What Rybka does

Rybka Limited is a privately-held, UK-based building services engineering and sustainability consultancy founded in 1969 and headquartered in Edinburgh, with regional offices in Glasgow, Inverness and London. The firm operates as a multi-disciplinary practice delivering mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) design, sustainability and BREEAM consultancy, building physics and dynamic simulation, and BIM Level 2 / digital construction services, with a specialist sub-brand (Rybka-s) focused on building physics. Its competitive positioning centres on low-energy, Passivhaus and BREEAM-certified design, supported by Chartered Engineers (CEng, MCIBSE) and CIBSE Low Carbon Consultants on staff, and a 55-year track record across education, healthcare, hospitality, commercial, cultural, transport and defence facilities.

The business model is fee-based professional services revenue earned on building projects, secured through direct relationships with public sector clients — particularly Scottish local authorities (City of Edinburgh, Fife, South Lanarkshire, Highland Councils), NHS boards (Highland, Lothian, Fife) and the Ministry of Defence — and through partnerships with architectural firms, main contractors and Scotland's regional development hubs (hub South East Scotland, hub North Scotland). Notable project credentials include Liberton High School (Passivhaus Plus), James Gillespie's High School (BREEAM Very Good), Wick Noss Primary (BREEAM Excellent), Levenmouth Academy (Fife Platinum), West Dunbartonshire Council Offices (B+ EPC, BREEAM Very Good), and participation in the £1.2bn Project SLAM MoD accommodation programme.

Rybka is part of the Brush Group (recruitment is handled via [email protected]), with no external venture or institutional investors disclosed. It is a certified Living Wage Employer and a BREEAM Accredited Professional/Assessor. Recent expansion activity includes the March 2026 opening of a purpose-built Glasgow office and extended reach into English markets via the London office. Pricing is project-based and not publicly disclosed; the firm does not sell products or software, and operates at 11–50 employees with a multi-decade client base concentrated in Scottish public-sector construction.

Name

Rybka

Legal name

Rybka Limited

Website

https://rybka.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rybka is a UK building services engineering and sustainability consultancy (MEP, BREEAM, Passivhaus, BIM) founded in 1969, serving Scottish councils, NHS boards, the Ministry of Defence and private developers from offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and London.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Edinburgh

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Engineering Consultancy Services: Rybka provides professional engineering consultancy services for building projects, including mechanical and electrical design, sustainability consulting, and BIM services. Revenue is generated through fees for design, assessment, and advisory services on construction projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Rybka provides professional building services engineering consultancy, delivering mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) design, sustainability and energy advisory (including BREEAM assessments and Passivhaus expertise), and Building Information Modelling (BIM) services for new build and refurbishment projects. Revenue is generated through project-based fees for design, assessment, and advisory services delivered to public sector bodies (councils, NHS, MOD) and private developers across the UK.

Product overview

Rybka operates as a unified Building Services Engineering Consultancy with three interconnected service divisions: Building Services (MEP design), Sustainability & Energy (including BREEAM assessments and the specialist Rybka-s Building Physics team), and BIM/Digital Construction. These services work collaboratively across projects to deliver low carbon, sustainable design solutions, with the BIM team supporting integrated design delivery and the Building Physics team providing specialist energy and thermal performance modelling. The company has been operating since 1969 and delivers projects across the UK from offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, and London.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rybka-s: Rybka's specialist sustainability division providing sustainability advisory services including BREEAM assessments and low carbon design consultancy.

Products and services

• Building Services Comprehensive mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) engineering design services delivered collaboratively with clients and design teams to ensure optimal building services solutions.
• Sustainability & Energy Sustainability promotion, assessment and advisory services for the built environment, including dynamic energy modelling, Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs), BREEAM assessments, and low carbon consultancy.
• BIM / Digital Information Building Information Modelling services ranging from delivering building services designs as part of design teams to advising on or managing the BIM process for clients, covering Revit, AutoCAD, and digital construction coordination.
• Rybka-s Building Physics Division Specialist building physics team providing thermal modelling, dynamic simulation, overheating analysis, CIBSE TM54 operational energy analysis, daylight modelling, and climate-based analysis for sustainable building design.

Quantifiable outcome

• James Gillespie's High School achieved BREEAM 'Very Good' rating
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Hub South East ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership with hub South East Scotland for public sector building projects including schools and healthcare facilities. Collaborative delivery on LEIP-funded education projects.
• Hub North ScotlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with hub North Scotland for delivering public sector projects in the Highland region including schools and community facilities.
• Brush Group (Parent Company)coreOthersRybka is part of the Brush Group, a major engineering services and clean energy group. The Group includes companies such as Brush Electrical Machines and provides access to broader engineering expertise and resources.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Arup: Global engineering consultancy with deep building services, sustainability and building physics capability — competes with Rybka for major public-sector and infrastructure framework bids at a far larger scale.
• WSP: Global professional services firm whose UK buildings practice delivers MEP, sustainability and BIM services across education, healthcare, transport and defence — directly competitive for major public-sector framework work at scale.

Direct peers

• Buro Happold: International engineering consultancy with a strong building services, sustainability and building physics practice, serving education, healthcare and cultural sectors — direct competitor for sustainable building design commissions in the UK.
• Hilson Moran: Building services engineering consultancy delivering MEP, sustainability and BIM services on commercial, education, healthcare and heritage projects across the UK — overlaps with Rybka across multiple UK service verticals.
• Chapman BDSP: Independent UK building services engineering consultancy providing MEP, sustainability and Passivhaus design — operates in similar size band and project types to Rybka.
• Max Fordham: UK building services engineering consultancy with a strongly held sustainability and low-energy design ethos, serving education, health, cultural and residential clients — a clear comparable in scale, philosophy and service mix to Rybka.
• Hoare Lea: UK-wide building services engineering consultancy with deep sustainability, Passivhaus, BREEAM and BIM delivery capability, working on schools, healthcare, hospitality and commercial projects — comparable services and client base to Rybka, though at significantly larger scale.
• Atelier Ten: Environmental design consultancy specialising in building physics, sustainability strategy and low-energy design for award-winning buildings — closely comparable to Rybka's Rybka-s building physics division in capability and project prestige.
• Cundall: Multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy with prominent sustainability, Passivhaus and BIM credentials, delivering education, healthcare and commercial projects across the UK and internationally — comparable profile on low-energy building design.
• Elementa Consulting: Building services and sustainability consultancy focused on low-carbon, Passivhaus and BREEAM work on schools, healthcare and civic buildings — comparable niche specialisation to Rybka in the UK.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rybka-limited
• Instagraminstagram.com/rybkaltd

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Rybka