History

Black & Veatch was officially started as a two-person partnership in 1915, but its roots began developing years prior when Ernest Bateman Black met Nathan Thomas Veatch at the University of Kansas. Black later teamed with J.S. Worley and formed Worley & Black in 1912. When Worley left to pursue a government contract, Black remembered his former colleague and offered N.T. Veatch a partnership. Thus, Black & Veatch was formed.

The company began with 12 employees with offices in Kansas City, Missouri. It landed two large contracts, one in power and one in water, in its first year. The company's strong ties with government work began in 1917, as the United States Government War Department asked Black & Veatch to supervise construction of military training camps during World War I.

In the early years, the company mostly focused on water and power projects throughout the Midwest. In 1928, Black & Veatch designed and constructed 250 miles of roadways for Jackson County, Missouri, and during this time, N.T. Veatch formed a strong friendship with Harry Truman, which lasted throughout Truman's presidency. Following World War II, Black & Veatch became involved with the work at the United States Atomic Energy Commission at Los Alamos, New Mexico.

In 1949, founder E.B. Black passed away at the age of 67. Veatch directed the company for the next seven years, and in 1956 formed a general partnership with 29 engineers, in effect, giving them partial ownership and guaranteeing the continuance of the company. The next year, Black & Veatch opened its first branch office outside of Kansas City, a small office in Orlando, Florida, serving the power markets.

In the early 1960s, the company made a concerted effort to move into international markets. Although it took a few years of sowing, the company won a contract to build a 200 megawatt power plant in Thailand, beginning a relationship that has lasted to this day. In 1964, the company's first water office opened in Denver, Colorado.

Founder N.T. Veatch retired from the company in 1973, and passed away two years later, on October 8, 1975 at the age of 89. Veatch saw his company soar from the dozen initial employees to more than 1,200 professionals, with projects spanning the globe.

Black & Veatch grew "organically" during its first 60-plus years and expanded dramatically throughout the United States between 1977 and 1984, opening 11 regional offices. The company also began a series of acquisitions and mergers starting in the late 1970s, acquiring Trotter-Yodder & Associates in San Francisco, and then Southern Science Application and Moore, Gardner & Associates. In 1985, the company acquired the Pritchard Corporation, which put Black & Veatch in the gas, oil and chemicals field with the major energy companies as clients.

After a series of acquisitions plus continuing organic growth, the company had 35 offices in the United States by 1990 and was also expanding globally with six offices outside the U.S.

In 1995, Black & Veatch merged with Binnie & Partners of the UK, giving the company an opening in the UK, European and Asian markets. The next year, Black & Veatch also acquired Paterson Candy Ltd., a UK-based water treatment process contractor.

In 1999, the company changed its structure from the general partnership begun in 1956 to an employee-owned corporation. That change facilitated the company's growth, as many of its clients were involved in multiple markets across the core sectors of energy, water, information and government

Shortly after the new millennium, many market sectors were negatively impacted and damaged by world events - the information technology bust, 9/11 terrorist attacks in the U.S., Enron financial failure and a recession in the U.S. Black & Veatch demonstrated a strong level of resiliency during this time and emerged more diversified and able to serve ever-expanding global markets.

The company partnered with Chiyoda in 2001, a Japanese industrial company, for a licensing agreement for the CT-121 wet flue gas scrubber, as air quality control issues heightened at power plants. The company's coal power plant business and the power delivery business grew to unprecedented levels, and work progressed at the Lungmen Nuclear Plant in Taiwan. The company led a consortium of partners to win the Costa Azul LNG terminal project in Ensenada, Mexico, in 2004.

In 2005, the company made three acquisitions - R.J. Rudden Associates, Lukens Energy Group and Fortegra - doubling the size of its management consulting business, renamed Enterprise Management Solutions.

In B&V Water during 2005, the Tuas Desalination plant in Singapore came online and the Columbia Heights Membrane Ultrafiltration Plant both won awards for its design. Black & Veatch also made major expansion efforts in offices in Pune, India, and Beijing, China, and targeted new markets in Russia, China and the Middle East. The company was involved with reconstruction work in Iraq, and helped with the recovery efforts of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.

