Stantec acquires Morrison Hershfield, leading transportation, buildings, environmental firm

Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, has signed an agreement to acquire Morrison Hershfield, a 1,150-person engineering and management firm headquartered in Markham, Ont. With a particularly strong presence in Canada, Morrison Hershfield will increase Stantec’s Canadian workforce by approximately 10%.

Founded in 1946 and employee-owned, Morrison Hershfield has a top-tier industry reputation in transportation, buildings, and environmental services. Morrison Hershfield has offices in 22 cities in Canada and the United States, and one office in India.

The acquisition, which is being completed by way of a court approved plan of arrangement, is subject to Morrison Hershfield shareholder approval, court approvals, and certain regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the first quarter 2024. The terms of the transaction are not disclosed.

The acquisition of Morrison Hershfield expands Stantec’s presence in most major Canadian markets, and further strengthens its U.S. presence in buildings engineering. Morrison Hershfield is one of the few large Canadian-based engineering firms with core strengths, business lines, and clients that are additive to Stantec’s presence in multiple key growth markets. Similarly, Stantec’s global market presence and client relationships will accelerate Morrison Hershfield’s business line growth opportunities as part of Stantec.

“We are thrilled to bring a firm of Morrison Hershfield’s stature into the Stantec fold,” said Gord Johnston, president and CEO, Stantec. “Our firms have shared a mutual admiration over many years. Stantec and Morrison Hershfield have a similar history from our roots in the Canadian market, growing and diversifying services both by geography and service line. And, importantly, our values and culture are very well aligned.”

The addition of Morrison Hershfield’s Horizontal Infrastructure business will double Stantec’s transportation presence in Ontario, bolstering the firm’s bridge, highway, construction administration, program management, and inspection services in a key growth market. In Western Canada, Stantec’s strong market presence will be further solidified with the addition of Morrison Hershfield’s diversified transportation services.

Morrison Hershfield is an industry leader in building and facilities engineering design. Additionally, Morrison Hershfield adds capacity in the high-growth mission critical and data center market space, which will further complement Stantec’s recent acquisition of Environmental Systems Design. The combination will reinforce Stantec's position as a top provider of data center engineering services. Stantec’s decarbonization and high-performance building design work will be strengthened by Morrison Hershfield’s industry-leading position in building envelope and building science design, among others.

Morrison Hershfield’s Environmental Services business will bolster Stantec’s capacity to support infrastructure projects in key Canadian markets, including Toronto, Vancouver, and in Canada’s North by combining teams in Whitehorse, Yukon. The firm will also support Stantec’s work in the energy transition by providing additional capacity in environmental impact assessment, ecological services, and geosciences.

Anthony Karakatsanis, president and chief executive officer, Morrison Hershfield, said, “With access to Stantec’s depth of renowned experts, resources, and cutting-edge technology, we will be able to provide our employees with exciting and meaningful work, growth, and professional development for the long term.”

Learn more about both firms on www.Stantec.com and www.MorrisonHershfield.com.