Giant design/engineering firm WSP Global said today it plans to acquire infrastructure professional services firm Parsons Brinckerhoff from PB's parent organization, Balfour Beatty plc. The deal, which has been approved by the boards of WSP and Balfour Beatty, has an enterprise value of $1.243 billion, plus another $110 million in cash retained by PB.
The acquisition, if approved by Balfour Beatty shareholders and cleared by antitrust regulators, would create a mega-firm of more than 30,000 employees - 17,500 from Montreal-based WSP, 13,500 from New York-based Parsons Brinckerhoff. WSP currently has >300 offices in 30 countries on 5 continents; PB has 170 offices worldwide, with about 5,000 employees in the U.S.
The consolidation would strengthen WSP's position in the U.S. transportation segment and in the United Kingdom, where Parsons Brinckerhoff is a strong player. WSP said in a release that the move would also give the firm "a stronger presence in key growth regions such as Asia and Australia."
Parsons Brinckerhoff was founded in 1885. It is known for its expertise in infrastructure services in water, mining, power, transportation, energy, community development, and environment.
WSP, which acquired Flack & Kurtz in 2012, is considered a major player in urban planning and environmental projects, and in the engineering of complex buildings.
Related Stories
| Aug 11, 2010
Installation work begins on Minnesota's largest green roof
Installation of the 2.5 acre green roof vegetation on the City-owned Target Center begins today. Over the course of two days a 165 ton crane will hoist five truckloads of plant material, which includes 900 rolls of pre-grown vegetated mats of sedum and native plants for installation on top of the arena's main roof.
| Aug 11, 2010
AASHE releases annual review of sustainability in higher education
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has announced the release of AASHE Digest 2008, which documents the continued rapid growth of campus sustainability in the U.S. and Canada. The 356-page report, available as a free download on the AASHE website, includes over 1,350 stories that appeared in the weekly AASHE Bulletin last year.
| Aug 11, 2010
AECOM, Arup, Gensler most active in commercial building design, according to BD+C's Giants 300 report
A ranking of the Top 100 Commercial Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
| Aug 11, 2010
AIA approves Sika Sarnafil’s continuing education courses offering sustainable design credits
Two continuing education courses offered by Sika Sarnafil have been approved by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and are now certified to fulfill the AIA’s new Sustainable Design continuing education requirements.
| Aug 11, 2010
HNTB, Arup, Walter P Moore among SMPS National Marketing Communications Awards winners
The Society for Marketing Professional Services (SMPS) is pleased to announce the 2009 recipients of the 32nd Annual National Marketing Communications Awards (MCA). This annual competition is the longest-standing, most prestigious awards program recognizing excellence in marketing and communications by professional services firms in the design and building industry.
| Aug 11, 2010
'Flexible' building designed to physically respond to the environment
The ecoFLEX project, designed by a team from Shepley Bulfinch, has won a prestigious 2009 Unbuilt Architecture Design Award from the Boston Society of Architects. EcoFLEX features heat-sensitive assemblies composed of a series of bi-material strips. The assemblies’ form modulate with the temperature to create varying levels of shading and wind shielding, flexing when heated to block sunlight and contracting when cooled to allow breezes to pass through the screen.
| Aug 11, 2010
New book provides energy efficiency guidance for hotels
Recommendations on achieving 30% energy savings over minimum code requirements are contained in the newly published Advanced Energy Design Guide for Highway Lodging. The energy savings guidance for design of new hotels provides a first step toward achieving a net-zero-energy building.
| Aug 11, 2010
Perkins+Will master plans Vedanta University teaching hospital in India
Working together with the Anil Agarwal Foundation, Perkins+Will developed the master plan for the Medical Precinct of a new teaching hospital in a remote section of Puri, Orissa, India. The hospital is part of an ambitious plan to develop this rural area into a global center of education and healthcare that would be on par with Harvard, Stanford, and Oxford.
| Aug 11, 2010
Burt Hill, HOK top BD+C's ranking of the nation's 100 largest university design firms
A ranking of the Top 100 University Design Firms based on Building Design+Construction's 2009 Giants 300 survey. For more Giants 300 rankings, visit http://www.BDCnetwork.com/Giants
