Barr Engineering Profile: Ownership, HQ and Public Records

Every fact below links to its source. Informational only. Ownership statements are limited to primary announcements and filings.

Headquarters: Minneapolis, Minnesota (labelled Headquarters on the firm's About page)Source: barr.com/about-barr
Founded: Since 1966, per the firm's About page FAQSource: barr.com/about-barr
Ownership type: Employee-owned (ESOP): the firm says it is an employee-owned company, and its leadership page says its Board of Directors acts for shareholders and ESOP participants, with directors nominated and elected by ESOP participantsSource: barr.com/leadership
Sponsor or parent: The firm's About page states: being an employee-owned company means success depends on the client's successSource: barr.com/about-barr
Website: barr.comSource: barr.com/about-barr

Legal name, DBA and former names

Barr Engineering Co.Source: barr.com/about-barr

Identifiers (UEI, state registrations)

SAM UEI KHK9VCJE7SJ1 (as shown on the USAspending recipient record) and Texas TBPELS firm no. 3656, 27892.Source: usaspending.gov/recipient/cfc2ab77-4d2c-865d-f6…

Ownership type

Employee-owned (ESOP): the firm says it is an employee-owned company, and its leadership page says its Board of Directors acts for shareholders and ESOP participants, with directors nominated and elected by ESOP participants.Source: barr.com/leadership

Sponsor, parent or transaction

The firm's About page states: being an employee-owned company means success depends on the client's success.Source: barr.com/about-barr

Services and markets

Natural resources, infrastructure and the built environment, per the firm's About page FAQ.Source: barr.com/about-barr

Leaders

Ward Swanson, President and Chief Executive Officer.Source: barr.com/leadership
Nick Nelson, Chief Operating Officer.Source: barr.com/leadership
Dan Giedd, Chief Human Resources Officer.Source: barr.com/leadership
Bill Forsmark, Chief Marketing Officer.Source: barr.com/leadership
Joe Berns, Board Chair.Source: barr.com/leadership

Deals

Acquired Horizon Environmental Corporation of Grand Rapids, Michigan in 2010, per the firm's history timeline.Source: barr.com/about-barr

Licences (board records)

Texas TBPELS roster lists BARR ENGINEERING COMPANY (firm no. 3656, type NS, expires 2027-07-31); Barr Engineering and Consulting, LLC (firm no. 27892, type SP, expires 2028-01-31)Source: tbpedownloads.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/roster_firm.zip

Federal awards (contracts)

USAspending recipient record BARR ENGINEERING CO. (Minneapolis, MN), contract award obligations: FY2021 $784,508, FY2022 $249,202, FY2023 $1,021,116, FY2024 $773,664, FY2025 $535,771 (award types A to D; obligations as published, including modifications and negative adjustments)Source: usaspending.gov/recipient/cfc2ab77-4d2c-865d-f6…

ESOP plan data (Form 5500)

DOL Form 5500 plan year beginning 2024-01-01: BARR ENGINEERING CO. EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP PLAN (ACK_ID 20250703095654NAL0000861696001), 840 active participants and total plan assets of $57,548,394 at year end.Source: dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/about-ebsa/our-ac…

Public filings

DOL Form 5500 filings, plan year beginning 2024-01-01, NAICS 541330: BARR ENGINEERING CO. EMPLOYEE STOCK OWNERSHIP PLAN (ACK_ID 20250703095654NAL0000861696001, 840 active participants); BARR ENGINEERING CO. RETIREMENT SAVINGS PLAN (ACK_ID 20251107091005NAL0000726896001, 1,059 active participants)Source: dol.gov/agencies/ebsa/about-ebsa/our-ac…

Rankings and awards

Listed in the ENR 2026 Top 500 Design Firms.Source: enr.com/toplists/2026-top-500-design-fi…

Sources of record

Ownership tag: Employee-owned (ESOP). Profiles are informational, compiled from public sources linked above. Firms may request corrections. A listing is not an endorsement.