Picharchitects

What Picharchitects does

Picharchitects is a Barcelona-headquartered sustainable architecture practice founded in 1985 by Felipe Pich-Aguilera and Teresa Batlle, providing professional architectural services across the full building lifecycle from urban planning to construction detailing. The firm serves three primary segments: tertiary (offices, research institutes, healthcare), residential (including social housing and retrofitting), and public administrations / housing developers engaged in industrialised construction. Notable delivered projects include the LEED Gold certified Institut de Recerca de Sant Pau research institute (62% energy savings versus reference) and Edificio Gonsi Socrates in Viladecans, described as Spain's first building constructed 100% under a circular construction model with LEED Gold and Cradle to Lean certifications.

The firm's technical differentiation rests on four pillars: Sustainability (whole life-cycle control), Industrialisation (modular construction systems to optimise cost, resources and execution time), Innovation (via PichInnovation, an internal R&D unit that runs simulations and EPD-based product research), and Digitalisation (BIM methodology with digital twins on every project). Two proprietary innovations stand out: InnoFAB, a modular regeneration system for urban housing retrofit with documented 60% facade and 35% roof thermal transmittance improvements, developed with Fundacion BIThabitat (Barcelona City Council); and Marco Insularis, an insulating concrete frame solution co-developed with Cemex Global R&D using Insularis aerated concrete and D.fab digital morphing CNC manufacturing.

Picharchitects monetises through project-based professional services fees, acquiring work via architecture competitions (including a first-prize restricted competition win for Sant Pau) and direct engagement with developers, corporations and public administrations. The firm operates two offices (Barcelona HQ and Monterrey, Mexico), has a headcount band of 11-50 employees, and is privately held with no disclosed external investment. As of March 2026, the partnership was expanded with the addition of Antonio Batlle as partner and Alejandra Vial heading a new management team, explicitly to accelerate national and international expansion.

Name

Picharchitects

Legal name

PICHARCHITECTS - PICH-AGUILERA

Website

https://picharchitects.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Picharchitects is a Barcelona-based sustainable architecture firm with 40 years of experience serving residential, tertiary, and public-sector clients in Europe and Mexico. It designs energy-efficient, circular-economy buildings using BIM, modular construction, and proprietary innovations from its PichInnovation R&D unit.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Architecture Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Nonresidential Building Construction (2362)

SIC

General Bldg Contractors - Nonresidential Bldgs (1540), General Bldg Contractors - Residential Bldgs (1520)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Engagement & Participatory Planning (BPAHAKAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Residential Design-Build & Renovation-Integrated Builders (IMAFABAE), Healthcare Facility Construction (Hospitals, Clinics, Labs) (IMAFACAD), Housing Development, Construction & Rehabilitation Programs (BPAIANAB)

Keywords

• Sustainable architecture services
• Building information modeling
• Circular economy construction
• Modular building retrofit
• Industrialised construction design

Headquarters

HQ city

Barcelona

HQ country

Spain

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Architectural Design Services: Fees for architectural design services including concept design, technical design, construction management, and project supervision across residential, tertiary (offices), healthcare, and industrial building projects. Projects are typically one-off commissions won through competitions or direct hiring.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Picharchitects is an architectural firm that provides sustainable architectural design services across residential, tertiary (offices), healthcare, and industrial building projects. The firm covers the full project lifecycle from urban planning through concept design, technical design, construction management, and project supervision. Its work centres on sustainability, circular economy construction, industrialised building systems, and BIM-based digital project delivery for enterprise and public-sector clients in Spain and internationally.

Product overview

Picharchitects is a sustainable architecture firm with 40 years of experience offering comprehensive architectural services from urban planning to construction details. Their core service portfolio centers on sustainable architecture with four strategic pillars: Sustainability (building lifecycle control), Innovation (through PichInnovation R&D division), Industrialization (optimizing building performance, costs, resources and execution times), and Digitalization (BIM methodology). Key specialized offerings include InnoFAB (modular regeneration system for building rehabilitation), Marco Insularis (insulating concrete solutions for openings), and research collaborations with industry partners like Danosa and Cemex. The firm operates from offices in Barcelona and Monterrey, Mexico, and has completed notable projects including the Edificio Gonsi Sócrates (Spain's first 100% circular construction building) and Instituto de Investigación Sant Pau (LEED Gold certified research institute).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• PichInnovation: Research and development department of Picharchitects focused on innovation, simulation tools, and calculation methodologies for sustainable architecture projects.

Products and services

• Sustainable Architectural Design Services Full-lifecycle architectural design services including concept design, technical design, construction management, and project supervision for residential, tertiary (offices), healthcare, research, and industrial building projects. Targeted at enterprise developers, public administrations, healthcare institutions, and corporations seeking sustainable, industrialised construction and BIM-coordinated delivery.
• InnoFAB Modular Regeneration System Modular building regeneration system developed for urban housing retrofitting under the Bithabitat programme of Barcelona City Council. Features light steel structure, composite cladding, recyclable technological wood flooring, automated solar shading, photovoltaic planters, and renewable-energy-integrated roofs with independently demountable layers. Targets public administrations and housing developers seeking industrialised, circular retrofit solutions (60% facade and 35% roof thermal transmittance improvements).
• Marco Insularis (Insularis Frame) Insulating architectural frame solution co-developed with Cemex Global R&D using InsularisTM aerated concrete (D.fab Digital Morphing CNC manufacturing). Solves thermal bridge problems at architectural openings by replacing additional insulation layers with a single structural-insulating concrete frame that is fire-resistant mineral-based and fully customisable via CNC milling. Designed for building projects requiring high-performance facades and openings.

