HLB Lighting Design

Architectural Lighting Design Serviceshlblighting.com

HLB Lighting Design is an independent architectural lighting design firm, founded 1968 and headquartered in New York City, serving developers, architects, and institutional owners on commercial, civic, and cultural building projects through project-based professional services fees.

Company typePrivate
Founded1968
HeadquartersNew York, United States
Headcount51–100
GTM typeB2B
OfferingServices

What HLB Lighting Design does

HLB Lighting Design is an independent architectural lighting design firm founded in 1968 and headquartered in New York City. The firm provides specialized lighting design services for institutional, commercial, cultural, and civic building projects — producing lighting strategies, fixture specifications, controls narratives, and visualizations that shape how occupants experience built environments. Its client base includes developers, architecture firms, and institutional owners such as the Seattle Convention Center (Summit Building) and the Seattle Aquarium (Ocean Pavilion).

The firm bills through project-based professional services fees tied to the scope and phase of each engagement, with no disclosed software, platform, or productized offering. Its competitive position rests on the depth of its specialized design talent — marketed as an international design team of over 160 members across multiple studios — and on its long-standing reputation as the largest independent architectural lighting design practice globally. The firm has no outside funding, no public API surface, and no disclosed technology or AI product; its core deliverable is human design judgment supported by standard visualization and simulation workflows.

Operationally, HLB pursues growth through studio openings and mergers rather than capital raises. In March 2025 it merged with Montreal-based CS Design, establishing a Canadian platform and bilingual capacity, and in April 2026 it opened a Seattle design studio to support Pacific Northwest institutional work. The combined firm operates as a private, for-profit professional services practice organized around geographic studios serving large, complex architectural projects.

HLB Lighting Design firmographics

Firmographics

Name: HLB Lighting Design
Website: https://hlblighting.com
Company type: Private
Founded year: 1968
Operating status: Operating
Headcount range: 51–100 employees
Short description: HLB Lighting Design is an independent architectural lighting design firm, founded 1968 and headquartered in New York City, serving developers, architects, and institutional owners on commercial, civic, and cultural building projects through project-based professional services fees.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

HLB Lighting Design industry classification

Industry

Product category: Architectural Lighting Design Services
NAICS: Interior Design Services (541410)
SIC: Services-Engineering Services (8711)
akta.pro primary industry: Lighting Design Services (BPAHAKAJ)

Keywords

Architectural lighting design
Lighting consulting services
Building lighting design
Commercial lighting design
Institutional lighting design

Where HLB Lighting Design is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city: New York
HQ country: United States
HQ region: North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

HLB Lighting Design business model

Business model

GTM type: B2B
Offering type: Services
Cost components: Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

Lighting Design Consulting Services: Professional architectural lighting design consulting services for commercial, institutional, and cultural building projects. Revenue generated through project-based fees for design services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

HLB Lighting Design product offering

Product offering

Core offering

HLB Lighting Design is an architectural lighting design firm that provides professional lighting design consulting services for commercial, institutional, and cultural building projects. The firm designs lighting systems for new construction and renovation projects, including convention centers, aquariums, and other large-scale architectural developments, leveraging an international design team of over 160 members to serve clients across multiple regions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

Architectural Lighting Design Consulting Services

Companies that use HLB Lighting Design

Customer profile

Named customers2 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

HLB Lighting Design technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API: No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

HLB Lighting Design partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

CS DesigncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 March 2025HLB Lighting Design merged with CS Design, a Montreal-based lighting design firm. This merger enables HLB to strengthen its leadership in architectural lighting and grow its footprint in North America, especially in Canada. The strategic combination enhances global presence and service capacity.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

HLB Lighting Design competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

L'Observatoire International: Independent architectural lighting design firm with cultural and high-end commercial focus. Comparable size and project typology mix to HLB.
Bartenbach: International lighting design and research firm based in Austria, with global project portfolio. Comparable international reach and architectural focus to HLB.
Focus Lighting: New York-based architectural lighting design firm serving cultural, commercial, and institutional projects. Directly comparable to HLB in scale, market focus, and project type.
Fisher Marantz Stone: Long-established New York architectural lighting design practice with similar cultural, civic, and commercial client base. Direct competitor on flagship institutional projects.
Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design: Independent architectural lighting design firm serving museums, performing arts centers, and commercial buildings. Comparable in size, independence, and cultural-institution focus.
Tillotson Design Associates: New York-based architectural lighting design firm specializing in cultural, civic, and educational buildings. Direct peer in the same independent design niche.

Regional players

Light Bureau: Canadian architectural lighting design firm with strong cultural and commercial portfolio. Notable as a fellow Canadian-headquartered peer relevant given HLB's CS Design acquisition.

Broad incumbents

Arup Lighting Design: Global engineering consultancy with a substantial architectural lighting practice. Competes on multidisciplinary mega-projects where bundled engineering+lighting offers are attractive.
WSP Built Ecology / Lighting Design: Global engineering firm with integrated lighting design capabilities. Competes on large-scale commercial and infrastructure projects alongside broader MEP/engineering scopes.

Emerging players

Studio Lumen Lichtplanung: European architectural lighting design practice with growing international footprint. Comparable independent design firm profile at smaller scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

HLB Lighting Design financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

HLB Lighting Design leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

HLB Lighting Design subsidiaries and ownership

Company hierarchy

Subsidiaries1 record

HLB Lighting Design funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

HLB Lighting Design M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about HLB Lighting Design

What does HLB Lighting Design do?

Is HLB Lighting Design a public or private company?

HLB Lighting Design is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.

When was HLB Lighting Design founded?

HLB Lighting Design was founded in 1968. It employs 51 to 100 people.

Where is HLB Lighting Design based?

HLB Lighting Design is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.

How does HLB Lighting Design make money?

One revenue line is on record: lighting Design Consulting Services.

Who are HLB Lighting Design's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are L'Observatoire International, Bartenbach, Focus Lighting, Fisher Marantz Stone, Cline Bettridge Bernstein Lighting Design and Tillotson Design Associates. Light Bureau is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Arup Lighting Design and WSP Built Ecology / Lighting Design. Studio Lumen Lichtplanung is listed as an emerging player.

Does HLB Lighting Design have an API?

No public API is recorded for HLB Lighting Design.

What industry is HLB Lighting Design in?

HLB Lighting Design's product category is Architectural Lighting Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAJ, Lighting Design Services. Its NAICS code is 541410 and its SIC code is 8711.