Burns & McDonnell

What Burns & McDonnell does

Burns & McDonnell is a 100% employee-owned, full-service engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm founded in 1898 and headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri. It delivers integrated design-build projects across 16 critical infrastructure categories — power generation, transmission and distribution, grid modernization, water and wastewater, oil/gas/chemicals, manufacturing, aviation, government and defense, telecommunications, transportation, and environmental services — through its core Burns & McDonnell brand, the 1898 & Co. consulting arm, and AZCO union self-perform construction. The firm operates from 75+ offices worldwide, including a Bengaluru engineering and AI center, and serves enterprise utilities, industrial manufacturers, government agencies, and defense clients with project-based, custom-priced multi-year contracts. It ranks #9 on Engineering News-Record's Top 500 Design Firms, holds the #1 Power ranking for five consecutive years, and manages nearly 13,000 active projects.

The company's revenue model is project-based professional services and EPC delivery, with no standardized pricing — each engagement is custom-scoped and contracted, often as multi-year framework agreements or large discrete capital projects (e.g., National Grid's £8bn Electricity Transmission Partnership, a $249M Navy AE contract, a 250MW solar build, a 1GW gas turbine expansion). Go-to-market is enterprise field sales via regional offices and relationship-driven pursuit of regulated utilities, co-ops, industrial process operators, and federal agencies. Recent 2025-2026 partnerships — National Grid (UK), OneLayer (private 5G security), CPKC (rail-served industrial development), and Abundia (waste-to-fuels) — together with deeper positioning in nuclear, hydrogen blending, and hyperscale data center power, indicate active expansion of both geographic footprint and addressable verticals.

Name

Burns & McDonnell

Legal name

Burns & McDonnell

Website

https://burnsmcd.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1898

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Burns & McDonnell is a 100% employee-owned, full-service EPC firm delivering integrated engineering, procurement, and construction for utilities, industrial manufacturers, government, and defense clients across 16 critical infrastructure categories from 75+ offices worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Engineering and Construction Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Thermal Power Plant EPC (Gas/Coal/Oil) (EUAEAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Transmission line EPC & construction (overhead) (EUADAKAA), Power Plant Electrical Systems EPC (Switchyard, Transformers, Protection & Controls) (EUAEAAAM), Solar PV Power Plant EPC (Utility-Scale) (EUAEAAAG), Environmental & Permitting Compliance During Construction (Erosion Control, Wildlife Mitigation, Monitoring) (EUAMAFAM), Civil & Site Works EPC (Earthworks, Roads, Drainage, Foundations) (EUAEADAA)

Keywords

• Engineering design services
• Construction management services
• Power infrastructure engineering
• Critical infrastructure consulting
• Water and wastewater engineering

Headquarters

HQ city

Kansas City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Engineering and Construction Services: EPC project delivery model providing integrated engineering, procurement, and construction services for critical infrastructure projects. Revenue generated through project-based contracts across diverse sectors including power, water, manufacturing, government/military, and environmental services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Burns & McDonnell is a fully integrated engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm delivering design, architecture, construction, commissioning, program management, and operations and maintenance services to enterprise clients across power, water, oil and gas and chemicals, manufacturing, aviation, government and defense, telecommunications, transportation, and environmental sectors. The firm combines engineering, procurement, and construction under one delivery model and operates through sub-brands such as 1898 & Co. (business, technology, and security consulting) and AZCO (union self-perform construction). Services are delivered as project-based contracts spanning concept through commissioning and startup.

Product overview

Burns & McDonnell is a 100% employee-owned engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm offering integrated project delivery across multiple industries. The company operates through its family of brands including the core Burns & McDonnell brand, 1898 & Co. consulting division, and AZCO self-perform construction arm. Services span engineering, construction, architecture, commissioning, program management, and operations & maintenance, delivered through an integrated engineer-procure-construct approach across energy, water, power, environmental, industrial, manufacturing, and infrastructure sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 1898 & Co. 1898 & Co. is Burns & McDonnell's consulting division offering business, technology, and security consulting services for critical infrastructure clients across the firm's served sectors.
• AZCO AZCO is the union self-perform construction arm of Burns & McDonnell, providing direct-hire construction execution capabilities for infrastructure projects nationwide, including the 250MW Muskegon Solar Energy Center built for Consumers Energy.
• Self-Perform Construction Operations Integrated construction delivery services including project management, procurement, construction management, labor relations, and field execution for electric power and industrial clients, supporting EPC delivery across the firm's served infrastructure sectors.

Quantifiable outcome

• 500+ employee-owners in Midwest Region grown from 100 under one leadership tenure
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, minor and core.

