Aldrich: Haley & Aldrich is a PE-backed (Bain Capital) geotechnical and environmental engineering firm — comparable as a private-equity-backed specialty AE firm pursuing growth via acquisitions and operations-platform consolidation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-hfw-companies-hfw

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about HFW Companies