Engineering Services Acquisitions in 2023

Ardian is leading a consortium including Tikehau Capital, EMZ, Bpifrance, Amundi and the Fonds France Nucléaire (managed by Siparex) in a leveraged buyout of Vulcain Engineering. The transaction effects the exit of existing shareholders Equistone Partners Europe and Sagard while co-CEOs Frédéric Grard and Alban Guilloteau and more than 350 employee-shareholders strengthen their positions. The new financing will provide resources to accelerate Vulcain's international expansion, digitisation of engineering processes and continued external growth via acquisitions.

GlobalLogic, a Hitachi Group company, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Mobiveil, an embedded engineering services firm headquartered in Silicon Valley. The acquisition expands GlobalLogic's embedded software, hardware and ASIC capabilities and brings Mobiveil's Centers of Excellence and client relationships into GlobalLogic's digital engineering portfolio.

RMA Companies, a portfolio company of OceanSound Partners, has acquired Rone Engineering, a Dallas-based geotechnical engineering, materials testing, and environmental services firm. The acquisition expands RMA's South-Central (Texas) presence and service capabilities, with Rone acting as RMA's primary presence in the region and Richard Leigh named Texas Divisional President.

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. (Nasdaq: BWMN) acquired Hess-Rountree, Inc., a Phoenix-based civil engineering and land surveying firm. The acquisition, financed with cash, seller notes and equity, expands Bowman’s Arizona footprint and adds Hess‑Rountree’s expertise in educational, athletic and renewable energy projects to Bowman’s national engineering platform.

PwC has acquired Surfaceink, a Bay Area hardware design and prototyping firm founded in 1999. Financial terms were not disclosed; roughly 50 Surfaceink employees, including CEO Eric Bauswell, will join PwC as the firm expands its hardware engineering and product prototyping capabilities for enterprise clients.

Grace Hebert Curtis Architects (GHC), a Bernhard Capital Partners–backed AEC platform, has acquired BSSW Architects, a full-service architectural firm with offices in Fort Myers and Naples, Florida. Financial terms were not disclosed; the deal is an add-on to GHC's AEC platform intended to expand capabilities and market presence in southwestern Florida—particularly in education, government and hospitality sectors.

NIRAS has acquired Lorien Engineering Solutions, a division of GP Strategies Corporation, to strengthen its engineering consultancy capabilities in the food & beverage, life science and advanced manufacturing sectors. The deal adds Lorien’s offices in Poland, the U.K., and South Africa to NIRAS’s global footprint and is expected to complete on 1 January 2024. The acquisition expands NIRAS’s process-industry expertise and international scale.

SOCOTEC (via SOCOTEC USA and SOCOTEC UK) has completed acquisitions of U.S.-based SLS Consulting and UK-based IETG, strengthening its life safety, fire protection and electronic surveillance capabilities while accelerating international expansion into the United States and United Kingdom. The deals broaden SOCOTEC's technical services for buildings, infrastructure and water sectors and support the group's growth ambitions and greater international revenue mix.

Trinity Consultants has acquired Longman Lindsey, a New York–based full-service acoustical consultancy, and integrated it into its Built Environment pillar alongside prior acoustical acquisitions such as Cerami. Founder John Longman will remain a key leader within Trinity's Built Environment division; AEC Advisors advised Longman Lindsey on the sale.

H.W. Lochner, Inc. acquired Triunity, Inc., a Denver-based engineering, program/project management, and construction management firm, to expand Lochner's Transit & Rail and Municipal Services capabilities and establish a National Transit & Rail Practice. Triunity will operate as "Triunity, Inc., A Lochner Company" with founders Jonnie and Marvin Thomas remaining in leadership roles.

NV5 Global, Inc. acquired Technical Design Services, Inc. (TDSi), a Chicago-based provider of data center and technology infrastructure design and consulting services. The deal (cash and stock) expands NV5's capabilities in data center, audiovisual, security, and telecommunications design, adds recurring revenue (approximately 80% of TDSi's revenue), and strengthens NV5's relationships in the aviation and government sectors.

Ridge, the Horizon-backed built environment consultancy, has acquired London-based Concert to strengthen its data centre capability and bolster its presence in the London commercial market. The deal is an add-on to Ridge’s platform and supports the firm's strategy of growing expertise and fee income in high-growth markets.

