FTN’s Approach to Serving Clients

• FTN is committed to exemplary service, support, and quality products for our clients.
• We solve engineering and environmental compliance challenges to help make our clients more successful.
• Our company provides exceptional value to our clients through our commitments to quality, innovation, and employee excellence.
• FTN is based on the principles of honesty and integrity, both in personal and business relationships.
• We strive to exceed the expectations of our clients.

The average tenure of our staff is more than 12 years, which provides clients experienced professionals who can more efficiently solve their challenges.

More than 90 percent of FTN’s business comes from previous clients. This is a testament to the quality of the services that we provide and our ability to establish successful, long-term relationships with those we serve.

History and Leadership

In October 1980, FTN Associates, Ltd. was originally incorporated in Mississippi as Ford, Thornton, Norton, & Associates, Ltd. At that time, its three founders, Dennis Ford, PhD, PE, Kent Thornton, PhD, a systems ecologist, and Joseph Norton, a chemist, were employed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station (WES) in Vicksburg, MS.

In July 1981, the founders left WES and began working at their firm. Our company’s first work was as a subcontractor to other firms. We received our first prime contract from Hot Springs, AR., to perform a wasteload study on Lake Catherine.

In July 1983, the company moved its offices from Vicksburg, MS., to Little Rock, AR. This location was more centrally located to our clients at the time and presented more opportunities to develop clients in the private sector. At the time of the move, we had five full-time employees, four of whom made the move with the company. Co-founder Norton left the company in September 1984 to pursue private interests. The corporate name was changed to FTN Associates, Ltd. in February 1986.

Initially, FTN specialized in providing water quality modeling and analysis services to public agencies. Services were expanded to include water resources modeling and analysis and environmental assessments in the mid-1980s. These services were directed primarily at federal agencies such as the Corps of Engineers District Offices and the US Environmental Protection Agency. The initial EPA work focused on providing research and management support for the agency’s Acid Deposition (Rain) Program.

Starting in the late 1980s, an effort was made to expand into the industrial environmental regulatory market sector. Services included water quality and NPDES permitting studies, wastewater management, solid waste management, and hydrogeological site assessments. FTN’s industrial market sector has grown while the firm still provides extensive services to numerous state and federal agencies, municipalities, and other governmental entities.

Dennis served as president of FTN until he decided to step down in the spring of 2018. Paul Crawford, PE, PG, was selected as our company’s next president. Paul has been with FTN since 1999 and is a civil engineer with well over 30 years of experience in environmental consulting.

Dennis and Kent still work at the firm.

Throughout its history, FTN has provided quality services to our clients, expanded the services that we provide to meet the ever-changing needs of those we serve, and enjoyed an outstanding record of growth. Our firm has grown to approximately 75 employees, and we have branch offices in Fayetteville, AR, Baton Rouge, LA, and Chesterfield, MO. Our headquarters is still in west Little Rock, and we are employee-owned.