When Dagmar Epsten started her one-person architectural practice 25 years ago out of her Atlanta home, she hardly imagined it would evolve into an internationally recognized architectural and consulting firm with a staff 60 and still growing. Epsten Group has much to celebrate as it looks back on those years and prepares for a future as leaders in architecture and consulting with an emphasis on high-performance buildings.
 
“We are best known for our customized high-performance architecture for institutional, corporate and educational clients, making our clients proud of their buildings and their leadership in the community.” said architect Dagmar Epsten, now the firm’s CEO and President. “Part of high performance is that we optimize the building’s value over its entire lifetime and help our clients create healthful, beautiful spaces that attract and retain both talent and customers.”
 
Highlights from Epsten Group’s first 25 years include:
 
·      Establishing a significant, growing architectural presence, with the current $38 million Zoo Atlanta events facility on the boards and with many institutional and educational projects in the firm’s portfolio

·      Developing an international consulting practice for new and existing building performance, including for green building ratings, systems commissioning, and building envelopes

·      Being recognized in prestigious listings such as Atlanta's Top 25 Architectural Firms of the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the Inc. 5000 List of America’s fastest-growing private companies, Engineering News-Record Southeast Top Design Firms, and the Business Leader Top 300 Small Businesses of the South

·      Designing its own company headquarters as the world’s first project to achieve a LEED Double Platinum rating with the second under LEED v4, and now pursuing a WELL certification

·      Being the first organization in the Southeast to earn the JUST™ Label for transparent, responsible business operations

·      Committing to quality assurance and an ISO-accredited certification body practice for third-party verification of buildings and products, and completing more than 8,500 high-performance building reviews in over 50 countries
 
Though Epsten Group now has business relationships throughout the nation and around the globe, during this 25th anniversary year the firm is reflecting in particular on the work it has done in association with many notable names in Atlanta, such as Porsche, Atlanta Falcons, Centers for Disease Control, Georgia Tech, WellStar Health System, the City of Atlanta, Emory University, Westin Hotels & Resorts, Zoo Atlanta, Parkway Properties and Invest Atlanta.
 
Dagmar Epsten, who came from Germany to obtain a Masters at Georgia Tech, has many insights into European and U.S. technologies and pushes for innovations. Many of them are reflected in Epsten Group’s approaches to high-performance buildings and are particularly useful when one of their clients pursues a certification under Living Building Challenge, Net Zero Energy, LEED or the WELL Building Standard.
 
As Ms. Epsten puts it, “We are committed to helping our clients with ambitious building goals and with innovation. We have a very diverse staff speaking 11 languages, so no matter the country or facility or client, we are able to communicate and contribute with our expertise to a high-performance building solution. We continue to develop our technological building expertise and international relationships as vehicles for global and local architectural innovation in the coming years.”