Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc.

What Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc. does

Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc. is a privately held, employee-owned (ESOP since 2013) multi-disciplinary engineering and geosciences consulting firm founded in 1992 and headquartered in Bedford, New Hampshire. The firm provides integrated environmental, geotechnical, and engineering services across four primary markets — Development, Energy, Industrial, and Solid Waste — delivered through seven offices in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont, Colorado, Pennsylvania, and Delaware. Its service portfolio spans 14 practice areas including air services and modeling, brownfields redevelopment, data management and visualization, due diligence, geotechnical design, landfill gas management, natural gas infrastructure design, permitting and compliance, renewable energy, site characterization and remediation, solid waste facility design, sustainability, and water resources, supported by two PC-level subsidiaries in Michigan/New York and North Carolina that extend professional licensure reach.

The firm operates a project-based professional services billing model, with fees quoted per engagement based on scope, technical complexity, and multi-year contract cadence. Its primary proprietary assets are the Project Portal cloud-based landfill data management platform and the CORE Discrete Fracture Network (DFN) methodology for fractured bedrock site characterization, both registered trademarks. Distribution is direct and consultative, targeting enterprise clients in sectors such as energy/utilities (Vermont Gas Systems), semiconductor manufacturing (GlobalFoundries), hazardous waste (Clean Harbors), healthcare (Boston Children's Hospital), and real estate development (Polar Park/Madison Commons). Marketing is primarily driven by thought leadership content, technical articles, webinars, and industry conference participation rather than paid channels.

Revenue is not publicly disclosed and there are no external funding rounds; the firm is internally capitalized through its ESOP and operating cash flow. The leadership team is led by President and CEO Barret Cole, with co-founder Charlie Head serving as Founding Principal and Chair of the Board, an Executive Committee including EVP/COO Matt Poirier and senior VPs of Client Services, Finance, and Talent, and a Board that includes external members such as Alena DeLosReyes and John Marczewski. The business shows steady, incremental scaling rather than venture-style hyper-growth, with recent strategic emphasis on energy transition advisory (green hydrogen, RNG, renewable energy) and continued geographic buildout in the Mid-Atlantic and Mountain West.

Name

Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc.

Legal name

Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc.

Website

https://sanbornhead.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Sanborn, Head & Associates is an ESOP-owned, multi-disciplinary engineering and geosciences consulting firm founded in 1992, delivering integrated environmental, geotechnical, and engineering services across Development, Energy, Industrial, and Solid Waste markets through seven US offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Engineering Consulting

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Engineering Services (541330)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Geotechnical & Subsurface Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD), Real Estate Transaction Advisory & Due Diligence (FSAEAJAJ)

Keywords

• Environmental engineering consulting
• Site remediation services
• Geotechnical engineering design
• Landfill gas management
• Environmental due diligence

Headquarters

HQ city

Concord

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Engineering and Geosciences Consulting Services: Professional consulting services billed on project basis. Multi-disciplinary teams deliver environmental assessment, remediation, geotechnical engineering, permitting, and compliance services to clients in Development, Energy, Industrial, and Solid Waste markets.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc. is a multi-disciplinary engineering and geosciences consulting firm that delivers environmental, geotechnical, and engineering services to enterprise clients. Its portfolio spans 14 integrated service lines including site characterization and remediation, brownfields redevelopment, landfill gas management, geotechnical design, due diligence, permitting and compliance, air services and modeling, water resources, natural gas and renewable energy infrastructure design, sustainability services, solid waste facility design, legal support, and data management and visualization. The firm also operates Project Portal, a proprietary cloud-based landfill data management, analysis, and reporting tool, and the CORE Discrete Fracture Network (DFN) Approach, a proprietary bedrock characterization methodology.

