What Oates Associates does

Oates Associates, Inc. is a 100% employee-owned civil and structural engineering firm founded in 1980, operating across the Midwest from four offices in Collinsville and Belleville, Illinois, and St. Louis and St. Charles, Missouri. The firm delivers project-based professional engineering and surveying services to municipal governments, state transportation agencies (IDOT, MoDOT), educational institutions (SIUE, Washington University, K–12 districts), transit authorities, and corporate clients (e.g., Ameren Illinois). Its nine service lines span transportation planning and design, site development, bridge and building structural engineering, water resources, planning, ADA transition planning, surveying with FAA Part 107 drone operations, and construction administration.

The firm's technical capabilities center on GIS-based ADA transition planning with customizable client-side toolboxes, mobile GPS field data collection, and FAA-licensed drone survey data — including orthomosaic imagery used to support project design. These tools support differentiated delivery of ADA self-evaluations and transition plans for jurisdictions (e.g., City of St. Charles' 400-mile sidewalk inventory, City of St. Louis' 1,600-mile sidewalk ADA self-evaluation covering 11,000+ intersections and 182 city buildings). The firm is staffed by over 30 licensed engineers (PE, SE, PTOE, ADAC credentials) and over 40 years of accumulated institutional knowledge, with today's CEO and President/COO having begun as interns at the firm.

Revenue is generated through project-based professional service fees negotiated per scope and contract terms, sourced via direct sales, RFP/RFQ responses, and proposal pursuits managed by a marketing team led by a Certified Professional Services Marketer. The go-to-market motion combines direct engagement with public-sector procurement processes and community-led relationship development through leadership roles in APWA, ASCE, and other industry groups. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; multi-year contracts with government and institutional clients are common. The firm has won multiple ACEC and APWA awards and most recently expanded its Belleville office (March 2026) to support ongoing growth.

Name

Oates Associates

Legal name

Oates Associates, Inc.

Website

https://oatesassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1980

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Oates Associates is a 100% employee-owned civil and structural engineering firm founded in 1980, providing transportation, site development, bridge and building structural engineering, water resources, ADA transition planning, surveying, and drone-based data services to municipal, state, education, and commercial clients across Illinois and Missouri.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Collinsville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Engineering and Surveying Services: Oates Associates generates revenue by providing civil and structural engineering, surveying, and related professional services on a project-by-project basis. Projects are billed through government contracts, municipal agreements, institutional contracts, and private sector engagements. Revenue is project-based with fees determined by scope, complexity, and contract terms.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Oates Associates is a civil and structural engineering firm that sells nine integrated service lines — Transportation planning and design, Site Development, Bridge Structural engineering, Building Structural engineering, Water Resources, Planning, ADA Transition Planning, Surveying & Drone Operations, and Construction Administration — to government agencies (municipalities, DOTs), educational institutions, transit authorities, and commercial clients across the Midwest. The firm pairs licensed professional engineers with in-house GIS tools, FAA-licensed drone operations, and mobile GPS field collection to deliver infrastructure projects from conceptual design through construction.

Product overview

Oates Associates is a civil and structural engineering firm offering a comprehensive suite of engineering and surveying services rather than a software product platform. The company operates nine core service offerings: Transportation, Site Development, Bridge Structural, Building Structural, Water Resources, Planning, ADA Transition Planning, Surveying & Drone Operations, and Construction Administration. These services serve six primary markets: Transportation, Municipal, Recreation, Education, State and Federal, and Corporate and Commercial. The firm is 100% employee-owned and focuses on infrastructure projects across the Midwest region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Transportation Transportation planning and engineering services including roadway design, traffic operations, and infrastructure improvements for communities and government agencies across Illinois and Missouri.
• Site Development Assists with site selection, infrastructure evaluation, and land surveying for new developments, creating spaces that integrate with their surroundings.
• Bridge Structural Provides bridge inspection, design, and structural engineering solutions for projects ranging from 600-foot river crossings to 25-foot box culverts.
• Building Structural Offers structural engineering for new structures, renovations, repurposing of existing space, and building integrity assessments.
• Water Resources Delivers practical water management solutions focusing on sustainability, conservation, and efficiency from stormwater to water supply systems.
• Planning Develops community planning solutions balancing economic development, environmental stewardship, and infrastructure impacts.
• ADA Transition Planning Helps clients comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act through self-evaluation and ADA Transition Plan development, using GIS-based sidewalk inventory and scoring systems to increase accessibility for municipalities and institutions.
• Surveying & Drone Operations Provides comprehensive surveying services using traditional methods and FAA-licensed aerial drones for accurate field data collection, including detailed imagery for project design, site monitoring, and infrastructure assessment.
• Construction Administration Provides comprehensive project support from inception to completion, including full construction observation and inspection services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Saved taxpayers nearly $14 million through complete interstate closure strategy on I-255 rehabilitation (reduced construction duration from 4 years to 10 months).
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Chicago Metropolitan Agency for PlanningcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Oates Associates collaborates with the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) alongside municipal clients (e.g., La Grange Park) to develop ADA Transition Plans. CMAP is a regional planning agency serving the Chicago metropolitan area, and the collaboration supports compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act through pedestrian infrastructure assessments and transition planning.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Farnsworth Group: Illinois-based (Peoria/Bloomington) engineering and architecture firm offering civil, structural, and surveying services to municipal, education, and commercial clients. Closely comparable in service mix, employee count, and Midwest customer base.
• Crawford, Murphy & Tilly: Springfield, Illinois-based civil engineering firm with comparable Midwest municipal, transportation, and structural services. Direct competitor for IDOT, MoDOT, and Illinois/Missouri municipal work in overlapping geography.
• Lochmueller Group: Midwest-focused civil engineering firm headquartered in Indiana with strong transportation, water resources, and municipal practice. Comparable in scale, service mix, and reliance on DOT and municipal clients in the broader Midwest region.
• Clark Dietz: Illinois-based civil engineering firm focused on transportation, water, and structural services for municipal and DOT clients. Comparable scale, employee-ownership status, and concentration in Illinois/Indiana municipal work.
• TranSystems: Kansas City and broader Midwest-focused transportation engineering firm with bridge, highway, and rail expertise. Direct competitor on MoDOT and regional DOT pursuits; comparable structural and transportation engineering depth.
• HR Green: Midwest-rooted engineering firm (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) with transportation, water, and structural practices serving municipal and state DOT clients. Comparable in service portfolio and customer profile, with similar reliance on government infrastructure spending.
• Wight & Company: Illinois-based engineering, architecture, and construction firm with civil/site development and structural services. Comparable Midwest presence and overlapping municipal and institutional customer segments.
• Alfred Benesch & Company: Chicago-headquartered engineering firm with transportation, structural, and municipal infrastructure services. Direct competitor for IDOT and Illinois municipal work, similar employee-ownership culture, and comparable mid-size scale.
• Hanson Professional Services: Springfield, Illinois-headquartered engineering firm with transportation, structural, and government infrastructure practices. Comparable Midwest base, similar DOT and municipal client mix, and overlapping bridge/transportation service lines.

Broad incumbents

• Burns & McDonnell: Kansas City-headquartered global engineering, architecture, and construction firm with broad transportation, structural, and government infrastructure practices. Significantly larger than Oates, competes for the same IDOT/MoDOT and municipal work, and can leverage multidisciplinary scale Oates cannot match.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/oates-associates-inc-
• Instagraminstagram.com/oatesassociates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Oates Associates