What Interface Engineering does

Interface Engineering is a 100% employee-owned mechanical and electrical engineering (MEP) consultancy founded in 1969, providing integrated MEP design, commissioning, and energy consulting services for institutional and government building projects. The firm operates from offices in San Francisco, Portland, Washington DC, Sacramento, Los Angeles, and Oakland, serving educational institutions, healthcare systems, government agencies, and select commercial developers primarily across the western and central United States, with documented activity in Mexico. Named clients include Stanford, the University of California system, Oregon Health & Science University, the U.S. General Services Administration, and Airbnb, with project scales ranging from approximately $24M to $295M.

The firm's core technical capabilities center on high-performance building science, with documented specializations in radiant heating and cooling systems, heat recovery chillers (Coefficient of Performance 5.0 documented for vivarium humidification), engineered natural ventilation with CO2-based demand control, advanced BIM techniques for energy and lighting modeling, and LEED Platinum-level sustainable design. Its service portfolio comprises mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, plumbing design (including greywater recycling and rainwater harvesting), Building Technologies (IoT-enabled smart building systems), commissioning services, energy consulting, fire/life safety engineering, and lighting design, delivered through integrated project teams across the design-construction-operations lifecycle.

Interface Engineering generates revenue on a project-by-project professional services basis, with work secured through architectural partnerships and direct enterprise client engagement. The go-to-market is sales-led, with thought-leadership content (case studies, technical publications), industry awards (AIA COTE Top Ten, ACEC Project of the Year, ENR), conference participation (EcoDistricts Summit, Living Future unConference, ASHRAE), and a High Performance Buildings educational webinar series driving top-of-funnel awareness in the high-performance building segment.

Name

Interface Engineering

Legal name

Interface Engineering

Website

http://interfaceengineering.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Interface Engineering is a 100% employee-owned MEP engineering consultancy founded in 1969, providing mechanical, electrical, plumbing, commissioning, and energy consulting services for high-performance institutional buildings, primarily in education, healthcare, and government sectors across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

MEP Engineering Consulting

NAICS

Engineering Services (54133), Engineering Services (541330), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

MEP (Mechanical, Electrical & Plumbing) Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAE)

Keywords

• MEP engineering services
• High-performance building design
• Building commissioning services
• Sustainable engineering consulting
• Mechanical and electrical consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Engineering Consulting Services: Professional MEP engineering, commissioning, and consulting services delivered through architectural partnerships and direct client engagement for high-performance building projects. Services span design, construction, and operations phases.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Interface Engineering is a progressive mechanical and electrical (MEP) engineering consultancy that designs high-performance, sustainable buildings. The firm delivers integrated mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, plumbing design, building technologies, commissioning, energy consulting, fire/life safety, and lighting design services through design, construction, and operations phases for institutional, healthcare, education, and government clients.

Product overview

Interface Engineering is a progressive mechanical and electrical (MEP) engineering consultancy focused on high-performance building design. The firm operates as a single unified service offering rather than a modular platform, providing integrated MEP engineering alongside specialized services including Building Technologies (smart building/IoT systems), Commissioning Services, Energy Consulting, Fire/Life Safety, and Lighting Design. These services work together as a comprehensive engineering portfolio, with Building Information Modeling (BIM) techniques and advanced building science tools underlying all project delivery.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mechanical Engineering Design and engineering of HVAC systems, including radiant heating/cooling, chilled beams, variable air volume systems, displacement ventilation, and heat recovery systems for high-performance buildings, serving institutional and commercial clients.
• Electrical Engineering Power distribution, lighting design, electrical systems design, photovoltaic systems, and energy-efficient electrical infrastructure for commercial and institutional buildings.
• Plumbing Design Water distribution, drainage systems, blackwater system design, greywater recycling, rainwater harvesting, and water-efficient plumbing infrastructure design for institutional and commercial facilities.
• Building Technologies Smart building systems integrating IoT for connecting lighting, power and HVAC through sensors, analytics, and interoperable controls in high-performance building environments.
• Commissioning Services Verification and validation of building systems including HVAC, electrical, plumbing, building automation, lighting controls, and water heating systems to ensure they operate as designed.
• Energy Consulting Energy modeling, daylight modeling, sustainability analysis, EUI optimization, and strategies for achieving net-zero energy and LEED certification on building projects.
• Fire/Life Safety Fire suppression systems, fire detection, alarm systems, smoke control, and life safety engineering for commercial, institutional, and government buildings.
• Lighting Design Interior and exterior lighting design with focus on energy efficiency, daylighting integration, occupancy sensors, and LED solutions for institutional and commercial buildings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 45% energy savings achieved at OHSU Robertson Life Sciences Building
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers15 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

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• EcoDistrictscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInterface Engineering is a founding member and sponsor of EcoDistricts, participating in annual Summits and contributing to the development of roadmap documents for net-zero energy neighborhoods. Managing Principal Roger Frechette serves on the Program Committee.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• ME Engineers: ME Engineers is a progressive MEP, lighting and technology design firm focused on high-performance buildings, with strong higher-education, sports, and cultural-project credentials. Directly comparable to Interface on service mix, project types, and sustainable-design positioning.
• SmithGroup: Integrated design firm combining architecture with MEP engineering, particularly strong in higher education, healthcare and science & technology — directly overlapping with Interface's core verticals and sustainability positioning.
• Affiliated Engineers: AEI is a closely held mechanical, electrical, plumbing and process engineering consultancy with deep higher-ed, healthcare, and research-lab expertise. It mirrors Interface's project-based, sustainability-focused MEP delivery model and competes for many of the same institutional clients.
• Integral Group: Specialist engineering firm (now part of AEI) explicitly focused on net-zero, MEP, and high-performance building consulting. One of the closest direct competitors to Interface in the mission-driven, sustainability-first MEP niche.
• Page (Page Southerland Page): Architecture and engineering firm with MEP consulting capabilities serving healthcare, higher education, and civic clients. Comparable size and project mix to Interface, including complex institutional MEP and commissioning work.

Broad incumbents

• Arup: Global engineering consultancy with a deep building engineering practice including MEP, facades, and sustainability; competes with Interface on large institutional and healthcare projects but offers significantly broader service lines and geographic reach.
• Stantec: Large North American engineering consultancy delivering MEP, commissioning, and energy services across education, healthcare, and government, often bidding against Interface on West Coast institutional projects.
• HOK: Global design firm with a building engineering group delivering MEP, energy modeling, and commissioning for healthcare, education, and government clients — frequently on the same shortlists as Interface for institutional capital projects.
• WSP: Global professional services firm with a substantial US MEP and buildings practice, competing with Interface on large institutional and government capital projects with deeper resources and broader service integration.
• Buro Happold: International engineering firm with strong MEP and building performance expertise, particularly on complex cultural, education, and healthcare projects. Overlaps with Interface in sustainable design and commissioning services but at broader global scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/interface_eng
• Facebookfacebook.com/interfaceengineering
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/interfaceengineering

Compliance12 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

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 Interface Engineering