Walt Disney Imagineering

Walt Disney Imagineering Research & Development, Inc.—commonly referred to as Walt Disney Imagineering, Imagineering, or WDI—is the research and development arm of the Walt Disney Company, responsible for the creation, design, and construction of Disney theme parks and attractions worldwide. The company also operates Disney Live Entertainment and the Muppets Studio and manages Disney's properties, from Walt Disney Studios in Burbank to New Amsterdam Theatre and Times Square Studios Ltd. in New York City.

Founded on December 16, 1952 by Walt Disney to oversee the production of Disneyland Park, it was originally known as Walt Disney, Inc., then WED Enterprises, from the initials of "Walter Elias Disney", Disney's full name. Headquartered in Glendale, California, Imagineering is composed of "Imagineers", who are illustrators, architects, engineers, lighting designers, show writers and graphic designers.

The term "Imagineering", a portmanteau, was introduced in the 1940s by Alcoa to describe its blending of imagination and engineering, and used by Union Carbide in an in-house magazine in 1957, with an article by Richard F. Sailer called "BRAINSTORMING IS IMAGination engINEERING". Disney filed for a trademark for the term in 1989, claiming first use of the term in 1962. Imagineering is a registered trademark of Disney Enterprises, Inc.

Walt Disney, Inc. (WDI) was formed by Walt Disney on December 16, 1952, with an engineering division tasked with designing Disneyland. In light of objections from his brother Roy O. Disney as well as those of potential stockholders, WDI was renamed WED Enterprises in 1953 based on Disney's initials. In 1961, WED moved into the Grand Central Business Park. WED Enterprises's theme park design and architectural group became so integral to the Disney studio's operations that Walt Disney Productions bought it on February 5, 1965, along with the WED Enterprises name.

The unit was renamed as of January 1986 to Walt Disney Imagineering. In 1996, Disney Development Company, the Disney conglomerate's real estate development subsidiary, merged into Imagineering.

Imagineering created Disney Fair, a U.S. traveling attraction, which premiered in September 1996. With poor attendance, the fair was pulled after a few stops. Disney Entertainment Projects (Asia Pacific), Inc., a new Disney Asian Pacific subsidiary, selected a renamed fair called DisneyFest as its first project, taking it to Singapore to open there on October 30, 1997.

By 1997, Imagineers were in several buildings in Grand Central Business Park when Disney purchased the park. In September 1999, Disney Imagineering announced the Grand Central Creative Campus redesign of the industrial park with a new office-studio complex anchored by Disney Imagineering. Some of the buildings were demolished to make way for new buildings. The additional space would be for sound stages, production facilities and offices.

As part of the Walt Disney Company's March 2018 strategic reorganization, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts merged with Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media segments into Disney Parks, Experiences and Products (DPEP), giving Disney Imagineering oversight of merchandise, games and publishing development.