Landtec Surveying & Lien, a Deerfield Beach, Florida land surveying firm, has acquired Wallace Surveying Corporation, a leading commercial surveying company in Palm Beach County. The acquisition expands Landtec’s geographic footprint and capabilities in commercial and boundary surveying across Palm Beach County and strengthens its position as one of Florida’s fastest-growing surveying firms.

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. (Nasdaq: BWMN) has acquired High Mesa Consulting Group, a 46-year-old multidisciplinary surveying, mapping, subsurface utility and civil engineering firm headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The acquisition expands Bowman’s presence in the Southwestern U.S., adds UAV-based geospatial capabilities and brings High Mesa’s ~22 employees and public-sector client relationships into Bowman’s national engineering platform.

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. (NASDAQ: BWMN) has acquired CFA, Inc., a Reno, Nevada-based civil engineering, surveying, planning and remote sensing firm. The acquisition — financed with cash, seller notes and equity — brings roughly 30 CFA professionals into Bowman and strengthens Bowman's presence in Nevada, with an initial annualized net service billing run rate of about $5 million.

Denver-headquartered Galloway & Company, Inc. has acquired Atlanta-based Studio for Housing Design and its subsidiary Pucciano & Associates to expand Galloway's housing design capabilities and regional presence in the southeastern United States. The acquisition (effective Nov. 10, 2023) brings Studio for Housing Design's multifamily, military, student and HUD housing expertise into Galloway's multidisciplinary architecture and engineering platform; Studio staff will continue operating under the Galloway name.

Verdantas, a private-equity-backed sustainable engineering and environmental services firm, has acquired Watcon Consulting Engineers to strengthen Verdantas' civil engineering, surveying, and water/waste capabilities in central Ohio. The deal expands Verdantas' local leadership and resources in Ohio; RTC Partners (Verdantas' financial sponsor) commented on the strategic fit and supports continued add-on activity.

Ardurra Group, Inc., a Littlejohn & Co. portfolio company, has acquired and merged with Arredondo, Zepeda & Brunz, LLC (AZ&B), an 86-person transportation/aviation/transit/survey/water engineering firm based in Dallas, Texas. The deal expands Ardurra's service offerings and presence in Texas and brings AZ&B's technical expertise and staff into Team Ardurra.

SAM Companies, a leading provider of geospatial and inspection solutions headquartered in Austin, Texas, has acquired Wellston Associates Land Surveyors, a full-service geomatics firm based in Warner Robins, Georgia. The acquisition expands SAM's capabilities in boundary, topographic, stakeout and digital mapping services and strengthens its presence in Georgia and the broader Southeastern United States.

RMA Companies, a portfolio company of OceanSound Partners, has added Big Apple Group, a New York-based testing and inspection firm, to its national platform. The acquisition expands RMA's geographic footprint in the Northeast and adds advanced monitoring, optical scanning, and remote sensing capabilities to its materials testing and inspection services.

Investment funds managed by TowerBrook Capital Partners have entered into a definitive agreement to take a minority stake in Langan Engineering & Environmental Services. Langan's management and employee shareholders will retain majority ownership; the financing package includes support from Blackstone Credit, CPPIB Credit Investments III and SMBC, and the deal is expected to close in Q1 2024.

Providence Equity Partners has made a strategic minority investment in Populous Holdings, a global architectural and design firm specializing in sports and entertainment venues. The capital will support Populous’ continued growth, expansion of service offerings and geographic reach while existing leadership, including Founder and Global Chair Earl Santee, remains in place.

McKim & Creed, an employee‑owned engineering and surveying firm, has acquired Matchpoint Water Asset Management, the largest U.S. water loss/recovery and leak detection company. The acquisition, finalized October 16, will integrate Matchpoint's monitoring, leak detection, GIS and UAV‑based assessment capabilities into McKim & Creed's engineering, modeling and instrumentation services to offer turnkey water infrastructure solutions.

SSOE Group has acquired Santa Clara–based Integrated Engineering Services (IES), effective October 13, 2023. The acquisition adds IES's expertise in cleanroom design, lab and industrial ventilation, specialty/toxic gas distribution and process chemical systems, while preserving IES's team and expanding SSOE's presence in Santa Clara, Atlanta and Austin.