Quantifiable outcome

• 62% reduction in energy consumption (kWh) vs. reference building at Instituto de Investigación Sant Pau
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 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

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fundación BIThabitat (Ayuntamiento de Barcelona)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022BIThabitat, promoted by the Barcelona City Council, launched the Bithabitat challenge to address urban housing regeneration. Picharchitects developed the InnoFAB modular regeneration system as a response to this challenge, which won the Best Start-up award at Rebuild Rehabilita 2024.
• Cemex Global R&DcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCemex Global I+D developed the InsularisTM aerated concrete technology and D.fab Digital Morphing manufacturing process. Picharchitects collaborated on the Marco Insularis project, using this material as insulating architectural frames that solve thermal bridge problems. This is a co-development of material technology and architectural application.
• DanosacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPichInnovation conducted a research project for Danosa evaluating the sustainability (environmental and economic) of Danosa products compared to sustainable market alternatives. The study covered insulation, waterproofing, drainage, geotextiles, and mortars, using Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs).
• 2BMFGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-design partner with Picharchitects on major projects including the Institut de Recerca de Sant Pau and other buildings. 2BMFG serves as architectural co-designer, structural engineer, and site management partner.
• Ferrovial AgromanminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerConstruction contractor for the Institut de Recerca de Sant Pau project.
• Plug'N'Harvest (H2020 Consortium)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean H2020 research project. Picharchitects joined the Plug'N'Harvest consortium in September 2020, contributing to sustainable building research alongside international consortium partners.
• DRIVE 0 (H2020 Consortium)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean H2020 research project focused on circular business models and circularity indicators in the built environment. Picharchitects has participated in multiple consortium meetings and pilot projects including an Estonian pilot.
• PLURAL (H2020 Consortium)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean H2020 project proposing multiple integrable renovation technologies. The project started in October 2020 with the aim of developing and integrating renovation solutions.
• GBCe (Green Building Council España)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive collaboration with GBCe in promoting and presenting at industry events such as Rebuild expo, working towards circular economy in the real estate sector.
• Plataforma para la Industrialización de la Vivienda (PIV)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPicharchitects is an active member of the Platform for Housing Industrialisation, working within Working Group 1.1 on Collaborative Work. Teresa Batlle serves on the Board of Directors of the platform.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Foster + Partners: Global architecture leader with established sustainability practice. Comparable in sustainability leadership and BIM adoption, but operates at vastly larger scale as a broad incumbent across many building types.

Others

• Arup: Global engineering and design consultancy with deep sustainability and circular construction expertise. Comparable as an ecosystem participant — Arup is both a potential partner and adjacent player in sustainable building services, with whom Picharchitects could co-develop projects.

Direct peers

• RCR Arquitectes: Spanish (Catalan) architecture firm with Pritzker Prize-winning sustainability credentials. Most directly comparable as a Catalonia-based firm of similar size focused on sustainable, materially-driven architecture with strong award recognition.
• Baumschlager Eberle Architekten: European (Austrian/Swiss) architecture firm with explicit specialisation in sustainable architecture and 2222 energy-positive building programme. Comparable in mid-size firm scalability with deep sustainability focus.
• SHoP Architects: US-based firm known for integrated design-build technology and digital fabrication methods. Comparable in pushing industrialised construction, BIM-driven workflows, and modular/systematised design approaches.
• KieranTimberlake: US architecture firm recognised for sustainability research and pre-fabricated/industrialised construction systems. Comparable in their focus on building performance research, modular construction innovation, and integration of R&D into design practice.
• Studio Gang: US-based firm with strong sustainability focus and integrated material research practice. Comparable in using sophisticated BIM, material science, and circular design principles as core differentiators.
• Snøhetta-style/H arquitectes: Barcelona-based architecture firm with strong focus on sustainable, low-impact construction and bioclimatic design. Closest direct geographic peer with similar scale and sustainability specialisation.
• Snøhetta: Norwegian multidisciplinary design firm with strong sustainable architecture and integrated design-build practice. Comparable in its emphasis on integrated sustainability, BIM, and cross-disciplinary R&D — comparable positioning to Picharchitects' PichInnovation unit.
• Batlle i Roig Arquitectura: Barcelona-based architecture, urban planning and landscape firm with comparable scale and sustainability focus. Strong overlap in territorial specialisation (Catalonia) and integration of landscape/bioclimatic design.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PICHarchitects
• Facebookfacebook.com/Picharchitects
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/picharchitects-pich-aguilera

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Picharchitects