URS Corp.

Infobox Company
company_name = URS Corporation
company_
company_type = Public nyse|URS
foundation = 1951
location = San Francisco, California
key_people = Martin Koffel, President & CEO
H. Thomas Hicks, CFO
industry = Engineering
products =
revenue = profit$5.383 Billion USD(2007)
operating_income =
net_income =
num_employees = 56,000 (2008)
parent =
subsid =
homepage = [http://www.urscorp.com/ www.urscorp.com]
footnotes =

URS Corporation nyse|URS is one of the largest engineering design firms worldwide and a leading U.S. federal government contractor. Headquartered in San Francisco, California; URS is a full-service, global organization with offices located in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

URS is structured into three operating divisions:

The URS Division provides planning, design and program and construction management services for all types of transportation and water resources infrastructure, as well as for healthcare complexes, schools, courthouses and other public buildings. The URS Division also provides engineering and environmental services to Fortune 500 companies worldwide. Through the URS Division, the company also designs aircraft hangars and other military facilities, remediates hazardous waste sites at military installations and provides the full range of services for Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) programs.

The EG&G Division primarily serves U.S. federal government clients, including the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security. The Division provides systems engineering and technical assistance for the development of weapons systems, and maintains and repairs vehicles and other military equipment to extend their service life. The Division also provides logistics support and installation management services, trains military pilots and conducts homeland security preparedness exercises in communities throughout the United States.

The Washington Division provides engineering, construction and management solutions for infrastructure, power, mining, oil and gas, industrial/process and defense projects. The Division specializes in design-build and design-build-operate-maintain services for transportation systems and provides engineering, construction, modification and maintenance expertise for every form of power-generating facility. Through the Washington Division, URS also manages high-risk, technically complex programs and facilities for the U.S. Department of Energy, including nuclear waste management and disposal programs.

History

URS Corporation's oldest predecessor company was founded in 1904. URS was established in 1951 and incorporated in 1957 as Broadview Research, a research group active in the areas of physical and engineering sciences. In 1968, Broadview Research acquired United Research Incorporated of Cambridge, Massachusetts. During this period, the name Broadview Research was changed to United Research Services, later shortened to URS.

In the 1960s, URS ventured into the software business and became URS Systems in preparation for going public. URS Data Sciences, an operating company of URS Systems, was contracted by the Department of Defense to develop software for IBM computers used for the U.S. Army Combat Services Support System (CS3) and tactical fire direction system (TACFIRE). Computing and information processing was an emerging industry in the 1960s. The glamor of being a significant player in the emerging software industry made URS Systems an attractive candidate for an initial public offering (IPO) in 1968. URS shares traded on the American Stock Exchange and the share price increased after the IPO. Leveraging the company's new financial strength, Chairman Dick De Lancie embarked on a campaign of expansion by acquisition. URS acquired Matrix Research and Rocky Mountain Airlines and expanded the architectural and engineering services business. By 1970, the Army software contract was no longer sustaining the software company and URS closed URS Data Sciences.

A major growth occurred in the 1970s and 1980s under the leadership of Art Stromberg and Frank Agardy, as the company developed capability in the environmental science and energy fields.

In 1996, URS expanded with the acquisition of Greiner Engineering, Woodward-Clyde Group in 1997, UK-based Thorburn Colquhoun in 1998 and Dames & Moore in 1999. In 2002, URS acquired EG&G Technical Services.

As of mid 2006, the firm has more than 29,400 employees worldwide, in more than 20 countries, in more than 320 offices, with the largest presence in the United States and western Europe.

In September 2007 they were selected from an international field of eleven firms to design and construct the world's first purpose-built commercial spaceport, Spaceport America, in the desert of New Mexico, US. To do this they teamed with Foster from the United Kingdom, a group with extensive experience in crafting airport buildings.

With the acquisition of Washington Group International, URS Corp. was able to obtain Fortune 500 status for the first time in 2008 with a rank of 449, up from 505 the previous year. [cite web |url=http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/snapshots/10820.html |title=Fortune 500 2008: URS |accessdate=2008-07-16 |work=Fortune ]

Mergers and Acquisitions

On November 15, 2007, URS Corporation announced that the Company had completed its acquisition of Washington Group International, Inc. (NYSE: WNG) for a total purchase price of approximately $3.1 billion.

In June 1999, URS acquired Dames & Moore, a global engineering firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California. By the time of the merger, the Dames & Moore group had a total of 7,800 employees in 30 countries.

In 1996, URS acquired Greiner Engineering for $73.5 million. [ [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B07EFDC1039F931A25752C0A960958260 COMPANY NEWS] -URS ACQUISITION OF GREINER IS PUT AT $73.5 MILLION, New York Times, January 12, 1996.] Greiner Engineering had been established in 1908 by John E. Greiner. Greiner was a former engineer for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and worked at one time for Gustav Lindenthal, including on the Seventh Street Bridge. [cite book
last = Weingardt
first = Richard
authorlink =
coauthors =
editor =
others =
title = Engineering Legends
origdate =
origyear =
origmonth =
url = http://books.google.com/books?id=035S8UOIzcEC
format = Google books
accessdate = 2008-09-01
accessyear =
accessmonth =
edition =
date =
year = 2005
month =
publisher = ASCE Publications
location =
language =
id =
isbn = 9780784408018
pages = 42-45
chapter =
chapterurl =
quote =]

Key People

* Martin Koffel - CEO
* H. Thomas Hicks - CFO

Current Members of the URS Board of Directors
* Jesse Arnelle,
* Betsy Bernard,
* Armen der Marderosian,
* Mickey Foret,
* Martin Koffel,
* Joseph Ralston,
* John Roach, and
* William Walsh.

References

External links

* [http://www.urscorp.com URS Corporation Web site]
* [http://www.urscorp.com/EGG_Division/index.php EG&G Division Homepage]
* [http://www.enr.com/people/topLists/topDesignFirm/topdesign_1-50.asp Engineering News-Record's Top 500 Design Firms]
* [http://enr.construction.com/people/topLists/topEnvDesign/topEnv_1-50.asp Engineering News-Record's Top 200 Environmental Firms]
* [http://enr.construction.com/people/topLists/topCmFee/topcmfee_1-50.asp Engineering News-Record's Top 100 Construction Management Companies]
* [http://images.industryclick.com/files/31/506ecm11bigchart.jpgEC&M Top 40 Electrical Design Firms]
* [http://www.defensenews.com/channel.php?C=top100#2005 Defense News Top 100 Defense Companies]