Name

Crosby Brownlie

Legal name

Crosby Brownlie Inc.

Website

https://crosbybrownlie.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mechanical Contracting Services

NAICS

Electrical Contractors and Other Wiring Installation Contractors (23821), Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing (33331)

SIC

Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623), General Bldg Contractors - Nonresidential Bldgs (1540), Refrigeration & Service Industry Machinery (3580), Fabricated Plate Work (Boiler Shops) (3443)

akta.pro primary industry

Plumbing & Pipefitting Contracting (IMAFALAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food & Beverage Processing Plant Construction (IMAFADAH), Water & Wastewater Pipeline Construction (Mains, Force Mains, Interceptors) (IMAFAGAC)

Keywords

• Mechanical contracting services
• HVAC installation
• Process piping systems
• Plumbing construction
• Metal fabrication services

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Mechanical Contracting Services: Project-based revenue from HVAC installation and design, plumbing construction, process piping, refrigeration, metal fabrication, and building controls. Revenue is earned through lump-sum contracts, design-build engagements, and service/maintenance agreements. Long project cycles with contracts ranging from hundreds of thousands to tens of millions of dollars.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Crosby Brownlie is a full-service mechanical contractor that designs, fabricates, installs, and services HVAC systems, plumbing, process piping, refrigeration, building controls/automation, and custom metal/pipe fabrication for commercial, institutional, healthcare, food & beverage, pharmaceutical, and high-tech manufacturing facilities. The company pairs in-house BIM-driven engineering and a 50,000 sq ft fabrication facility with on-site installation and 24/7 emergency service across Western and Central New York.

Product overview

Crosby Brownlie Inc. is a family-owned mechanical contracting company founded in 1979, offering a comprehensive suite of construction and engineering services rather than a unified software platform. The company's core offerings include HVAC Systems (custom air handling, rooftop units, VRF, chilled water, geothermal), Plumbing Construction (medical gas, process, commercial), Process Piping (sanitary stainless, skids, orbital welding), Fabrication Services (50,000 sq ft metal/pipe fabrication), Design Build & Engineering, Detailing & Coordination (BIM/3D modeling), Refrigeration (commercial/industrial systems), Building Controls & Automation (BMS/PLC integration), and HVAC/R Service & Facilities Maintenance. These services are delivered as integrated, complementary offerings where design, fabrication, installation, and maintenance capabilities support each other across commercial, industrial, healthcare, food & beverage, pharmaceutical, and educational projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• HVAC Systems Custom HVAC solutions including custom air handling units, rooftop HVAC units, chilled water systems, VRF systems, boilers, heat pumps, geothermal systems, cooling towers, kitchen exhaust, VAV systems, exhaust fans, energy recovery, dust collection, data center cooling, ductless mini-splits, and mechanical piping systems for commercial and industrial buildings.
• Plumbing Construction Full-service commercial plumbing including medical gas piping, compressed air systems, sanitary/waste/vent, storm drainage, backflow prevention, domestic hot water, RO-DI systems, commercial kitchen plumbing, potable water, natural gas piping, water treatment, bathroom fixtures, gray water recycling, laboratory gases, and vacuum systems.
• Process Piping Industrial process piping services including 316L/304L stainless steel sanitary piping, process skid installation, custom hanger/platform fabrication, specialty alloys (AL6XN, C22), and orbital welding. Also includes custom process equipment skids for CIP, HTST/UHT, batching, separation, dosing, and valve clusters.
• Fabrication Services Metal and pipe fabrication with 50,000 square feet of manufacturing space. Sheet metal fabrication includes ductwork, welded systems, spiral pipe, dust collection, boiler stacks, custom tanks, platforms, and enclosures. Pipe fabrication includes carbon/stainless steel piping, water closets, VAV prefabrication, and industrial skids. Welding services include MIG, TIG, stick, laser, and orbital welding.
• Design Build & Engineering Design-build delivery for HVAC, plumbing, and process projects. Services include BIM modeling/CAD, in-house building scanning, multi-trade coordination, budgeting/capital project development, full-service engineering, and preconstruction services including constructability review, budgeting, early equipment procurement, and value management.
• Detailing & Coordination Services MEP (Mechanical, Electrical, Plumbing) detailing and coordination using 3D BIM modeling and collision detection. Services include BIM modeling for HVAC duct, piping, plumbing, process piping, custom mezzanines and skid packages; lead BIM coordination process; laser scanning; total station layout; and BIM-to-fabrication capabilities. Software includes AutoCAD, Revit, Navisworks, Fabrication CADmep, Fabrication CAMduct, Recap, Faro Scene 3D, STRATUS, PypeServer, and Topcon Magnet.
• Refrigeration Commercial and industrial refrigeration systems including CO2 transcritical/cascade, HFC, A2L, low GWP/natural refrigerants, low temperature process chillers, controlled atmosphere, secondary systems, and blast freezing. Services cover supermarket chains (Aldi, BJ's, Costco, Restaurant Depot, Sam's Club, Walmart, Wegmans), agricultural, cold/frozen storage, ice rinks, and K-12/higher education. Includes refrigeration controls (Copeland E3, Danfoss, Novar, Microthermal) and 24-hour emergency service.
• Building Controls & Automation Building automation system (BMS) and process controls services. Authorized System Integrator for Johnson Controls Facility Explorer, certified by Tridium for AX and N4 Niagara framework. Services include VFD installations, utility monitoring, custom controls programming, analytics, access control, and integration with Niagara, JCI N2, BACnet, Modbus, Carrier CCN, Lon Works, OPC UA, Allen Bradley, Siemens, and Emerson CPC. Also covers PLC systems (Allen Bradley MicroLogix/CompactLogix/ControlLogix, Maple Systems, Automation Direct), HMI design, CIP/hot water skid controls, and field instrumentation.
• HVAC/R Service & Facilities Maintenance 24/7 emergency response and preventative maintenance for HVAC and refrigeration systems. Services include installation/retrofit, design-build solutions, supermarket rack systems, building management controls, boiler maintenance, chiller service, backflow prevention testing, combustion analysis, air compressors, variable frequency drives, exhaust systems, ice machines, refrigerant recovery/recycling, and process equipment service.
• Pre-Construction & Estimating Services Pre-construction phase services including project estimating, cost planning, constructability review, early equipment procurement, and value engineering to help clients optimize budget and schedule before construction begins.

