What Architectural Wall Systems does

Architectural Wall Systems (AWS) is a specialty exterior envelope contractor founded in 1991 by Mike Cunningham in Des Moines, Iowa. The company provides full-cycle building envelope services—design-assist, engineering, fabrication, and installation—specializing in unitized curtain wall systems, European and Canadian rainscreen technology, pressure-equalized facade systems, and custom architectural envelope solutions. AWS operates two fabrication facilities in Grimes, Iowa and Gretna/Omaha, Nebraska (40,000+ sq. ft. combined) that enable in-house prefabrication of unitized components under controlled conditions, supporting expedited enclosure schedules and quality control. The company is a pioneer in rainscreen technology adoption in the U.S. market, having deployed the approach since founding.

AWS generates revenue through project-based lump-sum contracts with general contractors, construction managers, and project owners, with project values ranging from $1M to $100M+ in envelope scope. Its primary customer segments include Higher Education (Iowa State University, University of Iowa, Creighton, Princeton, Columbia, Caltech), Healthcare (Children's Mercy, Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center, Hubbard Center for Children, VA Ambulatory Care Center), Corporate/Commercial Office (Wells Fargo, Apple, Wellmark, TD Ameritrade, Kiewit), Sports and Entertainment (MetLife Stadium, Kinnick Stadium, CHI Health Center), Civic/Cultural (Joslyn Art Museum, Figge Art Museum, Minneapolis Public Service Building), and Transit/Infrastructure. The company employs union ironworkers and glaziers organized into composite crews, and maintains 20+ year relationships with fabrication and material partners including Baker Metals, Seedorff Masonry, and Sotawall. AWS has been recognized with 13+ AIA Excellence in Craft Awards and consistently ranks among the top glazing and curtain wall contractors in the U.S. (ENR #15 in 2024). The company is privately held, founder-owned, and operates primarily in the Midwest with selective expansion into 15+ U.S. states.

Name

Architectural Wall Systems

Legal name

Architectural Wall Systems, LLC

Website

https://archwall.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Architectural Wall Systems is a privately held specialty exterior envelope contractor providing design-assist, fabrication, and installation of unitized curtain wall, rainscreen, and custom facade systems for higher education, healthcare, corporate, civic, and sports projects across the Midwest and beyond.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Building Envelope Contracting

NAICS

Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (23622), Architectural Services (54131)

SIC

Fabricated Structural Metal Products (3440)

akta.pro primary industry

Storefronts, Curtain Wall & Window Wall Systems (IMADAIAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

Keywords

• Exterior envelope contracting
• Unitized curtain wall
• Rainscreen systems
• Building envelope design
• Facade installation services

Headquarters

HQ city

Clive

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Specialty Exterior Envelope Contracting: AWS generates revenue as a specialty trade contractor providing design-assist, fabrication, and installation services for building envelope systems on construction projects. Revenue is project-based, earned through lump-sum contracts with general contractors or construction managers. Projects encompass the full exterior envelope including curtain wall, rainscreen, glazing, metal panels, and related systems.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Architectural Wall Systems is a specialty exterior envelope contractor that designs, engineers, fabricates, and installs building envelope systems including unitized curtain wall, European and Canadian rainscreen systems, and custom facade solutions. The company operates two fabrication facilities (Grimes, IA and Gretna/Omaha, NE) where unitized components are factory-assembled and sealed before site delivery, and delivers full preconstruction-to-installation services to general contractors and project owners across commercial, institutional, healthcare, higher education, sports, civic, and transit construction.

Product overview

Architectural Wall Systems (AWS) is a specialty exterior envelope contractor offering a comprehensive suite of building envelope solutions from design concept through installation completion. The company's integrated service model encompasses Design Assist & Preconstruction, Fabrication, and Construction services, supported by proprietary and custom building envelope technologies including Unitized Curtain Wall Systems, Rainscreen Technology Systems, and Custom Building Envelope Solutions. AWS operates two state-of-the-art fabrication facilities in Omaha, NE and Des Moines, IA, enabling in-house prefabrication of unitized components while maintaining partnerships with international suppliers. The company specializes in European and Canadian rain screen technology and unitized construction methods, delivering projects across commercial, higher education, healthcare, sports, civic, and transit sectors throughout the Midwest.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Design Assist & Preconstruction Services Collaborative design-assist delivery method engaging project teams early to provide system options and pricing alternatives. Includes BIM-based solutions, systems detailing, interface engineering, and thermal analysis for building envelope design.
• Fabrication Services Prefabrication of unitized exterior envelope components in controlled shop conditions at facilities in Omaha, NE and Des Moines/Grimes, IA. Eliminates environmental variability and provides quality assurance before site delivery.
• Construction Services Installation of exterior envelope systems using union ironworkers and glaziers in composite crews, combining trades for quality, speed of installation, and envelope performance.
• Unitized Curtain Wall Systems Factory fabricated, assembled, and sealed unitized exterior wall systems with pressure-equalized design. Requires upfront planning and purchasing with the benefit of expedited enclosure schedule.
• Rainscreen Technology Systems European and Canadian rain screen systems for moisture management and long-term enclosure durability, including drained and back-ventilated pressure-equalized designs.
• Custom Building Envelope Solutions Custom-designed exterior envelope solutions ranging from simple to complex, including custom pleated curtain wall systems, custom frit patterns, specialty glazing, and project-specific facade geometries.