• Mitsubishi PowerstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026Mitsubishi Power supplying M501JAC advanced-class gas turbine for PowerSouth Energy Cooperative's Lowman Energy Center expansion. Burns & McDonnell providing engineering, procurement, and construction services. Project increases plant capacity to over 1GW, powering 694,000 homes in Alabama and Northwest Florida.
• WärtsiläminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 June 2026Industry partner in WEC Energy Group and EPRI's world's first hydrogen blending test in utility-scale, grid-connected reciprocating engine generator. Blended hydrogen up to 25% by volume with natural gas in 18-megawatt RICE unit, supporting low- and no-carbon fuel operations.
• OneLayercoreTechnology or Integration · 27 April 2026Founding partner in OneLayer's Sentry Partner Program, a channel certification initiative for private wireless and security integrators. Burns & McDonnell certified to deliver Zero Trust network access security, automated device onboarding, and managed services to enterprise customers running private LTE/5G networks. Gains access to OneLayer Scout platform, market development funds, SPIF incentives, and deal registration margins.
• Sensient TechnologiesstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 March 2026Partnership for expansion of Sensient Food Colors natural color manufacturing plant in St. Louis, Missouri. Project adds 28,800 square feet to support industry's shift from synthetic to natural colors. Investment of up to $250 million to increase capacity and infrastructure.
• University of MissouristrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 March 2026Over $2.3 million consulting agreement to support NextGen MURR project, a new 20-MW light water research reactor for medical isotope production and neutron science research. Burns & McDonnell providing project controls, engineering oversight, and owner's representation through design and licensing phase. Project is first research reactor to be built in U.S. in over 30 years.
• Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 March 2026Engineering partner for CPKC's Site Ready certification program, certifying rail-served industrial development locations across North America. Partnership certified 14 new locations opening 6,600+ acres of developable land, bringing total Site Ready roster to 22 locations across Canada, U.S., and Mexico tri-national rail network.
• Abundia Global Impact GroupstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 February 2026Appointed as lead front-end engineering and design (FEED) engineer for Abundia's first commercial waste-plastics-to-renewable products recycling facility in Baytown, Texas. FEED package marks commencement of Phase 2 development as Abundia works toward Final Investment Decision (FID) by end of 2026. Supports de-risking through commercially ready technical design, capital security, regulatory compliance, and commercial ecosystem positioning.
• First SolarstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 January 2026Equipment supplier for Consumers Energy's 250MW Muskegon Solar project. Supplied 550,000 bifacial solar modules for Michigan's largest solar installation, built on repurposed wastewater treatment land.
• Array TechnologiesstrategicStrategic or Co-development Partner · 6 January 2026Supplier of single-axis tracking systems for Consumers Energy's 250MW Muskegon Solar project. Technology enables panels to track sun from sunrise to sunset, maximizing energy production.
• National GridcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 31 July 2025National partner in National Grid's Electricity Transmission Partnership (ETP), a £8 billion framework for delivering substation infrastructure across England and Wales over the RIIO-T3 period through March 2031. Part of National Grid's £35 billion investment plan to strengthen UK transmission network and support clean energy transition. Initial £1.3 billion in exclusive work allocated.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting and engineering firm operating across transportation, water, environment and energy markets with both design and construction capabilities. Directly overlapping with Burns & McDonnell in power, water and government infrastructure EPC, but operating at significantly larger scale with a publicly traded, diversified portfolio.
• Jacobs Solutions: Global professional services firm delivering engineering, technical, scientific and consulting services across critical infrastructure, water, transportation, energy and advanced manufacturing. Comparable to Burns & McDonnell's multidisciplinary EPC-plus-consulting (1898 & Co.) delivery model and federal/defense exposure, though much larger and publicly traded.
• WSP: Montreal-based professional services firm providing engineering, design and strategic consulting across transportation, property & buildings, environment, water and energy sectors. Overlaps significantly with Burns & McDonnell's power, water and environmental services practices, though operates as a consultant-led model rather than full EPC delivery.
• KBR: Global engineering, scientific and technology solutions firm delivering sustainable, secure technologies and mission-critical solutions to governments and commercial clients across energy, defense and science. Comparable in government/defense EPC (e.g., NAVFAC programs) and energy transition adjacencies, with strong overlap on advanced nuclear and hydrogen initiatives.
• Fluor Corporation: Global engineering, procurement, fabrication, construction and project management company serving energy, mining, industrial, government and infrastructure markets. Directly comparable to Burns & McDonnell's integrated EPC capabilities in power generation, oil & gas/chemicals and government work, with broader international reach and larger project scale.
• Bechtel: Privately held global EPC leader specializing in large-scale power, oil & gas, civil infrastructure, defense and environmental remediation projects. Overlaps with Burns & McDonnell in power generation, federal/defense and oil/gas/chemicals EPC, though Bechtel focuses more on megaprojects and nuclear/government work.

Direct peers

• Tetra Tech: Pasadena-based consulting and engineering firm specializing in water, environment, sustainable infrastructure, renewable energy and international development. Overlaps with Burns & McDonnell's water/wastewater, environmental services and renewable energy practices, though much smaller in power generation and EPC construction.
• Quanta Services: Houston-based infrastructure construction firm focused on electric power, oil & gas pipeline, communications and renewable energy. Directly comparable to Burns & McDonnell's T&D, utility-scale solar and energy EPC delivery, with heavy overlap on transmission, substation and renewables balance-of-plant work.
• Black & Veatch: Overland Park, Kansas-based global EPC firm specializing in power generation, transmission & distribution, water and oil & gas. Black & Veatch is the closest direct competitor to Burns & McDonnell given overlapping critical infrastructure EPC services, similar employee-owned/private structure, and shared Kansas City-region heritage.
• Stantec: Canadian professional services firm in sustainable design, engineering and project management across water, infrastructure, buildings, energy and environmental services. Comparable to Burns & McDonnell in power, water and environmental infrastructure consulting, though lighter on EPC self-perform construction.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/burnsmcdonnell
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@burns_mcdonnell
• Facebookfacebook.com/burnsmcdonnell
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/burns-%26-mcdonnell
• Instagraminstagram.com/burnsmcdonnell

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Burns & McDonnell