Quantifiable outcome

• Completed MCC Downtown Campus – 255,000 sq-ft, 7 floors, 18-month project with $11,390,073 contract
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, moderate and minor.

• SMACNA (Sheet Metal and Air Conditioning Contractors' National Association)coreOthersIndustry membership organization for sheet metal and HVAC contractors. Membership provides access to industry standards, training, networking, and credibility within the mechanical contracting community.
• MCAA (Mechanical Contractors Association of America)coreOthersIndustry trade association for mechanical contractors. Provides advocacy, training resources, and industry benchmarking for member companies.
• ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers)coreOthersGlobal engineering society focused on HVAC/R and building systems. ASHRAE membership supports technical standards, research, and professional development.
• BOMA (Building Owners and Managers Association)coreOthersCommercial real estate professional association connecting building owners and managers. Membership supports business development and client relationships in the commercial building sector.
• USGBC (U.S. Green Building Council)moderateOthersOrganization promoting sustainable building practices through LEED certification and green building standards. Supports Crosby Brownlie's ability to work on LEED-registered projects.
• DBIA (Design-Build Institute of America)moderateOthersAdvocacy organization for design-build project delivery method. Membership supports Crosby Brown's design-build service offerings and project delivery credibility.
• IIAR (International Institute of Ammonia Refrigeration)moderateOthersTrade association for the ammonia refrigeration industry. Supports Crosby Brownlie's industrial refrigeration division with standards, training, and safety guidelines.
• BOMA BETTERminorOthersBuilding sustainability performance platform under BOMA. Supports building operations benchmarking and sustainability services.
• ISNminorOthersContractor management platform providing contractor pre-qualification and safety tracking services. Supports Crosby Brownlie's engagement with large enterprise clients requiring contractor compliance.
• AEE (Association of Energy Engineers)moderateOthersProfessional organization for energy engineers and managers. Supports Crosby Brown's energy efficiency, decarbonization, and capital project development services.
• CFMA (Construction Financial Management Association)minorOthersOrganization providing financial management resources, education, and networking for construction industry professionals.
• NCPWB (National Certified Pipe Welding Bureau)moderateOthersCertification organization for pipe welders. Supports Crosby Brown's welding quality assurance and certified welder workforce.
• SheetMetalWorkers Local 46coreOthersLabor union representing sheet metal workers. Part of the company's workforce and operational relationships.
• Local 13 LabelcoreOthersLabor union representing pipefitters and related trades. Part of the company's skilled workforce and operational relationships.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• EMCOR Group: Largest publicly traded U.S. mechanical and electrical construction services firm with comprehensive HVAC, plumbing, process, controls, and facility services. Competes with Crosby Brownlie on large enterprise and multi-site programs but at national scale.
• Johnson Controls: Global building technologies incumbent offering HVAC equipment, building automation (Facility Explorer), controls integration, and service. Crosby Brownlie is an Authorized System Integrator for JCI products, making it a partner/complementor on controls work and a competitor on integrated mechanical scopes.
• Comfort Systems USA: Publicly traded national HVAC mechanical contracting firm with design-build, plumbing, and controls capabilities across commercial and industrial markets. Overlaps with Crosby Brownlie on healthcare, education, and F&B project types.
• APi Group: Publicly traded global provider of safety, specialty, and industrial services with significant mechanical/HVAC, fire protection, and life safety offerings. Competes on large institutional, healthcare, and industrial mechanical scopes.
• IES Holdings: Publicly traded provider of electrical and mechanical infrastructure services including HVAC, plumbing, and building automation for commercial and industrial customers. Overlaps with Crosby Brownlie on commercial mechanical scopes.

Direct peers

• Limbach Holdings: Publicly traded specialty mechanical services contractor delivering HVAC, plumbing, process piping, building automation, and facility services. Closest publicly traded comparable in business model, service breadth, and design-build orientation.
• John W. Danforth Company: Rochester, NY-based mechanical contractor providing HVAC, plumbing, process piping, fabrication, and service across Upstate New York. Headquartered in the same city as Crosby Brownlie with comparable service mix and regional customer overlap.
• McKenney's: Private mechanical contractor providing design-build HVAC, plumbing, process, controls, and service across the Southeast. Comparable vertically integrated offering with similar design-build and 24/7 service orientation.
• Harris Company: Private Midwestern mechanical contractor delivering HVAC, plumbing, process piping, refrigeration, and building automation for healthcare, education, and industrial customers. Comparable size, ownership profile, and integrated delivery model.
• U.S. Engineering Company: Private, mid-size mechanical contractor headquartered in the Midwest with design-build HVAC, plumbing, process piping, fabrication, and building automation services. Closely matches Crosby Brownlie's vertically integrated model and customer vertical mix.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/CrosbyBrownlieInc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/crosby-brownlie

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Crosby Brownlie