Brierley Associates Corporation

What Brierley Associates Corporation does

Brierley Associates Corporation is a privately held US specialty engineering consultancy founded in 1999 by Gary Brierley and headquartered in Englewood, Colorado. The firm provides geotechnical and geo-structural engineering design and consulting services for underground construction projects, including tunnels, shafts, trenchless installations (microtunneling, horizontal directional drilling, pipe jacking), support-of-excavation systems, underground rehabilitation, and geohazard assessment and mitigation. It serves public infrastructure owners (water districts, transportation departments, energy utilities), A/E firms, and heavy civil contractors across its 20+ office locations in the United States.

The firm's technical core centers on constructability-driven design informed by deep site geological understanding, particularly in challenging ground conditions (carbonate reefs, karst, soft soils, abandoned mine lands). It maintains dedicated sector practices in tunnels, trenchless design, construction engineering, advanced geotechnical design, geohazards, and blasting/vibration, supplemented by BIM/VDC and GIS/drone-based photogrammetric survey capabilities. Its roster includes NASTT Hall of Fame inductees, Rocha Medal nominees, and award-winning specialists across tunneling and trenchless disciplines.

Brierley is structured as a project-based professional services firm, qualifying as a small business under SBA NAICS 541330-Engineering. Revenue is generated through negotiated consulting fees for multi-year design and construction-phase support engagements, with project size spanning from sub-$10M box tunnels to multi-hundred-million-dollar CSO tunnel programs (e.g., the $580 million Northeast Boundary Tunnel in Washington, DC). The firm pursues sales-led business development through industry reputation, technical publications, conference leadership, and long-standing client relationships.

Name

Brierley Associates Corporation

Legal name

Brierley Associates Corporation

Website

https://brierleyassociates.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Brierley Associates Corporation is a US specialty engineering consultancy providing geotechnical, geo-structural, and trenchless design services for tunnels, shafts, and underground infrastructure, serving public agencies, A/E firms, and heavy civil contractors coast-to-coast.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Geotechnical and Geo-Structural Engineering Services for Underground Construction

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Geotechnical Design, Engineering & Consulting (Analysis, Design, Peer Review) (IMAFAOAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tunneling & Underground Geotechnics (Ground Treatment, Support, NATM/SEM Interfaces) (IMAFAOAJ), Geotechnical & Subsurface Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAB)

Keywords

• Underground construction engineering
• Tunnel and shaft design
• Trenchless construction services
• Geotechnical engineering consulting
• Geo-structural design

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices21 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Engineering Consulting Services: Professional consulting fees for geotechnical and structural design services for underground construction projects including tunnels, shafts, trenchless installations, support of excavation, and geohazard assessment.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Brierley Associates Corporation provides project-based geotechnical and geo-structural engineering consulting for underground construction, including tunnel and shaft design, trenchless construction (microtunneling, HDD, pipe jacking), support of excavation, geohazard assessment and mitigation, blasting and vibration consulting, and construction-phase engineering support for owner clients, A/E firms, and contractors. The firm combines specialized ground-behavior expertise with BIM/VDC and GIS/drone capabilities to deliver constructability-focused designs for transportation, water, wastewater, stormwater/CSO, energy, and geohazard projects. Services are delivered on a multi-year project contract basis by more than 85 engineers and geologists across coast-to-coast U.S. offices.

