IBI Group Inc. is a Canadian-based architecture, engineering, planning, and technology firm operating from over 60 offices in 12 countries across the world. Founded in 1974 in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

, Canada, IBI Group has since been ranked as one of the largest architecture or architecture/engineering firms in the world: in 2011 it ranked 4th or 6th (depending on the methodology used); in 2016 it was ranked as the 8th largest architecture firm (with 836 fee-earning architects) by BD Online;WA100-2016 the big list
Retrieved 2016-09-16 and in 2016 its United States operations were ranked by ArchDaily as the 13th largest architecture firm in the USA. As of 2022, IBI Group has approximately 3,400 employees and more than 60 offices located across six continents. IBI Group's consulting services business is concentrated in three practice areas: Intelligence, Buildings and Infrastructure. By integrating productivity tools, processes and technology innovations developed through IBI’s Intelligence practice, the Company has been able to drive incremental growth in its traditional Buildings and Infrastructures practices, while generating more efficient results for IBI clients. The company's mission is to define the cities of tomorrow and its vision is to be the global partner to plan, design and sustain the cities of tomorrow. On September 27, 2022, it was acquired by Arcadis.

History

The IBI Group was founded in Toronto by nine partners to provide professional planning and design services for

urban development Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

and transportation projects. The firm merged with Robbie/Young + Wright Architects to become Robbie Young + Wright / IBI Group Architects, with noted Toronto architect

Rod Robbie Roderick "Rod" George Robbie, (September 15, 1928 – January 4, 2012) was a British-born Canadian architect and planner. He was known for his design of the Canadian Pavilion at Expo 67 and Toronto's Rogers Centre (SkyDome). Biography ...

as chairman emeritus. In 2004 the firm became a publicly owned entity through the formation of the IBI Income Fund. In 2010 the Fund was converted to a corporation, IBI Group Inc.IBI Group history
Retrieved 2016-09-15 The firm's name was derived from the last initials of its two founding principals, Neal Irwin and Phil Beinhaker. The firm has rebranded itself, stating the IBI stands for "Intelligence, Buildings, and Infrastructure." In July 2022, IBI Group was acquired by Arcadis.

Major acquisitions

Since 2000 the firm has expanded through mergers and acquisitions of consulting firms in multiple locations. Some have been folded into the IBI Group brand and others have maintained a distinct identity. The major acquisitions below are listed in chronological order.

Cummings Cockburn

In 2004, IBI Group acquired the Ontario architecture and consulting firm Cumming Cockburn, as well as its subsidiaries CCL Consultants and Marshall Cumming & Associates.

Vancouver office

The

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

office expanded through the 2005 merger of Hancock Bruckner, Eng + Wright; Lawrence Doyle Architects; and Young + Wright Architects.

Grey-Noble & Grey-Noble

In 2005 the

Newmarket, Ontario Newmarket ( 2021 population: 87,942) is a town and regional seat of the Regional Municipality of York in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is part of Greater Toronto in the Golden Horseshoe region of Southern Ontario. The name stems from ...

-based architectural firm of Grey-Noble & Grey-Noble was acquired.

Thomas Blurock Architects

In 2006 the Costa Mesa,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

-based educational project-focused firm of Thomas Blurock Architects was acquired and incorporated.

Page+Steele

In 2008 the Toronto-based firm of Page+Steele, Architects was acquired and operates as Page+Steele/IBI Group.

Gruzen Samton Architects

In 2009 the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

based firm of Gruzen Samton Architects, Planners & Interior Designers was acquired. The firm was founded in 1936 and operates as IBI Group.

Stevens Group Architects

In 2009 the Toronto-based firm of Stevens Group Architects was acquired.

BFGC Architects Planners

In 2009, BFGC Architects Planners, with offices in

Bakersfield Bakersfield is a city in Kern County, California, United States. It is the county seat and largest city of Kern County. The city covers about near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley and the Central Valley (California), Central Valley r ...

San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo (; Spanish for " St. Louis the Bishop", ; Chumash: ''tiłhini'') is a city and county seat of San Luis Obispo County, in the U.S. state of California. Located on the Central Coast of California, San Luis Obispo is roughly h ...

and

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, was acquired.

Nightingale Architects

In 2010, Nightingale Architects, with four offices in the United Kingdom, including in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

and

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a ...

, was acquired.

