Kornberg Associates

What Kornberg Associates does

Kornberg Associates is a private architecture firm founded in 1979 by Kenneth Kornberg in San Diego, California, specializing exclusively in the design of research, medical, and educational facilities. The firm positions itself as the oldest independent architectural practice dedicated to laboratory and research facility design, with a reference base of more than 600 lab projects ranging from feasibility studies through multi-million-square-foot research campuses. Its client base spans pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies (e.g., Pfizer, Alza, Tanabe Research Laboratories, Symyx), academic and research institutions (e.g., Stanford, Caltech, UCSD, Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology, Université Louis Pasteur, National University of Singapore), and healthcare organizations (e.g., Cleveland Clinic Foundation's Lerner Research Institute, Royal Commission of Saudi Arabia).

The firm delivers a single integrated professional service: full-lifecycle architectural design with deep specialization in laboratory programming and planning, supplemented by Building Information Modeling (BIM) adopted in 2001, sustainability analysis, interior design, and construction administration. Services are project-based and custom-priced, with no published standard fee schedule. Delivery is supported by three offices (San Diego, Menlo Park, Tokyo) and a structured in-house training pipeline that develops architects over a five-year apprenticeship. Strategic partnerships with firms such as Nikken Sekkei, Kuniken, Cesar Pelli & Associates, and Ike Kligerman Barkley Architects extend capacity for large-scale and international commissions.

The go-to-market model is enterprise field sales driven by professional reputation, repeat institutional relationships, thought-leadership publications, and conference participation. The firm markets through authored books, keynote speaking engagements, and earned media coverage rather than paid acquisition. Revenue is not publicly disclosed, the firm has no disclosed funding rounds, no acquisitions, and no parent company, and it remains founder-owned and led by Kenneth Kornberg with managing principals across offices (e.g., Mike Mulvey in San Diego, Jon James in Menlo Park).

Name

Kornberg Associates

Legal name

Kornberg Associates Architects

Website

https://kornberg.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kornberg Associates is a private architecture firm founded in 1979 that exclusively designs research, medical, and educational facilities, serving universities, pharmaceutical companies, biotech firms, and healthcare organizations worldwide through specialized laboratory planning services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural Services for Research Facilities

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54), Interior Design Services (54141)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG)

Keywords

• Laboratory architecture services
• Research facility design
• Scientific building planning
• Biotech facility architecture
• Pharmaceutical facility design

Headquarters

HQ city

Menlo Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel

Revenue model

1. Architecture and Design Services: Full-service architectural firm providing feasibility studies, site analysis, master planning, laboratory planning and design, architectural design, sustainability analysis, interior design, construction administration, project management, and consulting services for research facilities worldwide.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Kornberg Associates is a private architecture firm providing full-service architectural design for research, clinical care, and educational facilities. Services span feasibility studies, site analysis, master planning, laboratory planning and design, code analysis, sustainability analysis, interior design, construction administration, project management, and consulting. The firm specializes in laboratory and scientific building design for universities, biotech, pharmaceutical, and healthcare clients worldwide.

Product overview

Kornberg Associates is an architecture firm that provides comprehensive architectural services for research facilities. The firm operates a single integrated service offering centered on laboratory planning and design, supplemented by BIM services and published expertise through books on research facility design. Services include feasibility studies, site analysis, master planning, laboratory planning and design, architectural design, code analysis, sustainability analysis, interior design, construction administration, project management, and consulting. The firm has completed over 600 projects worldwide for research institutions, universities, and corporations. Founded in 1979, it is the oldest independent architecture firm specializing in research facility design, with offices in Menlo Park, California and Tokyo, Japan.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architectural Design Services Comprehensive architectural design services spanning feasibility studies, site analysis, master planning, laboratory planning and design, code analysis, sustainability analysis, interior design, construction administration, project management, and consulting for research facilities worldwide. Intended for universities, federal/state/local governments, private research institutes, and pharmaceutical companies.
• Laboratory Planning and Design Specialized programming and design of research and clinical care facilities, including laboratories, for universities, biotech, pharmaceutical, and educational institutions. Addresses requirements for specialized equipment, evolving research methodologies, and scientific collaboration.
• Research Facility Master Planning Comprehensive master planning services for new research campuses and graduate universities, including site planning and strategic facility programming. Used for large-scale developments such as the 550-acre Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology graduate research campus.

Quantifiable outcome

• 600+ lab projects completed since 1979 ranging from feasibility studies to full campus designs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Nikken SekkeicoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJapanese A/E firm that served as joint venture partner with Kornberg Associates on the Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology project. Nikken Sekkei provided local design expertise and regulatory knowledge for this landmark 2.5 million square foot graduate research campus in Japan.
• KunikencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJapanese A/E firm that partnered with Kornberg Associates and Nikken Sekkei on the Okinawa Institute of Science & Technology project. Kuniken provided local expertise for the Okinawa-based graduate university campus.
• Ike Kligerman Barkley ArchitectsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDesign architects who partnered with Kornberg Associates (as executive architect) on the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) project in the John A and Cynthia Fry Gunn Building.
• Cesar Pelli & AssociatesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborated with Kornberg Associates on the Cleveland Clinic Health Sciences Center. Cesar Pelli designed the shell and administrative portions while Kornberg programmed and designed the interiors of the research buildings including the 250,000 sq ft Lerner Research Institute.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• EwingCole: Architecture and engineering firm with dedicated science, healthcare, and higher-education practices designing research laboratories and medical research buildings. Direct niche competitor with comparable client base and project profiles.
• SmithGroup: Architecture and engineering firm with one of the largest U.S. science & technology practices, designing research labs for universities, healthcare systems, and government agencies. Closely comparable in client mix, project scale, and laboratory-planning specialization.
• CannonDesign: Integrated design firm with significant higher-education, healthcare, and science practices. Competes with Kornberg for academic research, medical research, and translational science facility commissions across the U.S.
• ZGF Architects: Design firm with a major science + technology portfolio serving universities, medical centers, and corporate research clients. Comparable as a specialty research-architecture competitor with similar project scale and client verticals.
• Perkins&Will: Global architecture firm with a dedicated Science & Technology practice designing research laboratories, healthcare facilities, and academic buildings. Directly comparable as a science-architecture specialist competing for the same pharma, biotech, and university research facility commissions.
• Flad Architects: Specialty architecture firm with deep expertise in research facilities, higher education, and healthcare science buildings. Direct niche competitor targeting universities, pharma and biotech with comparable specialized laboratory design capabilities.
• Payette: Boston-based architecture firm nationally recognized for science and research facility design for academic medical centers and life-sciences clients. Direct peer in laboratory programming and specialized research-building design.

Broad incumbents

• HOK: Large global architecture firm with a Science + Technology group designing research, healthcare, and academic facilities. Larger, broader incumbent offering overlapping lab-design capabilities as part of a much wider portfolio.
• Jacobs: Global professional services firm with a large architecture/engineering practice (formerly CH2M, including the Johns Hopkins/AECOM legacy) serving life-sciences, higher-education, and government research clients. Broader incumbent with overlapping lab-design capabilities.
• HDR: Large architecture/engineering firm with a substantial health and science practice designing hospitals, research facilities, and academic medical centers. Broad incumbent providing research-building design as part of a wide infrastructure portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 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 Kornberg Associates