After a rough couple of years, business is picking up for local architecture firms, and many are hiring again.
That means architects who were underemployed are going back to their drafting tables, and it means the volume of construction across Richmond will likely start growing.
For example, Baskervill, one of the city’s biggest firms, had laid off about 20 percent of its workforce. But the firm is starting to hire again.
“Some of the projects that were on hold are coming back to life,” said Bob Clark, the president at Baskervill, adding that last month the firm hired four new employees and rehired one. That brings the number of employees to 85, up from early 2010 when the company had 72 workers.
Recently the firm has taken on projects for SnagaJob, Wells Fargo, SunTrust Bank and Markel Corp.
Clark said he’s expecting revenue to be up 10 to 15 percent from last year.
Baskervill’s momentum is representative of the industry.
Duncan Abernathy, director of government and industry affairs for the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects, said the hiring trend is growing.
“The general sense is that work is coming back,” Abernathy said.
Lee Shadbolt of Commonwealth Architects said his firm is also seeing more business.
“We’ve seen a considerable increase in activity in several markets,” Shadbolt said.
“The urban apartment market, the revitalization of buildings has been a strong market through the downturn.”
Shadbolt said his firm had a couple of rounds of cuts during the recession but is looking to start hiring again soon. That firm currently has about 30 employees.
And what’s good for architects is good for engineers. Engineering and architecture services firm Hankins & Anderson didn’t lose much business from the recession and has been on a tear lately, picking up work in the government sector.
Michael Matthews, CEO and president of Hankins & Anderson, said his firm has added 75 workers in the past 12 months.
“Our focus in the federal market has allowed us to grow,” he said.
Last month, they hired four employees to their Glen Allen Office and two to their Hampton Roads location, bringing their total to 262 employees.
Revenue is up 17 percent from last February, Matthews said, and he expects to have 30 percent growth over last year by June. He expects to do $43 million in revenue this year and hire a couple of employees a month depending on the amount of work available.
About 40 percent of their revenue comes from projects for the State Department. Matthews said they design two to three new embassies a year. The firm has recently started work on an $800 million U.S. Embassy in Pakistan, their largest project.
And even smaller firms are seeing an influx of work and dusting off portfolios from the job-seeker pile.
Walter Parks, president of Walter Parks Architects, said his 14-person design firm hired a couple of people a year ago and will hire again this summer.
SMBW Architects added two people to their 16-person firm in 2010 after having to lay off a few off during the recession.
“We have our foot in every market segment because you can’t depend on one or two by themselves,” said Will Scribner, principal at SMBW.
He said he expects business to be up 10 percent this year from 2010.
Rhea George, director of marketing and communications for VSAIA said membership renewal for the organization is up 5 percent from last year, which is a positive sign for the industry.
“It’s a good indicator that people in the profession are not experiencing the struggles that they were,” George said.
After a rough couple of years, business is picking up for local architecture firms, and many are hiring again.
That means architects who were underemployed are going back to their drafting tables, and it means the volume of construction across Richmond will likely start growing.
For example, Baskervill, one of the city’s biggest firms, had laid off about 20 percent of its workforce. But the firm is starting to hire again.
“Some of the projects that were on hold are coming back to life,” said Bob Clark, the president at Baskervill, adding that last month the firm hired four new employees and rehired one. That brings the number of employees to 85, up from early 2010 when the company had 72 workers.
Recently the firm has taken on projects for SnagaJob, Wells Fargo, SunTrust Bank and Markel Corp.
Clark said he’s expecting revenue to be up 10 to 15 percent from last year.
Baskervill’s momentum is representative of the industry.
Duncan Abernathy, director of government and industry affairs for the Virginia Society of the American Institute of Architects, said the hiring trend is growing.
“The general sense is that work is coming back,” Abernathy said.
Lee Shadbolt of Commonwealth Architects said his firm is also seeing more business.
“We’ve seen a considerable increase in activity in several markets,” Shadbolt said.
“The urban apartment market, the revitalization of buildings has been a strong market through the downturn.”
Shadbolt said his firm had a couple of rounds of cuts during the recession but is looking to start hiring again soon. That firm currently has about 30 employees.
And what’s good for architects is good for engineers. Engineering and architecture services firm Hankins & Anderson didn’t lose much business from the recession and has been on a tear lately, picking up work in the government sector.
Michael Matthews, CEO and president of Hankins & Anderson, said his firm has added 75 workers in the past 12 months.
“Our focus in the federal market has allowed us to grow,” he said.
Last month, they hired four employees to their Glen Allen Office and two to their Hampton Roads location, bringing their total to 262 employees.
Revenue is up 17 percent from last February, Matthews said, and he expects to have 30 percent growth over last year by June. He expects to do $43 million in revenue this year and hire a couple of employees a month depending on the amount of work available.
About 40 percent of their revenue comes from projects for the State Department. Matthews said they design two to three new embassies a year. The firm has recently started work on an $800 million U.S. Embassy in Pakistan, their largest project.
And even smaller firms are seeing an influx of work and dusting off portfolios from the job-seeker pile.
Walter Parks, president of Walter Parks Architects, said his 14-person design firm hired a couple of people a year ago and will hire again this summer.
SMBW Architects added two people to their 16-person firm in 2010 after having to lay off a few off during the recession.
“We have our foot in every market segment because you can’t depend on one or two by themselves,” said Will Scribner, principal at SMBW.
He said he expects business to be up 10 percent this year from 2010.
Rhea George, director of marketing and communications for VSAIA said membership renewal for the organization is up 5 percent from last year, which is a positive sign for the industry.
“It’s a good indicator that people in the profession are not experiencing the struggles that they were,” George said.
Our company has personally worked with several of the firms mentioned in this article. It is great to hear that these guys are getting busy again and it speaks well for the future employment picture in Greater Richmond. It is nice to see some positive economic signs, particularly in the A&E and Construction sector, which was hit really hard.