Product overview

Brierley Associates is a geotechnical and structural engineering consulting firm offering a unified portfolio of underground construction services. The company provides end-to-end expertise spanning tunnel and shaft design, trenchless construction methods (including HDD and microtunneling), geohazard mitigation, and specialized services like BIM/Virtual Design Construction and GIS/drone mapping. The core offering combines design engineering with construction phase support, enabling contractors and project owners to execute complex underground infrastructure projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tunnels and Shafts Design and engineering services for tunnel and shaft construction projects, including support excavation systems and rock mechanics. For infrastructure owners, A/E firms, and contractors executing tunnels and shafts across diverse ground conditions.
• Tunnel and Pipe Rehabilitation Assessment, structural reinforcement, and rehabilitation services for existing tunnels and pipelines. For utilities, municipalities, and tunnel owners seeking to extend service life or restore capacity of aging underground assets.
• Trenchless Design and Construction Phase Services Design services for trenchless construction methods including microtunneling, horizontal directional drilling (HDD), and pipe jacking, with construction-phase engineering support. For contractors and utilities deploying trenchless installations under sensitive surface conditions.
• Construction Engineering and Support of Excavation Design Construction-phase engineering support and excavation design services for underground projects, including earth retention, cofferdams, and shoring. For contractors executing complex urban and infrastructure excavations.
• Advanced Geotechnical Design Specialized geotechnical engineering design for complex underground construction challenges, including ground behavior analysis and risk-informed design recommendations. For owners and contractors facing difficult ground or high-stakes underground programs.
• Geohazard Assessment and Design Assessment and mitigation design for geological hazards including mine subsidence, rockfalls, and slope instability. For public agencies, mine reclamation programs, and infrastructure owners managing geohazard risk.
• Blasting Consulting and Design and Construction-Induced Vibration Evaluation Expert consulting services for blasting operations and construction-induced vibration evaluation. For contractors and owners executing rock excavation and tunneling in proximity to sensitive structures or receptors.
• Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) Design and engineering services for horizontal directional drilling installations, including bore planning and feasibility assessment. For pipeline owners, utilities, and contractors using HDD for river, road, and utility crossings.
• Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Design Construction (VDC) 3D modeling and virtual design construction services for efficient and constructable underground designs, enabling virtual mockups, 'what-if' scenario evaluation, and multidisciplinary model integration. For owners, A/E firms, and contractors requiring digital design collaboration on complex underground projects.
• Geographic Information Science (GIS) and Drone Imagery Geospatial data collection, analysis, and visualization services including FAA Part 107-certified drone-based photogrammetry (Matrice 210 RTK, 2-3 cm accuracy) for orthophotos, DTMs, DSMs, and 2D/3D raster datasets. For infrastructure owners and engineering teams needing high-accuracy site characterization.

Named customers8 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• WSP: Global professional services firm with a substantial tunnels and underground infrastructure practice serving transit, water, and highway clients. Comparable to Brierley in core service lines but operates at a much larger scale and across many more geographies.
• AECOM: One of the largest global engineering and infrastructure services firms with a substantial tunnels and underground design practice. Comparable in serving transportation and water tunnel clients, but with vastly greater scale, geographic reach, and bundled service offerings.
• Jacobs: Major global engineering and program management firm with significant tunneling and underground infrastructure capabilities, especially in water and transportation. Overlaps with Brierley on tunnel and trenchless design but competes as a much larger full-service incumbent.
• Mott MacDonald: Global engineering consultancy with a major tunnels and underground infrastructure practice. Overlaps with Brierley on tunnel and trenchless design but offers a much broader full-service portfolio (transportation, water, environment) at global scale.
• Arup: Global engineering consultancy with deep tunneling, geotechnical, and underground infrastructure expertise serving major transit and water projects. Comparable to Brierley on complex underground design but as a much larger, multi-disciplinary incumbent with global reach.

Direct peers

• Haley & Aldrich: Geotechnical and environmental engineering consultancy with underground infrastructure expertise, including tunneling and excavation support. Comparable to Brierley as a mid-size specialist serving transportation, water, and energy clients with design and construction-phase support.
• Shannon & Wilson: Geotechnical and environmental engineering firm with deep tunnel, underground, and trenchless capabilities. Directly comparable to Brierley in offering geotechnical and geo-structural design for underground infrastructure and serving similar owner and contractor clients.
• Gall Zeidler Consultants: Boutique tunnel and underground engineering consultancy with deep expertise in complex ground conditions, NATM/SEM design, and tunnel rehabilitation. Comparable to Brierley's challenging-ground specialty focus and global infrastructure owner client base.
• Delve Underground: Specialty tunneling and underground engineering firm providing design, program management, and construction support for transit, water, and utility tunnels. Direct peer to Brierley in underground design, geo-structural engineering, and contractor support services.
• McMillen Jacobs Associates: Specialty engineering consultancy focused on underground and heavy civil infrastructure, including tunnels, shafts, and trenchless design. Closely comparable to Brierley in scope (tunnel/trenchless design) and customer base (municipal water agencies, DOTs, and design-build contractors).

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

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• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/brierley-associates-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles27 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 Brierley Associates Corporation