 | |
 WSP Global's head office in Montréal. | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| TSX: WSP S&P/TSX Composite Component | |
| Industry | Design,Engineering & Construction consulting, Environmental consulting,Professional services,Town planning |
| Predecessor | Genivar Inc. WSP Group plc |
| Founded | 1959; 66 years ago (1959) |
| Headquarters | , Canada |
Key people | Alexandre J. L'Heureux (President andCEO) |
| Revenue | C$14.44 billion (2023)[1] |
Number of employees | 73,300 (2024)[2] |
| Website | www |
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WSP Global Inc. is a Canadian consulting firm working mostly in thebuilt environment. It was created in 2012, following Montreal-basedGenivar's takeover of British firm WSP Group plc. It is listed on theToronto Stock Exchange. After the purchase of New York-headquartered professional services firmParsons Brinckerhoff in October 2014, WSP effectively became one of the largest professional services firms in the world, with approximately 73,300[1] employees in 500 offices serving in 40 countries.
Williams Sale Partnership was established in 1969 in England by Chris Cole, Geoffrey Williams, John Sale, and Geoffrey Middleton.[3] In 1976, it was a founding member of the Building Services Research and Information Association (BSRIA). It was first listed on theLondon Stock Exchange in 1987.[3]
In the 1990s, the company expanded both domestically and internationally, formingWSP Asia in 1995, incorporating Graham Group andT P O'Sullivan and Partners in 1997, acquiringUS practicesCantor Seinuk andFlack + Kurtz in 2000, as well as buyingJacobson & Widmark (J&W) inSweden in 2001 (J&W was founded in 1938),LT Consultants Oyj andEMP Projects Oyj inFinland in 2003 andPHB Group in theUAE in 2005.[3]
After acquiring three firms and expanding geographically in 1993, the name of the Canadian firm GBGM was changed toGenivar Inc.[4]
In August 2011, Genivar Inc. and Montreal-based architectural firmARCOP announced an alliance.
On 7 June 2012, Genivar made afriendly takeover cash offer of£278 million (C$442 million) for WSP Group plc, headquartered inLondon. The offer was backed by WSP'sboard of directors as well as investors holding 37% of the company's shares, and the takeover was completed on 1 August 2012.[5][6][7] This merger created a professional-services firm with approximately 15,000 employees, working in over 300 offices worldwide.[8]
The company reorganised its corporate structure on 1 January 2014, to create a parent company named WSP Global Inc. and adopted the common brand of WSP.[9]
In October 2014, WSP completed the purchase of New York-headquartered professional services firmParsons Brinckerhoff fromBalfour Beatty for US$1.24 billion.[10] The company has a network of approximately 170 offices and nearly 13,500 employees on five continents[11] and became a wholly owned independent subsidiary.[12] Together, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff is one of the largest professional services firms in the world with approximately 32,000 employees in 500 offices serving 39 countries.
In early 2015, WSP announced plans to expand to 45,000 employees by 2020.[13] In October 2016, WSP purchased Mouchel Consulting from theKier Group for approximately £75 million.[14]
In January 2017, WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff announced that it would assume the name "WSP", effective from May 2017.[15] In August 2017, WSP made a takeover bid forOpus International Consultants.[16]
In July 2018, WSP announced its intention to buy Berger Group Holdings Inc., parent of the group of companies operating under the name ofLouis Berger Group, a Morristown, N.J.-based international professional-services firm, for $400 million.[17]
In February 2020, WSP acquired US-based environmental consulting firm LT Environmental (LTE).[18] On December 3, 2020, WSP acquired Canadian-based geotechnical, earth-science, and environmental consulting firmGolder for $1.14 billion.[19]
On June 1, 2022, WSP announced an agreement of sale withWood Group plc for the Environment & Infrastructure group (E&I) part of its business. The £1.6 bn acquisition was concluded in September 2022.[20] In August 2022, WSP made an unsuccessful takeover offer to purchaseRPS Group for £591 million.[21][22][23] In September 2022, RPS received a counter takeover offer fromTetra Tech for £636 million[24] with WSP opting not to increase its bid.[25] RPS' shareholders voted to accept the Tetra Tech offer in November 2022.[26]
In December 2022, WSP announced plans to acquire a 700-person Swiss engineering firm, BG Consulting Engineers, based inLausanne with offices in France, Portugal and Italy.[27]
In August 2024, WSP announced plans to acquire 4000-person US based consulting engineering firm, POWER Engineers, based in Hailey, Idaho with over 50 offices around the US and Canada for US$1.78 billion.[28][29]
WSP projects include:
