Lexington Architecture & Engineering Design-Build
Terrapin Construction Group provides in-house architectural design, structural engineering, and MEP engineering across the Lexington metro and Kentucky, coordinated with construction from day one through design-build, and built for LFUCG code, FGI healthcare, and cannabis, CEA, and cold storage process design under one team.
Lexington Construction Cost Estimator
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Include project type, size, location in the metro, scope, special process needs (healthcare, cannabis, cold storage), and timeline. Our AI applies Kentucky cost indices automatically.
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Architecture and Engineering Coordinated with Construction from Day One
TCG provides integrated architecture, structural engineering, and MEP engineering in-house, so the disciplines are coordinated with each other and with construction from the first sketch. For owners across the Lexington metro and Kentucky, that means one accountable team instead of stitching together separate firms and absorbing the gaps between them.
The payoff of design-build is coordination. When the architect, the engineers, and the builder are the same team, you get fewer requests for information, fewer conflicts discovered in the field, and far fewer change orders, because constructability and cost are designed in rather than discovered late. TCG is active across Kentucky, including a cannabis cultivation and extraction design-build project in nearby Nicholasville and an optometry buildout in Owensboro for Advantage Eye Care.
Lexington work spans ordinary commercial code through specialized process design. We design to LFUCG building code, to FGI standards for healthcare on a Certificate of Need timeline, and to the demanding process requirements of cannabis cultivation and extraction, controlled environment agriculture, and cold storage, all under one roof.
What We Deliver: Architecture, Structural, MEP & Process Design
Architectural Design
Full architectural design from programming and schematic through construction documents, coordinated with the build. Typically 5 to 9% of construction.
Structural Engineering
Structural design for conventional, PEMB, IMP, and tilt-up systems, coordinated with the envelope and foundations. Typically 1.0 to 2.5%.
MEP Engineering
Mechanical, electrical, and plumbing design sized to the program, from offices to high-load cultivation and data center systems. Typically 3 to 6%.
Permitting & Code
LFUCG code compliance, plan review, and approvals coordination, including healthcare and specialty paths.
Specialty Process Design
Cannabis cultivation and extraction, controlled environment agriculture, and cold storage process and environmental design.
Design-Build Integration
Architecture and engineering coordinated with construction from day one to cut RFIs, conflicts, and change orders.
What Do Architecture and Engineering Services Cost in Lexington?
Architecture and engineering fees are typically a percentage of construction cost and vary by discipline, complexity, and program. These are typical Lexington ranges; your scope is confirmed before any agreement, and design-build coordination often reduces total project cost by cutting change orders.
See the architectural services cost guide and the A and E fees and soft costs guide, or schedule a meeting with our team.
Lexington Architecture & Engineering FAQ
Common questions about architecture and engineering services in the Lexington metro. See our full FAQ page for more.
A and E fees are typically a percentage of construction: architecture roughly 5 to 9%, structural 1.0 to 2.5%, and MEP 3 to 6%, or about 8 to 15% combined for full design-build A and E. The exact fee depends on complexity and program. See the architectural services cost guide.
TCG provides architectural design, structural engineering, and MEP engineering in-house, coordinated with each other and with construction. You get one accountable team from programming through construction documents and into the build.
When the architect, engineers, and builder are one team, constructability and cost are designed in rather than discovered late, which means fewer requests for information, fewer field conflicts, and fewer change orders. Separate firms create gaps and finger-pointing that design-build eliminates.
Yes. TCG designs medical and healthcare facilities to FGI Guidelines, with the clearances, air-change rates, pressure relationships, and medical systems those standards require, and accounts for the Kentucky Certificate of Need process in the schedule.
Yes. TCG designs cannabis cultivation and extraction and controlled environment agriculture facilities, including IMP grow-room envelopes, cultivation HVAC and dehumidification, high-density electrical, and C1D1 and C1D2 extraction design. We have an active cultivation and extraction project in nearby Nicholasville.
No. TCG most often delivers design and construction together through design-build, which is where the coordination payoff is largest, but we can scope design services to your needs. The integrated model is the recommendation, not a requirement.
Yes. TCG provides structural engineering for pre-engineered metal buildings, insulated metal panel envelopes, tilt-up, and conventional framing, coordinated with the foundations and the envelope, which is essential for the cold storage, industrial, and storage work we self-perform.
TCG coordinates LFUCG building code compliance, plan review, and approvals, including the specialty and healthcare paths. Designing to local code and process from the start is what keeps plan review and inspections moving.
Integrated A and E lets design, procurement, and construction overlap instead of running strictly in sequence, which compresses the overall schedule by roughly 15 to 30 percent compared with design-bid-build, while keeping cost and constructability under control.
TCG provides architecture and engineering across the Lexington metro and statewide, including Nicholasville, Georgetown, Richmond, Frankfort, Louisville, and Owensboro, with national design-build experience across 38 states.
Lexington Architecture & Engineering Resources
Core sectors, sibling Lexington guides, cost references, and nearby metros.
Design and Build Your Lexington Project with One Team
In-house architecture, structural, and MEP coordinated with construction from day one means fewer change orders and a faster schedule. TCG delivers it under one design-build contract. Let’s talk.
Schedule an A&E Consultation