Transportation engineer Gannett Fleming says it will grow its infrastructure consulting footprint in that sector with the purchase of rival TranSystems from its private equity owner, the companies announced. The amount of the cash transaction was not disclosed, but the firms said their combined operations will create a $1.3-billion revenue entity with more than 5,000 employees. 

As part of the completed deal announced Aug. 7, the companies said Gannett Fleming CEO Bob Scaer becomes a board director of that firm, under which the now enlarged entity is operating. TranSystems CEO Tim Rock and Gannett Fleming President and CFO Jim Nevada become co-presidents and co-chief operating officers of the combined company, with a search for a new CEO announced. 

Gannett Fleming, based in Camp Hill, Pa., ranks at No. 29 on ENR’s Top 500 Design Firms list, reporting $775 million in 2023 design revenue, while TranSystems, Kansas City, ranks at No. 58 with revenue of $453.6 million reported last year. The former is a portfolio company of New York City-based private equity firm OceanSound Partners, which acquired it in late 2022, and the latter had been owned by PE firm Sentinel Capital Partners, also based there. Sentinel had recapitalized TranSystems in 2021, with financial details not disclosed.

At ENR posting time, details of a company rebranding and integration plan were not disclosed and could not be confirmed.

“With this transformative transaction, we ... remain committed to continue building a premier national infrastructure services company,” said Joe Benavides, Gannett Fleming chairman and managing partner of OceanSound Partners. 

"Ocean Sound is putting a lot of money into this. It's aggressive," said one AEC market expert. "This PE firm wasn’t even in the market three years ago."

The transaction "bolsters our position within bridges, highways, construction services, mass transit and rail, and program management,” said Scaer, adding that it was the “right time to transition to the next generation of leadership."

Rock said the connection will broaden services “in facilities, water, and power engineering” as a more diversified operation.