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. has acquired Dennis Corporation, a Columbia, South Carolina-based civil engineering, surveying and construction management firm. The deal brings all 40 Dennis employees into Bowman, is financed with cash, seller notes and equity, and is expected to be immediately accretive with an initial annualized net service billing run rate of approximately $4.5 million.

Salute Mission Critical has acquired OBMG Ltd, a commissioning and QA/QC firm based in Athlone, Ireland, to expand its European presence and mission-critical commissioning capabilities. The deal strengthens Salute's EMEA service offering for data center commissioning and quality assurance, complementing prior acquisitions in the region and the U.S.

TRC Companies acquired Advanced Civil Technologies (ACT) to expand its highway design, transportation, and public works capabilities across Southern California. The acquisition brings ACT's project/program management and highway design expertise into TRC's broader engineering and environmental services platform to better serve regional transportation agencies.

Lonsdale Capital Partners has made an investment in GIA, a UK- and Ireland-based tech-enabled property consultancy that specialises in rights of light, daylight and sunlight analysis, wind analysis and building consultancy. The deal will support GIA's planned expansion and capability build-out — including development into low-carbon energy areas such as solar and wind — with founder Gordon Ingram becoming Chairman and CEO Sam Wallis continuing to lead the business.

Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. (SEH) has acquired the assets of RAM USA; RAM Companies, LLC will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of SEH. The acquisition brings RAM's patented non-destructive facility and infrastructure assessment technologies into SEH's service offerings, expanding SEH's roof, pavement, and lighting assessment capabilities and strengthening its planning, engineering, and architectural services.

E Tech Group has acquired Automation Group, a Modesto, California-based system integrator specializing in automation, robotics and cybersecurity. The acquisition expands E Tech's capabilities in automation and OT/IT cybersecurity while strengthening its presence on the U.S. West Coast; terms were not disclosed.

Nauticus Robotics (NASDAQ: KITT) agreed to acquire 3D at Depth, a Colorado-based subsea LiDAR and inspection services provider, in an all-stock transaction valuing the deal at approximately $34 million (before adjustments) and assuming about $4.1 million of debt. The acquisition brings 3D's subsea laser LiDAR technology, data services, and patent portfolio to Nauticus, expanding its autonomous underwater capabilities and commercial addressable market in offshore energy and renewables.

Atwell has acquired the operations of Summit Engineering Group, a civil engineering and land surveying firm headquartered in Heber City, Utah, marking Atwell’s first permanent office in Utah and expanding its western U.S. footprint. Terms were not disclosed; Summit, founded in 2001, will integrate into Atwell’s national consulting, engineering, and construction services platform to broaden service offerings for clients in Utah.

Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire Tulsa-based Excellence Engineering, LLC, a multi-discipline engineering firm serving petrochemical, hydrogen, industrial and electric vehicle industries. The deal (expected to close in early October 2023) will bring Excellence's staff into Bowman and is financed with cash, seller notes and equity; Bowman said the acquisition is immediately accretive and will initially operate at an annualized net service billing run rate of about $4.0 million.

Milrose Consultants, a portfolio company of Southfield Capital, completed add-on acquisitions of JM Zoning and Project Expediters Consulting Corp. to expand its permitting, zoning and expediting capabilities and extend its national footprint. Monroe Capital provided a senior credit facility to support the transactions, and CriticalPoint served as financial advisor to Milrose.

PRIME AE Group, Inc., a NewHold company, has acquired Jacobi, Toombs & Lanz, Inc. (JTL), an integrated engineering, surveying, and construction services firm headquartered in New Albany, Indiana. The deal strengthens PRIME AE's Midwest presence and expands its Transportation and Water Resources engineering, surveying, and construction capabilities.

ESP Associates, a portfolio company of Strength Capital Partners, has completed the acquisitions of CivilCorp, LLC (Texas) and Ditesco, LLC (Fort Collins, Colorado). The transactions expand ESP’s civil engineering, transportation, geospatial and construction management capabilities while growing its presence in the Texas and Colorado markets as part of a broader platform build strategy.

San Antonio-based Pape-Dawson Engineers has acquired Orlando-based Poulos & Bennett, expanding the firm's footprint into Florida and adding land planning and civil engineering capabilities. The firm also purchased Houston-based Costello Inc., strengthening its presence in Texas and broadening service offerings including landscape architecture and structural engineering.

