What Cunningham Engineering does

Cunningham Engineering Corporation is a privately held, multi-discipline professional services firm headquartered in Davis, California, with a second office in Midtown Sacramento. Founded in 1984 by Chuck Cunningham, the firm provides civil engineering, landscape architecture, and project planning services to public and private sector clients across Northern California. Core offerings span sustainable site design, low-impact development, urban design, infrastructure studies, entitlement and permitting, SWPPP preparation, parks and open-space planning, urban streetscape design, and water resource facilities design. The firm operates primarily with standard civil engineering software (AutoCAD and Civil 3D) and has no disclosed proprietary technology, AI/ML capability, or digital product platform.

The firm generates revenue through negotiated professional service fees on a project-by-project basis, with go-to-market driven by direct client engagement, long-term relationship management, and competitive bidding on public and private RFPs. Its core client segments are government/municipal, healthcare systems, and higher education institutions, supplemented by K-12, affordable/community housing, residential developers, mining, and mixed-use infill projects. Notable clients include UC Davis, CSU Sacramento, Kaiser Permanente, Sutter Health, Dignity Health, City of Davis, Yolo County, and Mutual Housing, with signature projects such as the $164 million Hornet Commons Student Housing at Sacramento State and landscape renovations delivering over 50% outdoor water savings across Kaiser Permanente Northern California campuses.

The firm employs approximately 25 staff (including 9 licensed civil engineers and 5 landscape architects) and is believed to operate under an employee-ownership structure, with no external private equity, venture capital, or parent company involvement. Cunningham Engineering has received multiple regional recognitions, including Sacramento Business Journal Project of the Year awards (2020) and City of Davis Business of the Year (2019). The company is privately held, has no disclosed funding rounds, no mergers or acquisitions, and no partnerships or alliances on record.

Name

Cunningham Engineering

Legal name

Cunningham Engineering Corporation

Website

https://cecwest.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cunningham Engineering Corporation is a privately held, multi-discipline civil engineering, landscape architecture, and project planning firm founded in 1984, serving government, healthcare, higher education, and development clients across Northern California from offices in Davis and Sacramento.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Engineering Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Landscape Architectural Services (541320)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Civil & Structural Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

Keywords

• Civil engineering services
• Landscape architecture
• Project planning
• Site development
• Infrastructure design

Headquarters

HQ city

Davis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Services: Cunningham Engineering generates revenue through professional service fees for civil engineering, landscape architecture, and project planning services. Revenue is earned through project-based engagements, typically involving site development, infrastructure design, and landscape architecture for residential, commercial, institutional, and municipal clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Cunningham Engineering is a multi-discipline professional services firm providing civil engineering, landscape architecture, and project planning services to institutional clients across Northern California. Service lines cover sustainable site design, low-impact development, urban design, infrastructure studies, parks and open-space planning, water-efficient landscape design, and entitlements and permitting support. Projects are delivered on a project-by-project engagement basis for sectors including civic, healthcare, higher education, K-12, community housing, residential development, and mining.

Product overview

Cunningham Engineering is a multi-discipline civil engineering and landscape architecture firm offering three core service lines: Civil Engineering Services, Landscape Architecture Services, and Project Planning Services. Founded in 1984, the firm collaborates across these disciplines to provide integrated exceptional service to clients in Northern California, working on projects spanning civic, community housing, healthcare, higher education, K-12, parks and recreation, utilities/infrastructure, and other development sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Civil Engineering Services Full-service civil engineering for institutional and development clients, including sustainable design, low-impact development implementation, urban design, infrastructure studies, and public outreach support.
• Landscape Architecture Services Comprehensive landscape design and site planning services for institutional and development clients, including green and sustainable design, parks and open-space planning, urban streetscape design, and water resource facilities design.
• Project Planning Services Entitlement and permitting services for development projects, including SWPPP preparation, site background research, community outreach, site planning, due diligence studies, and project submittals.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50% reduction in outdoor water use achieved for Kaiser Permanente Northern California campuses through drought-resistant landscape renovation
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers19 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• LSA Associates: California-based multi-discipline planning, engineering, and environmental consulting firm with a similar mix of public-sector and institutional clients; directly comparable in size and service scope to Cunningham's civil/landscape/planning model.
• Psomas: Western US engineering, surveying, and planning firm serving municipalities, transportation, and land development clients - closely mirrors Cunningham's civil engineering and entitlement/project planning capabilities.
• RRM Design Group: California-based multi-discipline design firm offering civil engineering, landscape architecture, and planning services for public agencies, schools, and developers - a direct analog to Cunningham's integrated service mix.
• MIG (Moore Iacofano Goltsman): California planning, design, and communications firm with civil/landscape capabilities serving public-sector and community clients; comparable mid-sized peer competing for similar municipal and institutional work.
• LandDesign: Multi-discipline planning, civil engineering, and landscape architecture firm serving public and private clients in similar vertical markets; comparable integrated service delivery model.

Broad incumbents

• Kimley-Horn: Large national engineering consulting firm with strong California presence in land development and institutional work; broader portfolio and deeper bench but competing for the same civil engineering RFPs.
• Stantec: Global engineering, architecture, and environmental firm with active Northern California practice in community development, water, and infrastructure - competes on larger institutional and municipal programs.
• Tetra Tech: Global consulting and engineering firm with deep water resources and infrastructure practices that overlap with Cunningham's civil engineering and water-efficient landscape work.
• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting firm with major California presence across transportation, water, and campus programs - competes for the same large institutional and public-sector capital projects.
• Michael Baker International: National engineering, planning, and consulting firm active in California public infrastructure and community development - broader service breadth but overlapping client set with Cunningham.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/p/Ch-H4AGpn6s
• Xx.com/CunninghamENG
• Facebookfacebook.com/CunninghamEngineering
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cunningham-engineering-corporation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Cunningham Engineering