The Planning Center|DC&E Announces Corporate Name Change to PlaceWorks

SANTA ANA, CA--(Marketwired - Mar 3, 2014) - The Planning Center|DC&E today announced a corporate name change to PlaceWorks, effective immediately. One of the premier planning, design and environmental firms in the U.S., PlaceWorks offers a diverse range of expertise and service in planning, design, environmental analysis, science and engineering, economics, community outreach and more.

"The new name more accurately conveys the wide array of services and experience that our team offers, and reinforces our mandate of creating great places," said Keith McCann, chief executive officer of PlaceWorks. "We take a multi-dimensional approach to our work that involves geographic, environmental, functional, aesthetic and cultural disciplines, and our name reflects our holistic focus on 'how places work.'"

In 2011, The Planning Center, a full-service consulting firm specializing in community planning, environmental services, and land planning and design, merged with Design, Community & Environment (DC&E), a provider of comprehensive planning and design services, with an emphasis on urban design and smart growth. As the two firms integrated their cultures and expertise, and realized new synergies with the combined corporate entity, a new name was required to clearly communicate that the firm's service offerings extended well beyond the connotation of "planning."

The merger enabled PlaceWorks to expand its core services by better leveraging complementary services across the firm and in new geographic areas, creating more fully integrated offerings, especially in areas such as healthy communities and sustainability. According to Randy Jackson, president of PlaceWorks, combining the capabilities of both firms had a "one plus one equals three" effect with respect to helping existing clients and acquiring new ones with increasingly complex planning, design and environmental challenges.

"We provide highly innovative, big-picture brainpower for each of our client engagements," said Jackson. "We are thrilled to have a simple yet powerful name that encompasses all of the value that we deliver as a firm."

About PlaceWorks
Based in California, PlaceWorks is one of the premier planning, design and environmental firms in the U.S. The firm's expertise and services span a wide range of planning, design, science and engineering, economics, environmental analysis and community outreach disciplines. Government agencies, corporations and developers, educational institutions and nonprofit organizations across the country rely on PlaceWorks to consistently provide thoughtful, accurate and thorough solutions to their most complex problems. For more information, visit the firm's website at www.placeworks.com.