Eldridge, Brightstar Capital Partners and Claure Group have signed a definitive agreement to acquire a majority stake in Ausenco from Resource Capital Fund VI L.P. and other co-investors. Ausenco founder Zimi Meka will remain CEO and investor, with Mike Burke expected to join the board as chairman; the company (about 3,000 employees) provides engineering, consulting, project delivery and operations services to the minerals, metals and energy transition markets.

GEI Consultants has acquired Colorado-based Lithos Engineering, a 27-person firm specializing in tunnel, trenchless, geotechnical, and geological engineering. The acquisition expands GEI's tunneling and trenchless capabilities and adds specialized expertise to support water and infrastructure projects across the U.S.

GHK Capital Partners completed the acquisition of Minneapolis-based WSB & Associates and concurrently acquired EST, Inc., contributing EST into WSB to form a national critical infrastructure engineering platform. The combined business will have over 1,100 employees and will pursue growth through geographic expansion, digital construction investments, and an active M&A program.

Lindsay Goldberg, a New York-based private equity firm, has acquired The Kleinfelder Group from Wind Point Partners. Kleinfelder, a San Diego–headquartered engineering and environmental professional services firm with ~3,100–3,200 employees, will continue to be led by President and CEO Louis Armstrong as Lindsay Goldberg partners with management to support further growth and capability expansion.

RMA Companies, a portfolio company of OceanSound Partners, has acquired A3GEO, a Berkeley-based geotechnical, geologic, and seismic engineering consultancy. A3GEO will operate as a business unit of RMA GeoScience with founder Dona Kelly leading the combined group; the deal closed May 31, 2023 and strengthens RMA's geotechnical and seismic capabilities in California and the Western United States.

Coffman Engineers has completed an asset purchase agreement to acquire Seattle-based acoustical consulting firm BRC Acoustics & Audiovisual Design, bringing BRC's president and five staff into Coffman's Seattle office. The acquisition is part of BRC's ownership transition/retirement plan and expands Coffman's acoustical capabilities and services across the Northwest and companywide.

UES, a national engineering and consulting firm, has acquired Biome Consulting Group, an ecological consulting firm based in Pensacola, Florida. The acquisition expands UES's ecological and environmental services capabilities in North Florida and adds Biome's expertise in ecological studies, regulatory compliance, and mitigation banking to UES's regional offering.

Atwell, a national consulting, engineering, and construction services firm, has acquired the operations of Mead Gilman & Associates, a Woodinville, Washington-based land surveying firm. The deal expands Atwell’s surveying and mapping capabilities and strengthens its geographic footprint in the Pacific Northwest; terms were not disclosed.

Godspeed Capital-backed Stratus (via its Zyscovich brand) has acquired Synalovski Romanik Saye Architects (SRS), a Fort Lauderdale-based full-service architecture and interior design firm. The add-on strengthens Stratus's multidisciplinary engineering, architecture, and consulting platform and expands its presence and capabilities in the Florida market.

Pape-Dawson Engineers, LLC announced an investment and partnership with Houston-based civil engineering and surveying firm Costello, Inc. The deal expands Pape-Dawson’s capabilities (including landscape architecture and structural services) and strengthens its presence in Texas while supporting broader growth across the United States.

Grovecourt Capital Partners, a West Palm Beach–based private equity firm, has acquired Traffic & Mobility Consultants LLC (TMC), an Orlando-based transportation planning and traffic engineering firm. Grovecourt said the investment will support TMC's geographic expansion across Florida and the Southeast and enable organic growth and strategic M&A.

RSK Group has acquired Jennings O'Donovan, a multidisciplinary consulting engineering firm headquartered in Sligo, Ireland, which specialises in renewable energy, water and wastewater, planning and environmental services. The transaction adds around 100 staff to RSK's Irish operations and strengthens the group's capability in renewables, water and environmental engineering across Ireland, the UK and Eastern Europe.

Pavion (backed by Wind Point Partners) has acquired RFI Enterprises, a San Jose–headquartered provider of integrated fire, security and life-safety systems. The add-on acquisition expands Pavion's presence in the U.S. West (RFI operates in California, Nevada and Washington) and strengthens its capabilities serving healthcare, technology and higher education customers.