Engineering News-Record Announces "Top 500" Design Firms
RDG moved up 59 spots on the annual list and spoke with ENR about the impact of AI and other digital tools.
Each year, Engineering News-Record‘s Top 500 Design Firms list ranks the largest engineering, architectural and environmental design firms in the U.S. and examines trends affecting the industry across markets and regions. The list ranks firms based on architectural revenue from services performed in the previous year; in 2024, RDG Planning & Design was ranked #339, up nearly 60 spots from 2023.
In addition to its rankings, ENR’s 2024 report reveals a shift in the use of artificial intelligence to complement design services. While in 2023 AI was more of an exception than the rule, in 2024, an increasing number of design professionals aim to integrate tech into operations.
RDG Principal Scott Crawford, PLA, ASLA, LEED AP confirms this finding in his interview with ENR, explaining that the firm’s early adoption of AI tools has allowed teams to “instantaneously process design constraints and parametric requirements…and curate viable solutions as a baseline for exploration — saving hundreds of hours in design.” In the interview, Crawford goes on to discuss various aspects of the AEC industry, including the impacts of workforce transitions and the adoption of innovative technologies to improve practice.
The annual report also shows that since pre-pandemic 2020, overall revenue for Top 500 firms has increased 33.5 percent, reflecting a growing demand for design services that underscores the industry’s pressing labor recruitment and retention challenges.
Click here for the full list of ENR's 2024 Top 500 Design Firms, as well as Scott Crawford’s full interview on the impact of AI. (requires subscription).