Stantec to acquire New Mexico firm

Stantec has signed a letter of intent to acquire Occam Engineers Inc. (OEI), a New Mexico-based consulting engineering firm specializing in the civil engineering, public works, transportation, development engineering, planning and feasibility, program management, water resources and value analysis.

The 55-person firm, headquartered in Albuquerque, has regional offices throughout New Mexico in Santa Fe, Roswell, Artesia, Las Cruces, Silver City, and Tucumcari, along with an office in Houston, Texas. OEI itself is the result of a merger of firms: Engineers, Inc., Occam Consulting Engineers, Inc., and Easterling Consultants, LLC.

“OEI’s strong client relationships in both the water and transportation markets will help us as we continually expand both the depth and breadth of our professional services across the Southwest US,” said John Take, Stantec senior vice president, water, in a company release.

OEI has teamed with Stantec to support Santa Fe County in the negotiations of an Operating Agreement for the Pojoaque Basin Regional Supply System, a project that consists of surface water diversion facilities on the Rio Grande, along with treatment, transmission, storage, and distribution facilities, which will ultimately supply up to 4,000 acre-feet of water annually to local and regional water users.

OEI also led the reconstruction of a rural and isolated area of US 54 near Tularosa, New Mexico, for the New Mexico Department of Transportation. The project aims to improve safety along the corridor, with OEI spearheading the redesign of a bridge and an increase in driving and passing lanes.

Additionally, the firm provides data collection and monitoring assistance for a large-scale groundwater remediation project in Albuquerque to successfully treat 185 million gallons of contaminated groundwater annually, returning safe water to the aquifer facility with zero safety-related incidents.

“This is a tremendous opportunity to pursue large-scale public works projects not only in New Mexico, but across all of the Colorado River Basin states, while providing our existing clients an expanded array of capabilities drawn from the larger Stantec network,” said Scott Verhines, OEI president, in the release. “Stantec’s technical expertise, coupled with our strong relationships in both transportation and water, provide our employees exciting avenues to pursue meaningful projects advancing the quality of life in communities across the region.

The transaction is expected to close in March.