irrigation research & design

What irrigation research & design does

Irrigation Research & Design (IRD) is a Virginia-based professional services firm founded in 1993 by Bill Rogers that specializes in irrigation system design and related water-management consulting. The firm serves commercial, institutional, and governmental clients across sectors including higher education, botanical gardens, federal grounds, airports, diplomatic facilities, and commercial retail chains. IRD operates as a privately held, founder-owned consultancy without external funding, with a small known staff of certified irrigation designers.

The firm's service offerings include new system design, water source analysis with LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification documentation, construction administration and site audits, and GPS-based field inventory services utilizing Trimble Submeter GPS hardware combined with drone-based aerial capture. This technology stack positions the firm in the niche intersection of traditional landscape architecture engineering and modern precision-survey tooling, enabling precise topographic and asset mapping for irrigation infrastructure projects.

IRD's business model is project-based professional services, billed on hourly or fixed-fee contracts tied to specific design or consulting engagements. Marquee clients include the US Capitol Grounds, the Smithsonian National Zoo, Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens, multiple universities, Wawa convenience stores (covering 225+ locations), various airports, and international projects in Cameroon, Nigeria, and Saudi Arabia. The geographic footprint spans the US Mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions with selective international work concentrated on US diplomatic and governmental facilities.

Name

irrigation research & design

Legal name

Irrigation Research & Design

Website

https://irrigationresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Irrigation Research & Design is a Virginia-based irrigation system design and water-management consultancy founded in 1993, serving commercial, institutional, and government clients across the US and selectively internationally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Irrigation Design Services

akta.pro primary industry

Irrigation System Design & Engineering (AFACAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Irrigation Control & Automation (Controllers, Valves, Sensors, IoT) (AFAAACAF), Irrigation Systems Installation & Maintenance (BPABADAE)

Keywords

• Irrigation system design
• Landscape irrigation consulting
• Water management services
• Construction administration services
• LEED irrigation documentation

Headquarters

HQ city

Virginia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Irrigation Design Services: Professional services revenue from providing comprehensive irrigation system design, water source analysis, construction administration, and site auditing services to commercial, institutional, and government clients

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Irrigation Research & Design (IRD) provides professional irrigation system design and consulting services, producing comprehensive plans, details, and specifications for new sites and existing-site improvements. Offerings span water source analysis with logistical and cost comparisons, LEED documentation for irrigation-related credits, pump design, construction administration and contractor oversight, site auditing and performance troubleshooting, and GPS field inventory using Trimble Submeter GPS technology combined with drone-based surveying.

Product overview

Irrigation Research & Design (IRD) offers a suite of irrigation design and consulting services rather than a traditional software product. The core offerings include New System Design, Water Source Analysis & LEED Documentation, Construction Administration & Existing Site Audits, and GPS Field Inventory Services using Trimble GPS technology and drones. These services work together to provide comprehensive irrigation solutions from initial design through construction oversight and ongoing system optimization.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• New System Design

Quantifiable outcome

• US Capitol Grounds project implemented 26 point of connections and 140 irrigation satellites across approximately 40 city blocks
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers25 records

Segments4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Conserva Irrigation: National franchise focused on commercial irrigation services including system audits, repairs, and efficiency upgrades. Comparable to IRD in serving commercial/institutional customers needing irrigation expertise, though Conserva leans more into installation and maintenance rather than upfront design.

Broad incumbents

• SiteOne Landscape Supply: Largest national distributor of landscape and irrigation products, also providing design support and training to contractors. Overlaps with IRD on the design/specification side for irrigation systems across commercial customers but operates at vastly greater scale as a product distributor.
• Ewing Irrigation & Landscape Supply: Major wholesale distributor of irrigation and landscape products across the western and central US, with design and specification services for contractors and developers. Comparable customer base (commercial contractors, institutions) and overlap on irrigation system design planning.
• BrightView Holdings: Largest commercial landscape services provider in the US, offering design-build, maintenance, and irrigation management to enterprise and government clients. Comparable customer base (corporate campuses, government facilities, airports) but operates at far greater scale across the full landscape services stack.
• Rain Bird Corporation: Leading global manufacturer of irrigation products and controllers, with significant commercial and contractor-facing design resources and tools. Adjacent to IRD as the equipment ecosystem IRD specifies; their design tools partially compete with IRD's professional services.
• Hunter Industries: Major manufacturer of irrigation, landscape lighting, and outdoor living products serving commercial and residential markets. Comparable in targeting the irrigation specification community, and Hunter's own design services overlap with IRD's contractor-facing role.
• The Toro Company: Diversified outdoor equipment manufacturer with a substantial irrigation business serving golf, commercial, and residential markets. Relevant peer as a major supplier of irrigation technology that IRD specifies in its designs.

Emerging players

• HydroPoint Data Systems: Provider of smart water management and IoT-based irrigation control platforms focused on commercial and institutional customers. Comparable target market to IRD's institutional clients, but competes through technology-enabled monitoring rather than upfront design services.
• Weathermatic: Manufacturer of smart irrigation controllers and water-management solutions for commercial properties, municipalities, and homeowners associations. Comparable customer segments (commercial properties, HOAs) to IRD's institutional and commercial portfolio.
• Calsense: Specialized provider of smart irrigation controllers and central control systems for municipalities, parks, schools, and commercial sites. Comparable institutional/government customer base to IRD, though Calsense competes via smart-control technology rather than design services.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/irrigation-research-and-design

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 irrigation research & design