RVA Celebrates 75th Anniversary with a Brand Refresh

For RVA, 2023 is going to be a special year as it marks the 75^th anniversary of the company.

It all began in 1948 with Roderick Victor Anderson: an engineer with an idea, a plan, and an incentive to build something that would last. Someone who recognized the power of collaboration as a way to grow and achieve meaningful results. Could anyone have imagined that a small firm – consisting of one engineer (Rod himself), four technicians and draftsmen, and one stenographer (Rod’s wife, Jewel Anderson) – would eventually become an industry leading company uniting over 400 people across the country?

Since our founding, RVA professionals have been there for our clients at the turning points of history: when the first computer hard disk drive was built, when lines of communication via satellite were established, when GPS changed the urban landscape forever, and when the Internet connected all the corners of the world. A pioneer and innovator, Rod himself was the progenitor of the values that unite the RVA professionals working in his name today.

The day that RVA opened for business on Bay and Richmond Street in Toronto has special significance in our history. It is the day that we committed to delivering progressive solutions to the ever-changing needs of our clients and communities. And it is the birth of our brand: an employee-owned company where potentials are realized, and game-changing innovations are created.

A “brand” new makeover

Five years: that was the last time RVA refreshed its brand. It was 2017. Recreational drones were a novelty. Smartphones had only just begun employing facial recognition. Smart speakers were the latest household trend.  

Since our former brand was rolled out that year, RVA has grown and diversified on all fronts – so, too, has the world around us. And although we are incredibly proud of our history and the impacts we’ve made, we are even more excited about our forward momentum and future legacy. Our brand refresh, launched on February 1, 2023, introduces a new identity that expresses the incredible strength and potential that RVA brings as one of the fastest growing engineering firms in Canada. It celebrates and builds upon our best traditions while offering a renewed expression of the value we deliver for our people, clients, and communities.

Understanding the modernization of RVA’s visual identity requires an understanding of our new business environment. RVA is built on the past and driven by the future. We have a people-first culture – built from day one to be nimble – and we believe our collective strength can make a positive impact. As the world around us continues to shift, RVA is the firm that keeps pushing forward, trusting in the timeless values that have united us for over 75 years.

Building for the next 75

We may not know what innovations in society or technology will dominate our lives 75 years from now, or even five years from now. What’s indispensable today can become obsolete very quickly. What we do know, however, is that the importance of building a better future will endure.

“Our legacy is proof that our purpose-led approach works,” says Shawn Scott, President and CEO. “Change and the disruption it brings are what’s shaping business and society today, imposing new and urgent responsibilities on leading organizations. RVA is meeting these challenges by building an equitable and sustainable business for the long-term.”

And we’re just getting started. Our past is only the beginning of our journey.

Happy Birthday, RVA. Here’s to the next 75 years…and beyond.