Kimley-Horn

Kimley-Horn
City Dweller 2 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Name	Kimley-Horn
Type	Private
Founded	1967
Founders	Bill Kimley; Barry Horn
Headquarters	Raleigh, North Carolina, United States
Area served	United States; international projects
Industry	Engineering; planning; design; consulting
Num employees	~6,000 (2024)

Kimley-Horn is a multidisciplinary engineering and design firm known for transportation, land development, and infrastructure planning. The firm operates across the United States with regional offices supporting projects for municipalities, developers, and transportation agencies. Its portfolio spans urban planning, civil engineering, environmental permitting, and traffic analysis for major public and private clients.

History

Founded in 1967 by Bill Kimley and Barry Horn during an era of expansion in American Interstate Highway System planning, the company grew amid demand driven by projects connected to the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 and regional development around Research Triangle cities. Early work included traffic engineering supporting municipal clients and private developers during the Sun Belt growth of the 1970s and 1980s. Expansion accelerated with practice-area diversification in the 1990s as the firm delivered services for projects related to Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 accessibility upgrades, Clean Water Act compliance, and urban redevelopment tied to revitalization efforts in cities like Charlotte, North Carolina and Atlanta. Through the 2000s and 2010s the firm broadened into transit planning connected to systems such as Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, airport planning linked to hubs like Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport, and stormwater management influenced by policy trends after events like Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Sandy. The company has continued to expand geographically and technically into the 2020s during infrastructure investment waves triggered by legislation analogous to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.

Services and Practice Areas

The firm provides a suite of services aligned with public works and private development demands: transportation engineering for projects involving Federal Highway Administration standards and regional Metropolitan Planning Organization processes; land development entitlements often interfacing with county boards such as Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors; civil site design supporting clients like Walmart and Amazon (company) distribution centers; traffic impact studies for developments near nodes like Union Station (Washington, D.C.); and environmental permitting relevant to Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers requirements. Additional practices include transit and rail planning engaging entities such as Sound Transit, airport consulting for authorities like Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, landscape architecture interfacing with projects in New York City, and water resources design influenced by standards from American Society of Civil Engineers.

Organizational Structure and Leadership

The firm is structured into regional offices with practice-area leaders coordinating technical teams across disciplines including civil engineering, traffic operations, landscape architecture, and environmental science. Executive leadership has included chief executives and principals who previously held roles at firms and institutions such as AECOM, Jacobs Engineering Group, Bechtel, and academic appointments at universities like North Carolina State University and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Governance includes a board of directors and regional directors similar to governance models found at firms like Stantec and HDR, Inc., with professional oversight by licensed engineers registered with state boards such as the North Carolina Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors.

Major Projects and Clients

Notable engagements span municipal transportation corridors, large-scale master-planned communities, and aviation terminal expansions. Projects have involved collaboration with clients and agencies including Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York), Los Angeles World Airports, Texas Department of Transportation, Florida Department of Transportation, and large developers active in projects for Related Companies and Hines Interests Limited Partnership. Work has included corridor studies adjacent to landmarks like The National Mall, suburban redevelopment near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, and mixed‑use urban infill projects influenced by transit nodes such as Portland Transit Mall and Seattle Center environs.

Industry Recognition and Awards

The firm and its principals have received recognition from industry organizations and publications including awards from American Council of Engineering Companies, project honors in Engineering News-Record rankings, and design awards from bodies such as the American Society of Landscape Architects. Individual leaders have been listed in business rankings like Fortune (magazine) workplace lists and profiled by regional business journals such as Business Journals affiliates and Crain's publications. Project awards have spanned transportation innovation, sustainable site design, and community planning commendations from entities including state departments of transportation and professional societies like Institute of Transportation Engineers.

Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability

Corporate initiatives address sustainable design, resilience planning, and community engagement tied to climate adaptation frameworks referenced by organizations such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Federal Emergency Management Agency. The firm promotes in-house programs for diversity, equity, and inclusion parallel to practices at peer firms like WSP Global and Arup Group, and participates in professional outreach with universities including Georgia Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology through internships and research collaborations. Sustainability efforts include green infrastructure design, stormwater BMP implementation following guidelines from United States Green Building Council and low-impact development practices used in collaborations with municipal sustainability offices.

Category:Engineering firms of the United States Category:Companies based in Raleigh, North Carolina