After working as principals together at a multi-disciplinary design firm for seven years, Greg Ravatt and Jim Albrecht realized they shared similar visions, so they formed Ravatt, Albrecht & Associates, Inc. in 1999. Their focus was to provide architectural and mechanical/electrical engineering services, with an emphasis on design-build projects.
A licensed architect, certified interior designer, and licensed contractor, Greg Ravatt has a unique blend of visionary thinking and down-to-earth implementation that allows him to design buildable, beautiful structures. Known for his conceptual sketching, he quickly provides clients with visual images of design alternatives. Greg practices sustainable building techniques and has won design recognition for several of his forward-thinking projects. His design of a straw-bale library is the first of that facility type in California.
As Director of MEP, Jim Albrecht's keen oversight of mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design projects ensures clients receive workable solutions within budget, even when faced with an accelerated schedule. Understanding the significance of utilities infrastructure in green building design, Jim leads the charge in helping clients achieve energy efficiency percentages well above California Energy Commission Title 24 and reduce the life cycle cost of energy consumption in their buildings.
The new firm located its headquarters in a renovated 1940s historic P41 airplane hangar at the Santa Maria Airport. A year later they expanded into another location—a historic 1890s house at the corner of Pacific and Pepper Streets in uptown San Luis Obispo, giving Ravatt, Albrecht & Associates the opportunity for architecture and engineering projects in both Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.
The original corporate office moved from Santa Maria to Old Town Orcutt in 2017, occupying their brand new design-build facility where the historic Union Mercantile building used to be, on the corner of Union Avenue and Derrek Alley.
In 2018 Ravatt, Albrecht & Associates, Inc. refreshed its brand to RA Architects & Engineers, and the firm has grown substantially, despite the dips in the economy over the past 20 years, proving the success of RA.