Spalding DeDecker

What Spalding DeDecker does

Spalding DeDecker Associates Inc. is a Michigan-based, 100% employee-owned (ESOP) civil engineering, surveying, landscape architecture, and planning firm founded in 1954 and headquartered in Rochester Hills with five additional offices across the state (Detroit, Grand Rapids, Novi, Lansing, Flint). With 170+ employees including licensed Professional Engineers (PE), Professional Land Surveyors (PLS), and Professional Landscape Architects (PLA), the firm delivers multi-disciplinary professional services across nine practice areas: community planning, construction engineering, environmental engineering, land development, landscape architecture, municipal engineering, surveying and mapping, traffic engineering, and transportation engineering. Notable proprietary methodologies include a city-wide asset scoring system using probability-of-failure and consequence-of-failure ratings to prioritize water main replacement (deployed by the City of Novi on a $15M program), and a Hybrid Stabilized Base Design methodology for road rehabilitation under heavy commercial traffic (deployed on Clinton County's 3.7-mile Airport Road).

The firm generates revenue through project-based professional services contracts with government agencies, educational institutions, and commercial clients across Michigan. Primary customer segments are government/municipal agencies and education (K-12 and higher education); secondary segments include commercial/retail development, industrial/heavy civil, and residential development. The go-to-market model combines direct professional engagement, competitive public procurement (RFQ/RFP through MDOT Local Agency Program and QBS processes), client referrals, and repeat multi-decade engagements — including Walled Lake Consolidated Schools (since 1989, 150+ projects) and Woodland Mall/Pennsylvania REIT (20+ years). Marketing channels emphasize a construction-updates blog, email newsletters, organic social media, video content, and earned-media reputational signals from repeated Detroit Free Press Top Workplaces (2018-2024), Crain's Best Places to Work (2018-2024), and Metro Detroit Best and Brightest Awards. In January 2024 the firm expanded by acquiring Landscape Architects & Planners Inc. (LAP), a 1994-founded Lansing practice led by Bob Ford, strengthening landscape architecture and green infrastructure capabilities. Geographic scope is regional, limited to Southeast Michigan and Greater Michigan; there is no disclosed international footprint.

Name

Spalding DeDecker

Legal name

Spalding DeDecker Associates Inc.

Website

https://sda-eng.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1954

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Spalding DeDecker is an employee-owned Michigan civil engineering, surveying, landscape architecture, and planning firm founded in 1954. With 170+ employees across six offices, it serves government municipalities, K-12 and higher education clients, and commercial developers through multi-disciplinary infrastructure and land development projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Engineering Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Engineering Services (541330), Landscape Architectural Services (54132)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil & Structural Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Geotechnical & Subsurface Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAB), Engineering design services (line design, substation design, civil/structural) (EUADAKAG), Construction Management & Delivery (EPCM/CMAR/Design-Build Oversight) (EUANALAE)

Keywords

• Civil engineering services
• Surveying and mapping
• Landscape architecture
• Municipal engineering
• Transportation engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester Hills

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. Professional Services - Engineering: Comprehensive engineering services including municipal engineering, transportation engineering, environmental engineering, construction engineering, and land development. Revenue generated through project-based professional service contracts with government agencies, educational institutions, and commercial clients.
2. Professional Services - Surveying and Mapping: Surveying and mapping services including boundary surveys, construction layout, ALTA surveys, airport surveying, and precision industrial surveying for various sectors.
3. Professional Services - Landscape Architecture and Planning: Landscape architecture and community planning services including park master planning, streetscapes, and urban design for municipalities and private clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Spalding DeDecker is an employee-owned civil engineering firm that delivers integrated professional services across ten core disciplines: civil engineering, surveying and mapping, landscape architecture, community planning, land development, environmental engineering, construction engineering, municipal engineering, traffic engineering, and transportation engineering. The firm serves government agencies, educational institutions, and commercial developers across Michigan through six regional offices, executing infrastructure, planning, and site development projects on a contract basis.