Black & Veatch has always been marked by steady leadership. After the death of founder E.B. Black, founder N.T. Veatch ran the company until his retirement in 1973, and he turned the company over to managing partner Thomas Robinson. Robinson ran Black & Veatch for 10 years and retired in 1982. His brother, Jack Robinson, succeeded him as managing partner and guided the company for another 10 years. In 1992, P.J. Adam took over as Chairman and CEO and operated the company until current Chairman, President and CEO Len C. Rodman took over the reins on January 1, 2000.

The company acquired the water business of MJ Gleeson in 2006, more than doubling the size of Black & Veatch’s existing UK water operations. In addition, the acquisition enabled the company to provide added project delivery capabilities to its clients

Today, the company continues to experience strong growth across its core markets. Black & Veatch currently has a global workforce of more than 8,600 working in over 100 offices worldwide with projects completed in more than 100 countries on six continents.

Milestones Video (WMV9, 19.4MB)

Timeline

1915  Ernest Bateman Black and Nathan Thomas Veatch form a partnership called Black & Veatch, with 12 employees on the payroll. In the fall, Black & Veatch is awarded its first water supply and treatment contract from American Zinc, Lead & Smeltering Co. in Dearing, Kan.

1917  War Department requests that Black & Veatch supervise construction of Camp Pike in Little Rock, Arkansas. Other camps are built later in Oklahoma and New Mexico.

1928  Black & Veatch begins building 250 miles of modern roadways in Jackson County and in Kansas City, Missouri. N.T. Veatch forms close friendship with Harry Truman.

1935  Black & Veatch moves offices to Kansas City's renowned Country Club Plaza.

1940  War Department requests that Black & Veatch rebuild Camp Robinson in Little Rock, Arkansas. Other camp projects include Camp Chafee in Ft. Smith, Arkansas, Camp Hale in Pando, Colorado, and other military installations in the Midwest.

1947  Employment reaches 355 at Black & Veatch.

1948  Work begins for the Atomic Energy Commission at Los Alamos, New Mexico.

1949  Founder Ernest Bateman Black passes away on July 4 at the age of 67.

1950  N.T. Veatch appointed by President Harry Truman to the President's Water Control Advisory Board.

1956  N.T. Veatch forms a general partnership with 29 engineers, thereby ensuring posterity of Black & Veatch.

1957  Black & Veatch opens its first regional office in Orlando, Florida, serving the power markets.

1963  Black & Veatch International is formed with the intent of making the company a global business.

1964  Black & Veatch opens its first water regional office in Denver, Colorado. Company designs 100-million-gallon daily water treatment plant in Denver.

1967  Company awarded contract to build 60 megawatt power generating unit in Thailand.

1975  Founder N.T. Veatch passes away on October 8 at the age of 89.

1976  Company opens new building at present location of 11401 Lamar Ave. in Overland Park, Kansas.

1977  Black & Veatch acquires two smaller engineering firms, and opens 11 regional offices over the next seven years. Company begins to actively pursue nuclear engineering business.

1985  Black & Veatch acquires the Pritchard Corporation, gaining entry into the gas, oil and chemicals market.

1988  Company opens new office at present location in Kansas City, Missouri, at 8400 Ward Parkway.

1989  The company's telecommunications group is involved with laying 4,100 miles of fiber-optic cable for AT&T.

1990  The number of regional offices across the United States reaches 35 with six international offices.

1995  Black & Veatch merges with Binnie & Partners gaining 25 global offices and opening the door to UK, European and Asian water markets.

1996  Black & Veatch acquires Paterson Candy Ltd., a UK-based water treatment process contractor, and PROWA, a German engineering firm. Black & Veatch also teams with General Electric to start design and construction on the Lungmen Nuclear Plant in Taiwan. Black & Veatch starts up BV Solutions Group to handle internal IT.

1999  Black & Veatch changes company structure from general partnership to an employee-owned corporation.

2004  Black & Veatch wins contract for engineering and construction of the Costa Azul LNG facility in Ensenada, Mexico, the largest in North America.

2005  Black & Veatch acquires R.J. Rudden Associates, Lukens Energy Group and Fortegra, a move that doubles the size of its management consulting business. Company also signs IT agreement with EDS Corporation, calling for EDS to provide global IT services and to acquire selected assets of BV Solutions Group.

2006   Black & Veatch acquires the water business of MJ Gleeson, more than doubling the size of its existing UK water operations.

2008   Black & Veatch selected by Eskom to provide project management and engineering services for a 4,800 megawatt power generation facility in South Africa.