CH2M Hill has sold their Enterprise Management Solutions division, which is largely comprised of their world-class GIS team, to a private equity firm. The 700-member division was sold for an undisclosed sum to Golden Gate Capital, and the new entity will be called Critigen LLC. CH2M Hill aims to return their focus to engineering, construction and operations, and will partner with Critigen for the IT solutions portion of their contracts.
CH2M Hill indicates that the division was growing at 20 percent per year for the last five years. Some standout projects from the division include the GIS contract to map out the United Arab Emirates zero-carbon Masdar City, as well as the solar mapping portal for San Francisco. The division was also involved in mapping projects for the U.S. military as well as state and local governments.
While the deal only went through on Monday, there’s a new Critigen website with a wealth of details about the newly divested company, including the assertion that this is the “world’s largest privately-held geospatial consulting business.” Be certain to watch the video on the home page for an impressive framing of the company’s strengths and their vision for their future.
I spoke today with an enthusiastic employee that was excited by the company’s prospects. While the division was growing strongly, they were also constrained to only the work that CH2M Hill brought their way. Now on their own, they’re free to pursue new work and new partnerships that may not have been a fit for CH2M Hill.
The Critigen name comes with the tag line, “The Catalyst to Modernize Critical Infrastructure.” It obviously plays on the “critical” nature of the work along with an allusion to next-generation technology. My contact jokingly said that employees have started calling themselves “critters.”
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Not all of the ‘critters’ are excited by this transaction.
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