Product overview

Spalding DeDecker is a 170+ employee employee-owned civil engineering, surveying, and planning firm providing multi-disciplinary professional services. The firm operates as a unified service portfolio organized around nine core disciplines: Civil Engineering, Surveying & Mapping, Landscape Architecture, Community Planning, Land Development, Environmental Engineering, Construction Engineering, Municipal Engineering, Traffic Engineering, and Transportation Engineering. These services are delivered through six strategically located offices across Michigan (Rochester Hills HQ, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Novi, Lansing, Flint) to public and private clients including municipalities, school districts, developers, and government agencies. The firm acquired Landscape Architects & Planners Inc. in 2024 to expand its green infrastructure capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Civil Engineering Services Comprehensive civil engineering services including municipal engineering, transportation engineering, and infrastructure design for public and private clients across Michigan.
• Surveying & Mapping Precise surveying and mapping services including boundary surveys, construction staking, topographic surveys, ALTA surveys, airport surveying, GIS infrastructure mapping, and precision industrial surveying that lay the foundation for accurate design, development, and decision-making.
• Landscape Architecture Sustainable and thoughtful landscape architecture services that blend nature, design, and community character, including park planning, streetscapes, urban design, and green infrastructure for municipalities and private clients.
• Community Planning Collaborative and inclusive planning services that create policies, places, and partnerships for thriving communities, including master planning, land use strategies, public engagement, and policy and ordinance development.
• Land Development Comprehensive land development services balancing innovation, functionality, and long-term value for residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional projects, including site design, permitting, and bidding support.
• Environmental Engineering Sustainable engineering solutions that safeguard the environment while enhancing community resilience, including wetland delineation, stormwater management design, green infrastructure, and environmental permitting support.
• Construction Engineering Reliable and responsive construction engineering services ensuring quality, safety, and success on-site, including project management, inspection, contract administration, materials testing, and project close-out for public and private projects.
• Municipal Engineering Delivering thoughtful infrastructure and engineering solutions to foster resilient, connected communities at the municipal level, including utility design, capital improvement programming, and public works engineering.
• Traffic Engineering Data-driven traffic engineering solutions that improve safety, reduce congestion, and enhance mobility for all users, including traffic studies, signal design and operations, and transportation operations analysis.
• Transportation Engineering Smart, efficient transportation engineering solutions for roadways, intersections, and multimodal networks supporting regional transportation infrastructure, including complete streets design, corridor studies, and pavement rehabilitation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 150 projects completed for Walled Lake Consolidated Schools since 1989
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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.

• Landscape Architects & Planners Inc. (LAP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 January 2024Spalding DeDecker acquired Landscape Architects & Planners Inc., a company founded in 1994 by Bob Ford. LAP focused on creating beautiful, functional, and sustainable projects around Michigan. The acquisition strengthens Spalding DeDecker's landscape architecture capabilities and green infrastructure expertise, expanding service offerings in civil engineering and sustainable design.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Hubbell, Roth & Clark: Michigan-headquartered civil/municipal engineering and surveying firm focused on water, wastewater, and roadway projects for counties and townships statewide.
• OHM Advisors: Michigan-rooted engineering, architecture, and planning firm delivering integrated municipal infrastructure, parks, and transportation services to the same state and education customers as Spalding DeDecker.
• Fishbeck: Full-service engineering, architecture, and environmental firm with large Michigan presence competing for municipal water, transportation, and site development work in the same geography.
• DLZ Corporation: Midwest architecture/engineering firm with strong Michigan operations delivering transportation, water, and municipal infrastructure services for similar government clients.
• Wade Trim: Michigan-based civil engineering consulting firm with comparable municipal, transportation, and water/wastewater practices serving local governments across southeast Michigan, head-to-head on RFQ/RFP processes.

Broad incumbents

• Jacobs Solutions: Global professional services firm whose Critical Mission Solutions and infrastructure consulting units overlap with SDA's municipal, transportation, and environmental engineering offerings.
• AECOM: Global engineering and infrastructure services giant with broad municipal, transportation, and environmental practices that compete for larger Michigan programs and federal-funded projects.
• Tetra Tech: Engineering and consulting firm focused on water, environment, and sustainable infrastructure, active in Great Lakes states and a frequent competitor on municipal water and stormwater RFPs.
• Stantec: International engineering, architecture, and environmental firm with North American municipal water and transportation practices that compete directly for Michigan public-sector work.

Emerging players

• Bowman Consulting: Multi-discipline engineering and surveying firm expanding its Midwest municipal footprint, increasingly competing for Michigan local-government contracts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@SpaldingDeDecker
• Facebookfacebook.com/spaldingdedeckerassociatesinc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/spalding-dedecker-associates-inc.
• Instagraminstagram.com/spaldingdedecker
• Xx.com/spaldingdedecke

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles23 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 Spalding DeDecker