Stantec is set to acquire Thames Tideway consultant’s 700 staff and 17 offices

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Canadian giant Stantec has signalled its intention to acquire UK consultant Peter Brett Associates for an undisclosed sum as part of a push to expand its UK presence.

Stantec has signed a letter of intent to acquire the Reading-based consultant.

The transaction, which is expected to close in September, will see Stantec acquire more than 700 engineers, planners, scientists and economists from Peter Brett Associates (PBA), which has 14 offices across the UK and another three in Europe.

Gord Johnston, Stantec president and chief executive, said: “Regionally, the project landscape is promising with the UK government’s policy to build 300,000 new homes per year, a five-year program to invest £4.4bn new and refurbished schools, a robust university upgrading initiative, and a major national investment program in UK infrastructure.

“These programs, paired with the existing role PBA is playing in projects like High Speed 2 and Crossrail 2, position us well for continued growth together.”

Of Stantec’s existing 22,000 employees, more than 2,400 are based in the United Kingdom.

PBA provided urban planning services at Paradise Birmingham. The design teams at PBA provided traffic assessment and optimization of the existing highway network to transform 7ha of city centre land into new civic, retail, leisure and hotel facilities, public transport and public realm space. 

The firm has been working on the Thames Tideway Tunnel project (pictured) since 2010, having previously managed the assessments for environmental impacts, health, transportation and energy and carbon footprint while also supporting stakeholder engagement and public consultation on the project.

PBA is still providing services for several areas on this project, including environmental planning and construction traffic strategy.