Design engineering for AEC
Most AEC firms are reacting to AI. A few are using it. I build the systems that put you in the second group.
Solo consultant, fifteen years in. I design and build the systems that let AEC firms win more work with the team they already have automations that take busywork off senior people, marketing infrastructure that generates leads without a marketing department, and a brand presence that gets you shortlisted before the first call.
Every engagement starts with the same question: where's the highest ROI opportunity inside your firm right now? Sometimes it's a proposal automation that gives your principals back twenty hours a week. Sometimes it's rebuilding the marketing site so AI search tools can actually find you. Sometimes it's a custom internal product no off-the-shelf tool can replace. I design it, build it, hand it over with documentation, and stick around only if you want me to.
AI is the lever. Design engineering is how you pull it without breaking anything. Most firms are either ignoring AI or buying tools they never integrate. Neither works. The firms pulling ahead built the workflow first and picked the tools second.
SELECT CLIENTS
CANY, Disney, Marvel, Mattel, Barbie, Nascar, Prisma Health, Ashley Furniture, Cabinets to Go
FEATURED ON
Fast Company, Tech Crunch, The Webby Awards, iJustine, Refresh Miami
FEATURED SERVICES
Three services. Built to work together or stand alone.
Products: Internal tools and client-facing systems your competitors don't have. Built for your process, not off-the-shelf.
Automations: The workflows eating your team's hours; proposals, QA passes, client reporting, billing reconciliation, rebuilt to run themselves. You keep oversight. You lose the hours.
Marketing Systems: Infrastructure that gets your firm found by AI search, converts inbound without a marketing team, and runs whether or not you're posting on LinkedIn.
Most first engagements run 30 to 90 days, fixed fee. A few clients keep me on as an ongoing systems partner once the first build ships. No hourly billing. No open-ended retainers. No vendor theater.
The goal every time: your firm does more without hiring more. Principal hours go back to winning work instead of QA'ing deliverables. Your pipeline stops depending on referrals alone. Growth stops requiring headcount.
TRACK RECORD
5 years building. Consumer products at Mattel, Disney, and NASCAR. Internal tools and marketing systems at firms like CANY. Every engagement built to run without me after handoff.
ABOUT
James Lythe. Fifteen years as a design engineer, the kind of generalist who was never just the designer or just the engineer. Digital products at Mattel and Disney. Internal systems at AEC firms like CANY. I work solo on purpose. You get the person you're hiring, not a junior learning on your budget. I integrate AI into how I work every day, which is why I can help you integrate it into how your firm works.
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BOOK THE AUDIT
Every engagement starts with a 30-minute AEC AI Opportunity Audit. In half an hour, you'll leave with:
A written map of the three highest-ROI AI and automation opportunities inside your firm.
Rough hour and dollar estimates for each, over your first twelve months.
A go/no-go read on each, grounded in what's realistic for a firm your size.
A specialist referral if the work isn't a fit for me.
Free for AEC firms doing $5M+ in revenue. 30 minutes on the dot. No pitch deck, no follow-up sales sequence, no newsletter enrollment. If we don't work together, you leave with the written map and a referral, and you never hear from me unless you reach out.
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