Quantifiable outcome

• AWS unitized systems allow expedited building enclosure, with crews averaging double-digit unit counts per day on some projects
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Baker MetalscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAWS's longest-standing fabrication partner with more than 20 years of collaboration. Baker Metals fabricated both visual/performance mockups and the unitized curtain wall for the Minneapolis Public Service Building at their Dallas, TX facility. The partnership enables AWS to deliver quality mockups and production curtain wall systems through a trusted supply chain.
• Seedorff Masonry, Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing masonry and exterior envelope partner working alongside AWS on numerous projects including the VA Ambulatory Care Center (25,000 sq. ft. of stone cladding), Owensboro Hospital, UMHC New Patient Tower (custom brick veneer unitized rainscreen), United Fire Group, Herschler Building, and Gerdin Expansion. AWS and Seedorff Masonry also co-own and co-operate regional office and fabrication facilities in Gretna, NE and Grimes, IA.
• SotawallcoreTechnology or IntegrationFabrication partner for complex curtain wall projects including Children's Mercy Research Institute in Kansas City. AWS collaborated closely with Sotawall upfront on heavy BIM and MEP coordination and extensive thermal testing, demonstrating a deep technical partnership for custom unitized curtain wall delivery.
• US Army Corps of Engineers — Cold Regions Research & Engineering LaboratoryminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerConducted custom testing for the aluminum louver system at MetLife Stadium to ensure ice-cutting devices on louver blades would properly minimize the size of falling ice to ensure visitor safety in the stadium's eight-level structure.
• Conlon ConstructionminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerGeneral contractor partner on the Dubuque Museum of Art (DuMA) project, collaborating with AWS and SMI on final design development and construction delivery of the museum's exterior envelope featuring glazed brick, zinc, aluminum panels, clay brick, and curtainwall systems.
• EYP (now known as EYP Architecture & Engineering)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitectural firm partner on the Grinnell College Humanities and Social Studies Center, working with AWS as design-assist exterior envelope partner alongside McGough Construction. Project featured weathered copper panels, curtain wall, and custom skylight systems.
• The Weitz CompanycoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerOne of AWS's most frequent general contractor partners, having collaborated on multiple projects including the Iowa Events Center, Wells Fargo Financial South, Des Moines Public Library, DART Central Station, 7th & Grand Parking Ramp, Wells Fargo West Campus, and the Hilton Downtown Des Moines. Relationship characterized by tight schedules and high-volume envelope delivery.
• HDR Inc.coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerHDR is both a key architectural firm client and partner for AWS. Projects include the Omaha VA Ambulatory Care Center, Douglas County Justice Center, Herschler Building, Children's Mercy Research Institute, Omaha Central Library, and HDR's own headquarters in Aksarben Village, Omaha. AWS served as design-assist envelope partner, BIM modeler, and full exterior envelope contractor on multiple HDR-designed projects.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Harmon Inc. Harmon is one of the largest U.S. glazing and curtain wall contractors, working on complex commercial building envelopes nationwide. AWS and Harmon compete head-to-head in the ENR Glazing and Curtain Wall rankings.
• Permasteelisa Group: Permasteelisa is a global leader in curtain walls and architectural envelopes with significant North American operations. AWS competes with Permasteelisa for the largest, most architecturally distinctive commercial projects.
• Benson Industries: Benson Industries designs, engineers, fabricates, and installs custom unitized curtain wall systems. AWS and Benson share an identical full-cycle, design-assist delivery model for complex building envelopes.
• W&W Glass LLC: W&W Glass is a New York-area glazing and curtain wall specialty contractor serving premier commercial and institutional projects. AWS and W&W both compete for unitized curtain wall work on landmark buildings.
• Enclos Corp. Enclos is a national custom facade and curtain wall contractor specializing in design-assist unitized envelope systems. AWS and Enclos both compete for the same design-driven institutional and commercial projects.
• Tower Glass Inc. Tower Glass is a Midwest-based commercial glazing and curtain wall contractor. AWS and Tower Glass share a similar geographic footprint and compete on regional design-assist envelope projects.
• BEMO USA: BEMO USA is a unitized curtain wall and facade contractor delivering design-assist envelope systems across North America. AWS competes with BEMO in mid-market and larger custom envelope work.

Broad incumbents

• YKK AP America: YKK AP is a major aluminum fenestration and curtain wall manufacturer/installer with national reach. As a broader incumbent, YKK AP competes with AWS on commercial projects specifying unitized curtain wall.
• Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope: Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope is a major vertically integrated glazing and curtain wall manufacturer/installer. While broader than AWS in scope, OBE is a competitor on large-scale commercial envelope work.

Emerging players

• Front Inc. Front Inc. is a facade engineering and design consultancy supporting complex curtain wall and envelope projects. While not a direct installation competitor, Front overlaps with AWS's design-assist expertise at the building envelope consulting layer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance6 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Architectural Wall Systems