Dull Olson Weekes Architects

In 2010, IBI acquired the

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populou ...

-based firm of Dull Olson Weekes Architects, a regional specialist in the design of educational facilities with offices in Portland and

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, Washington. It has received multiple awards for its work, including the CEFPI/A4LE James D. MacConnell Award for excellence in design and planning, in 2009 for the Rosa Parks School and Community Campus at New Columbia,in 2014 for Trillium Creek Primary School, and in 2020 as a finalist for Mary Lyon Elementary School. The firm operates as IBI Group Architects.

Cardinal Hardy Architectes

In 2011, the

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...

-based firm of Cardinal Hardy merged with Beinhaker Architecte (within the IBI Group), and became known as Cardinal Hardy Beinhaker Architecte. Groupe Cardinal Hardy merged into the IBI Group. Three years later, in late 2014, it was sold to Montreal-based Lemay.

Carol R. Johnson Associates

In 2011 the

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

based landscape architecture firm Carol R. Johnson Associates was acquired.

Bay Architects

In 2011 the

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

, Texas-based firm of Bay Architects was acquired.

Taylor Young

In 2012, Taylor Young, a United Kingdom-based architectural and master-planning practice headquartered in

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's coun ...

and with offices in

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

and London, was acquired.

M-E Companies

In 2012, M-E Companies, an

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

-based engineering firm with offices in Westerville,

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

and

Canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...

was acquired.

Aspyr

IBI acquired the British Columbia-based Aspyr Engineering on September 3, 2019.

Cole Engineering Group

IBI acquired the Cole Engineering Group on December 1, 2020.

Projects

The following are a selection of notable projects:IBI Group Texas projects
Retrieved 2016-09-16 * 41 Cooper Square, New York City * BC Cancer Research Centre, Vancouver (with Henriquez Partners Architects) *Benxi New City,

Benxi Benxi (, ) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, south-southeast of the provincial capital Shenyang. As of the 2020 census, its population was 1,326,018 (1,709,538 in 2010) whom 809,6 ...

, China *Delta Hotel, Toronto * Diamond Ranch High School (executive architect); Pomona, California * École secondaire catholique Père-Philippe-Lamarche,

Scarborough, Toronto Scarborough (; 2021 Census 629,941) is a district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is situated atop the Scarborough Bluffs in the eastern part of the city. Its borders are Victoria Park Avenue to the west, Steeles Avenue to the north, Roug ...

, Ontario *Ericsson R&D Complex,

Research Triangle Park Research Triangle Park (RTP) is the largest research park in the United States, occupying in North Carolina and hosting more than 300 companies and 65,000 workers. The facility is named for its location relative to the three surrounding citie ...

, North Carolina * Evergreen Point Floating Bridge (2016) * Franklin High School (Portland, Oregon) renovation * Heschel School - Ronald P. Stanton Campus, New York City * London 2012 Olympics - Travel demand management program *Oceanside Dolphin Hotel, San Diego *Optegra Eye Hospital, London *Parq Hotel and Casino, Vancouver * Pioneer Village station, Toronto * Rosa Parks School and Community Campus at New Columbia * Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow * Ridgeview High School (Redmond, Oregon) * Royal Hospital for Children, Glasgow * Sabine Pass K-12 School *

San Jacinto College San Jacinto College is a public community college in the Greater Houston with its campuses in Pasadena and Houston, Texas. Established in 1961, San Jacinto College originally consisted of the independent school districts (ISD) of Channelview, ...

Maritime Center, Houston * Sandy High School, Sandy, Oregon * School of One, New York City *

Stuyvesant High School Stuyvesant High School (pronounced ), commonly referred to among its students as Stuy (pronounced ), is a State school, public university-preparatory school, college-preparatory, Specialized high schools in New York City, specialized high school ...

, New York City *

Victoria Park station (Toronto) Victoria Park is a station on Line 2 Bloor–Danforth of the Toronto subway system. It is located at 777 Victoria Park Avenue, one block north of Danforth Avenue in Scarborough. The station can be accessed by pedestrians directly from Victor ...

transit station renovation * Trillium Creek Primary School *88 Scott Street, Toronto

References

External links

IBI Group corporate structure (see page 7)
{{Authority control 2022 mergers and acquisitions Architecture firms of Canada Architecture firms of the United States Companies based in Toronto Architecture firms based in Oregon Engineering consulting firms Companies formerly listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange