Origin Design
Origin Design (formerly IIW) is an employee-owned, full-service architecture, engineering, land survey, and construction field-services firm founded in 1982, serving government, healthcare, education, commercial, industrial, and energy clients across the U.S. Midwest.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1982
- HeadquartersDubuque, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Origin Design does
Origin Design (legally Origin Design Co., formerly IIW, P.C.) is a full-service professional architecture, engineering, land survey, and construction field-services firm founded in 1982 in Dubuque, Iowa. The firm delivers integrated project services across nine vertical markets — government, commercial, healthcare, education, industrial, energy, real estate development, parks & recreation, and retail/gaming/hospitality — with government/municipal infrastructure as its primary segment. Core disciplines span architectural design, and civil, structural, municipal, transportation, land-development, and water-resources engineering, supported by land surveying (boundary, ALTA, topographic) and construction inspection/testing. Technical delivery relies on standard industry tooling (Revit BIM, Civil 3D, CAD) plus applied capabilities such as 3D modeling/animation for stakeholder visualization, hydraulic modeling for water systems, closed-loop geothermal mechanical design, and LEAN facility layout.
The business is a project-based professional-services model with revenue generated across four streams: architecture, engineering, land survey, and field services. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is determined per project by scope and complexity. Go-to-market is direct enterprise/field sales, with public work secured through competitive RFPs and government procurement and private work through direct proposals and repeat relationships. Notable clients include MercyOne, Flexsteel Industries, Loras College, Dubuque Community School District, Alliant Energy, MidWestOne Bank, and the City of Dubuque (Bee Branch Creek flood-mitigation, a $582M-benefit public infrastructure project).
Origin Design is a private, employee-owned company with no external VC/PE ownership or parent, electing its Board and Officers annually. It operates from a Dubuque headquarters plus regional offices in the Quad Cities (Davenport), southwest Wisconsin (Shullsburg/Hazel Green), and St. Cloud, Minnesota, serving a predominantly Midwest regional footprint. Headcount has grown from two founders to 75+ (firmographic banding lists 101-250). The firm was recognized as a Zweig Group Best Firm to Work For (#54 Multi-Discipline, 2019) and has received AIA Iowa energy-efficiency and Concrete Paving Association awards.
Origin Design firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Origin Design
- Legal name
- Origin Design Co.
- Website
- https://origindesign.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1982
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Origin Design (formerly IIW) is an employee-owned, full-service architecture, engineering, land survey, and construction field-services firm founded in 1982, serving government, healthcare, education, commercial, industrial, and energy clients across the U.S. Midwest.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Origin Design industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Architecture & Engineering Design Services
- NAICS
- Architectural Services (54131), Engineering Services (54133), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)
- SIC
- Services-Engineering Services (8711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)
Keywords
Where Origin Design is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Dubuque
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Origin Design business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Architecture Services: Creative design services for commercial, healthcare, education, government, and industrial buildings including new construction, additions, and remodels.
- Engineering Services: Civil, structural, municipal, transportation, land development, and water resources engineering including design, feasibility studies, and construction administration.
- Land Survey Services: Boundary surveys, ALTA surveys, land subdivision, legal descriptions, construction layout, and topographic surveys.
- Field Services: Construction inspection, testing, and observation services during construction to ensure quality and compliance with project specifications.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Origin Design product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Origin Design is a full-service professional design firm providing integrated architecture, engineering, land surveying, and construction field/inspection services. Architecture services encompass creative design for new construction, renovations, and adaptive re-use across healthcare, education, commercial, government, and industrial buildings. Engineering covers land development, municipal, structural, transportation, and water resources disciplines. Field Services provides construction inspection, testing, and quality assurance, while Land Survey delivers boundary, ALTA, topographic, and subdivision surveys.
Product overview
Origin Design is a full-service professional design firm offering integrated architecture, engineering, land survey, and field services. The firm operates as a unified service organization where these core disciplines work collaboratively on client projects across multiple markets including commercial, education, energy, government, healthcare, industrial, parks & recreation, real estate development, and retail/gaming/hospitality sectors. Architecture and Engineering services form the primary service lines, supported by specialized sub-services in land development, municipal, structural, transportation, and water resources engineering, complemented by field construction services and land surveying capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Architecture Services Creative architectural design for commercial, healthcare, education, government, and industrial building projects, including new construction, renovations, and adaptive re-use. Served to enterprise and government clients through project-based engagements.
- Engineering Services Comprehensive engineering solutions covering land development, municipal, structural, transportation, and water resources disciplines for government, commercial, healthcare, education, industrial, and energy clients.
- Field Services Construction inspection, testing, and quality assurance services to ensure accurate project execution throughout the construction process, including structural, materials, and deck pour inspection work.
- Land Survey Precision land surveying services including boundary surveys, ALTA surveys, topographic surveys, land subdivision, and construction layout for public agencies, developers, and private landowners.
- Land Development Engineering Site selection, grading, utility design, and infrastructure planning for commercial, industrial, and residential developments.
- Municipal Engineering Engineering services for city and local government infrastructure including water, sewer, streets, and public facilities.
- Structural Engineering Structural design and analysis for buildings, bridges, and other structures including foundation systems and load calculations.
- Transportation Engineering Planning, design, and construction services for roadways, bridges, trails, and other transportation infrastructure.
- Water Resources Engineering Water distribution, wastewater treatment, stormwater management, and water resources planning services.