Product overview

Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc. is a multi-disciplinary engineering and geosciences consulting firm offering a broad portfolio of professional services rather than a unified software product. The core offering consists of 14 integrated consulting services spanning air services, brownfields redevelopment, data management and visualization, due diligence, geotechnical design, landfill gas management, legal support, natural gas infrastructure design, permitting and compliance, renewable energy, site characterization and remediation, solid waste facility design, sustainability services, and water resources. The company's flagship proprietary tool is Project Portal, a cloud-based landfill data management and reporting application used by clients to manage landfill gas, leachate, and environmental data. The Data Management & Visualization service leverages specialized software platforms including EQuIS, Earth Volumetric Studio, ArcGIS, and AutoCAD to transform complex project data into actionable insights. Services are organized across four primary markets: Development, Energy, Industrial, and Solid Waste.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Project Portal: Cloud-based application built specifically to manage environmental data and improve project management for landfill gas and leachate management projects.
• CORE Discrete Fracture Network (DFN)

Products and services

• Project Portal

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered notable, key, community and core.

• Clean HarborsnotableStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Collaborated on peer-reviewed research study testing PFAS destruction at the Clean Harbors Aragonite Hazardous Waste Combustor in Utah. Article published in EM Magazine, a publication of the Air & Waste Management Association.
• Vermont Gas SystemskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2023Sanborn Head is working with Vermont Gas Systems in partnership with GlobalFoundries to develop a green hydrogen pilot project at GF's semiconductor manufacturing facility in Essex Junction, VT. The project includes development of hydrogen generation and storage facilities, distribution systems, and natural gas blending infrastructure.
• GlobalFoundrieskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2023Host site for the green hydrogen pilot project in Essex Junction, VT, partnering with Vermont Gas Systems and Sanborn Head. The project demonstrates renewable fuel capabilities and carbon emission reduction through hydrogen blending into existing fuel gas infrastructure.
• Engineers Without BorderscommunityOthersEmployees are involved in Engineers Without Borders, working with nine villages in Uganda to provide access to clean drinking water and improve sanitation and hygiene practices.
• Project Portal EcosystemcoreTechnology or IntegrationProject Portal is a cloud-based application built specifically to manage environmental data including landfill gas, leachate, and other field data. Uses EQuIS, Earth Volumetric Studio, ArcGIS, and AutoCAD integrations.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves14 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Terracon: National geotechnical, environmental, construction materials, and facilities consulting firm. Comparable across geotechnical design, environmental site assessments, and materials testing with overlapping client base in real estate and industrial markets.
• SCS Engineers: Environmental engineering firm focused on solid waste management, landfill gas, and environmental compliance. Highly comparable to Sanborn Head's Solid Waste practice, including landfill gas management and closed-landfill solar development.
• TRC Companies: Engineering, environmental, and infrastructure consulting firm offering similar site assessment, remediation, geotechnical, and energy transition services. Comparable mid-market positioning across multiple U.S. regions.
• Brown and Caldwell: Environmental engineering and consulting firm serving water, energy, and industrial clients with comparable permitting, compliance, and site remediation capabilities. Slightly larger scale but overlapping service portfolio.
• Langan: Site/civil, geotechnical, and environmental engineering consultancy with comparable due diligence, brownfields redevelopment, and geotechnical design offerings. Strong Northeast U.S. presence directly overlaps Sanborn Head's geography.
• Roux Associates: Environmental consulting firm specializing in site investigation, remediation, and regulatory compliance. Comparable in service mix and mid-size scale, with similar focus on brownfields, vapor intrusion, and emerging contaminants.
• Haley & Aldrich: Mid-size U.S. environmental and geotechnical engineering consulting firm with comparable service lines (site characterization, remediation, geotechnical, compliance) and similar employee-owned culture. Closely comparable on size, service mix, and target markets.

Broad incumbents

• CDM Smith: Large, full-service environmental and infrastructure engineering consultancy. Overlaps with Sanborn Head on water resources, environmental permitting, site remediation, and renewable energy, but operates at significantly larger scale with global reach.
• Arcadis: Global design, engineering, and management consulting firm with deep environmental services practice. Competes for similar site characterization, remediation, and resiliency mandates but at much larger scale and broader geographic footprint.
• GHD: Global engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting firm with comparable water, environmental, and energy transition service lines. Larger scale and broader geographic reach but overlapping technical capabilities and client types.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sanbornhead
• Facebookfacebook.com/sanbornhead

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries2 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 Sanborn, Head & Associates, Inc.