Douglas County-based CH2M Hill is purchasing the state and government transportation consulting business of Booz Allen Hamilton for $28.5 million in cash.
CH2M Hill said the acquisition will provide it with 150 Booz Allen professionals with an average of 22 years experience.
They include experts in management consulting, system engineering, rolling stock consulting, asset management, train control and communications systems, system safety and revenue consulting, according to CH2M Hill.
“We are excited to welcome the transit and rail professionals from Booz Allen Hamilton’s (state and local) transportation business to the CH2M Hill family,” said Garry Higdem, CH2M Hill’s transportation president.
“Their long track record of supporting top-tier U.S. and Canadian transit agencies with a wide range of management and consulting services blends perfectly with CH2M Hill’s transit and rail planning, design, construction, program management and operations capabilities.”
John Corsi, spoksman for CH2M Hill, said that the 150 Booz Allen employees will continue to work in McLean,Va. – where Booz Allen is headquartered – plus Boston, New York, Newark, Baltimore and San Francisco.
Corsi said CH2M Hill has offices in those cities.
Booz Allen said in a separate release that the purchase price was $28.5 million in cash, “subject to certain adjustments.”
The McLean company said that in its latest reported fiscal year, the state and local transportation consulting business accounted for approximately $50 million in annual revenue.
At the closing of the transaction, expected to be during the third quarter of 2011 and subject to the “customary closing conditions,” Booz Allen will begin to assign, its current state and local contracts to CH2M Hill, said Booz Allen Hamilton.
Gary Schulman, a senior vice president with Booz Allen’s state and local transportation business, said that joining CH2M Hill brings new opportunities for both the Booz Allen employees and the Booz Allen clients.
“Their culture of ethics, diversity and inclusivity – combined with their highly integrated business platform and focus on sustainability – makes this an ideal fit for our talented professionals,” said Schulman.
The two companies said that Booz Allen Hamilton was divesting itself of the state and local government consulting business so Booz Allen could “better align its contract portfolio with the company’s federal business.”
Booz Allen said it has a large and growing federal transportation business serving the FAA, AMTRAK, the Federal Highway Administration and other federal agencies.
By divesting itself of the state and local consulting business, it can better focus on its core client base, said the McLean, Va. company.
CH2M Hill’s work is concentrated in the areas of water, transportation, environment , energy facilities and resources.
It reports $6.3 billion in revenue and 23,000 employees.
Howard Pankratz: 303-954-1939 or hpankratz@denverpost.com.