Quantifiable outcome
- Bee Branch Creek Restoration protects over 1,300 homes and businesses from flooding, preventing $582M in potential damage
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Origin Design
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Origin Design technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Origin Design partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Quad City Carpenters and Millwrights Training CentercoreCollaboration on the design of a new $17 million Carpenters and Millwrights Training Center and Union Hall. Origin Design provided architectural services for the 85,000 sf facility serving 2,000 union members and apprentices in the Quad Cities and State of Illinois.
- Chicago Regional Council of CarpenterscoreJoint development partner for the Carpenters and Millwrights Training Center project serving union members across the Quad Cities and Illinois.
- Obora & AssociatesminorProject collaborator on the Carpenters and Millwrights Training Center and Union Hall design project.
- Alliant EnergycoreOngoing partnership on renewable energy projects including the West Dubuque Solar Garden (largest in Iowa) and Port of Dubuque Solar Garden. Origin Design provided site design, structural design, construction layout, and material testing.
- C.G. SchmittminorElectrical contractor partner on multiple solar array projects with Alliant Energy.
- H & H Electric Co.minorElectrical contractor partner on multiple solar array projects with Alliant Energy.
- Cuningham Group ArchitectscoreArchitecture partnership on Sartell High School (294,000 sf, 1,350 students) and St. Cloud Technical High School (accommodating 1,600 students). Partnership combines Origin Design's local expertise with Cuningham's national education design experience.
- River Valley Nursery and LandscapingminorWetland delineation services for Asbury Park Business Park development.
- Allender Butzke EngineersminorGeotechnical services partner for Asbury Park Business Park project including borings and analysis.
- Team ServicesminorGeotechnical analysis partner for Asbury Park Business Park project.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Origin Design competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Shive-Hattery: Iowa-headquartered multi-discipline architecture and engineering firm of comparable size, serving government, healthcare, education, commercial and industrial clients across the Midwest. Direct overlap with Origin on geography, service mix, and vertical markets.
- Stanley Consultants: Iowa-based engineering and architectural consulting firm with strong water, energy, and transportation practices. Comparable on municipal/infrastructure engineering scope and Midwest roots, though typically larger in scale.
- HR Green: Midwest-based (Cedar Rapids, IA / Minnesota) engineering, technical, and management consulting firm specializing in transportation, water, governmental, and land development services. Closely matches Origin's municipal/transportation engineering core.
- Wight & Company: Illinois-headquartered architecture and engineering firm with comparable integrated design-build capabilities serving commercial, education, healthcare, and government clients. Similar size and Midwest positioning.
- Foth: Wisconsin-based engineering, architecture, and science firm serving infrastructure, environmental, and manufacturing clients. Comparable on Midwest geography, multi-discipline service offering, and similar mid-market size.
- Klingner & Associates: Quad Cities (Iowa/Illinois) architecture and engineering firm of similar size, offering civil, structural, mechanical, surveying and architecture services. Direct regional competitor with overlapping client base in eastern Iowa and western Illinois.
- IMEG Corporation: Midwest-based (Cedar Rapids, IA / Quad Cities) engineering and architecture consulting firm with comparable multi-discipline offerings including structural, civil, mechanical, and building commissioning. Closest direct peer given overlapping Quad Cities presence and similar service breadth.
- MSA Professional Services: Wisconsin-headquartered architecture, engineering, and planning firm with strong municipal/government practice and similar multi-discipline structure. Directly comparable on verticals (government, water, transportation, land development) and Upper Midwest geography.
Broad incumbents
- Burns & McDonnell: Major employee-owned AEC firm with strong Midwest presence, offering architecture and a broad engineering portfolio. Compares on employee-ownership model and similar verticals but operates at substantially larger scale.
- HDR, Inc. Large global AEC firm headquartered in Omaha, NE, with deep architecture, engineering, and environmental practices. Overlaps Origin on transportation, water, healthcare, and government verticals but operates at significantly greater scale across national and international markets.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Origin Design social profiles
Digital presenceOrigin Design financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Origin Design leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Origin Design funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Origin Design M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Origin Design
What does Origin Design do?
Origin Design is a full-service professional design firm providing integrated architecture, engineering, land surveying, and construction field/inspection services. Architecture services encompass creative design for new construction, renovations, and adaptive re-use across healthcare, education, commercial, government, and industrial buildings. Engineering covers land development, municipal, structural, transportation, and water resources disciplines. Field Services provides construction inspection, testing, and quality assurance, while Land Survey delivers boundary, ALTA, topographic, and subdivision surveys.
Is Origin Design a public or private company?
Origin Design is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Origin Design founded?
Origin Design was founded in 1982. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Origin Design based?
Origin Design is headquartered in Dubuque, United States, in the North America region.
How does Origin Design make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Architecture Services are the primary driver. The others are engineering Services, land Survey Services and field Services.
Who are Origin Design's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Shive-Hattery, Stanley Consultants, HR Green, Wight & Company, Foth, Klingner & Associates, IMEG Corporation and MSA Professional Services. Broad incumbents are Burns & McDonnell and HDR, Inc..
Does Origin Design have an API?
No public API is recorded for Origin Design.
What industry is Origin Design in?
Origin Design's product category is Architecture & Engineering Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAA, Architectural Design Services. Its NAICS code is 54131 and its SIC code is 8711.