National engineering firm to open design center in downtown Greenville

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A multidisciplined engineering, planning, and environmental services firm with a presence in 17 states is expanding its East Coast footprint by adding a new full service Water Design Center downtown in Greenville.

Garver’s expansion will create approximately 100 new jobs in downtown Greenville, according to a news release.

Garver’s team has grown to 25 members here and is working in temporary space downtown, the release stated. Chris Gatling, Garver’s Greenville office director, expects to expand into larger quarters at Two Liberty Square in downtown Greenville in October, and to be staffed at 30 to 40 employees by year-end. Plans call for the Garver Greenville office to ultimately host approximately 100 employees over the next several years between internal transfers and new hires.

Garver’s WDCs are centers of excellence that combine various engineering disciplines to focus solely on complex water and wastewater designs, described by the company as “where academia meets industry and where research meets application,” the release stated.

“This office will support new and existing water and wastewater clients in the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama, as well as across our Garver national footprint. We will continue providing clients with the support of high-performance teams calibrated to provide sophisticated, custom treatment solutions,” said Gatling.  “Our in-person collaboration and small teams approach delivers expertise and creativity necessary for each project. And it means that we offer more mentoring, leadership, and growth opportunities to team members, making our operation nimble and more effective overall which ultimately benefits the client.”

The firm offers a wide range of services focused on aviation, buildings, construction, enterprise solutions, federal, survey, transportation, water, and wastewater, and sits in the top 100 of the Engineering News-Record’s Top 500 Design Firms list, according to the release.  Garver is frequently recognized nationally as a “Best Firm to Work For.”

“The quality of life, business-friendly climate and proximity to high quality engineering and technology institutions made Greenville County a natural choice for Garver to establish our fourth eastern region Water Design Center,” Gatling said in the release. “The energy and vitality of Greenville, coupled with our organization’s belief in working closely together and with clients, makes downtown Greenville a perfect location for our new Water Design Center.”

Founded in 1919 and based in Arkansas, what started as a one-person engineering firm led by former college professor Neal Garver has evolved into a multidisciplined engineering and consulting firm impacting communities across the country, the release stated. Garver today is employee-owned with more than 1,200 employees and has been on the ground floor of highways, bridges, airport runways, and water and wastewater infrastructure.

“We are delighted to welcome a national brand like Garver to Greenville County as home to their new offices and Water Design Center,” said Greenville County Council Chair and Greenville Area Development Corporation Board Member Dan Tripp. “Greenville’s quality of life, robust economy and community vitality provides a powerful draw to organizations like Garver that can choose to go anywhere yet select our community. We wish Garver success long into the future.”

The importance of giving back to its communities is reflected in GarverGives, the firm’s corporate giving program, which encourages employees to give back and get involved locally. Garver partners with local organizations to advance STEM education and strengthen home communities through grants, employee giving, and volunteerism. Since 2015, GarverGives has supported more than 500 organizations, invested more than $1.6 million in funding, and devoted more than 6,500 employee community service hours.

“Greenville is a hub of innovation with a strong workforce pipeline in the engineering field thanks to nearby colleges and universities. We are delighted that Garver chose us as the site for their newest world-class design center. From Greenville they will have the ability to recruit the best talent in advancing how water and wastewater treatment facilities operate around the country,” Greenville Mayor Knox White said in the release.