What Drexel, Barrell & co does

Drexel, Barrell & Co. is a 100% employee-owned civil engineering and land surveying firm founded in 1949 and headquartered in Lafayette, Colorado (relocated from Boulder in 2022), with a regional office in Colorado Springs established May 1, 1973. The firm provides integrated land surveying, civil/site infrastructure engineering, water resources engineering, transportation and traffic engineering, and construction inspection services across Colorado. Over 60% of project volume originates from public-sector clients, including cities, counties, universities, school and utility districts, the State of Colorado, and federal/military installations including NORAD, Fort Carson, the U.S. Air Force Academy, and Peterson AFB. Long-tenured named clients include the University of Colorado Boulder (75+ projects), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (50+ projects at its Golden facility), Boulder Community Hospital, multiple Colorado municipalities, and historical private-sector work for the IBM Boulder Plant.

The firm's technical capabilities center on an integrated "field-to-office-to-field" service model that provides single-source responsibility from initial design surveys through final construction inspection. Core technology includes GPS surveying (pioneered in Colorado in the 1990s with landmark applications at Pikes Peak and the I-25/6th Avenue interchange for CDOT), LIDAR surveying (including the first interior survey of the Colorado State Capitol), and traditional surveying methods integrated with modern equipment. The firm maintains survey records spanning over 150 years, including what is described as the most comprehensive collection in Boulder County, assembled by founder Frank R. Drexel during his 20-year tenure as Boulder County Surveyor. The current five-line service portfolio was completed in 1993 with the addition of transportation/traffic engineering and water resources engineering to the historical surveying and civil engineering core.

Drexel Barrell operates as a professional services firm using quote-based project billing, with no publicly disclosed pricing. The firm is structured as an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), currently in its fourth generation of employee ownership following the August 18, 2022 transition. Revenue is generated entirely from professional services fees across a single-source delivery model, with the entire operating footprint limited to Colorado and no external capital, parent company, or private-equity involvement. Total headcount is 51–100 and the firm has completed over 25,000 projects since founding. The firm emphasizes long-term client relationships, repeat business, and locally-available integrated expertise over active demand-generation-driven growth.

Name

Drexel, Barrell & co

Legal name

Drexel, Barrell & Co.

Website

https://drexelbarrell.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1949

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Drexel, Barrell & Co. is an employee-owned Colorado civil engineering and land surveying firm that provides integrated surveying, site design, water resources, transportation, and construction inspection services to public and private sector clients across the state since 1949.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Engineering and Land Surveying Services

akta.pro primary industry

Construction Management & Delivery (EPCM/CMAR/Design-Build Oversight) (EUANALAE)

Keywords

• Land surveying services
• Civil engineering design
• Water resources engineering
• Transportation engineering
• Construction inspection

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Engineering and Surveying Services: Revenue generated from providing land surveying, civil engineering, water resources engineering, and transportation/traffic engineering services to public and private sector clients. Services span from initial design surveys through final construction inspection and acceptance.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

Drexel, Barrell & Co. is a 100% employee-owned civil engineering and land surveying firm providing integrated "A-to-Z" services from initial field surveys through final construction inspection and acceptance. The firm delivers land surveying and mapping, civil and site infrastructure engineering, water resources engineering, transportation and traffic engineering, and construction engineering and inspection to public sector agencies (cities, counties, universities, school and utility districts, the State of Colorado) and private sector clients across Colorado.

Product overview

Drexel, Barrell & Co. is a civil engineering and land surveying firm that provides integrated A-to-Z services from field surveys through final construction inspection. The company offers five interconnected core service lines: Land Surveying and Mapping (boundary, topographic, GPS, bathymetric surveys); Civil and Site Infrastructure Engineering (grading, drainage, utilities, site design); Water Resources Engineering (floodplain modeling, reservoir design, hydraulics); Transportation and Traffic Engineering (roadway design, intersections, trails, signals); and Construction Engineering and Inspection. This comprehensive approach provides clients with a single source of responsibility for project decisions from design surveys through final construction acceptance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Land Surveying and Mapping
• Civil and Site Infrastructure Engineering
• Water Resources Engineering
• Transportation and Traffic Engineering
• Construction Engineering and Inspection

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 25,000 successful projects completed since 1949
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Olsson: Olsson is a multi-state engineering and design firm with a strong Colorado presence offering civil, water resources, and transportation services. Comparable in core service mix and public-sector municipal infrastructure focus, though larger and more geographically diverse.
• Martin/Martin, Inc. Martin/Martin is a Lakewood, Colorado-based civil/structural engineering and surveying firm with deep Colorado public-sector and private-sector relationships. Closely comparable in headcount band, integrated surveying+engineering model, and Colorado focus.
• JVA, Inc. JVA is a Boulder, Colorado-based civil and structural engineering firm serving municipal and private clients across Colorado. Directly comparable in geography, service mix (civil/site engineering, water resources, transportation), and public-sector exposure.
• CTL|Thompson, Inc. CTL|Thompson is a Colorado-headquartered geotechnical, materials, and environmental engineering firm serving similar municipal and private clients. Comparable as a mid-sized Colorado-based engineering consultancy with overlapping public-sector relationships.
• Anchor Engineering, Inc. Anchor Engineering is a Denver-based civil engineering firm specializing in site development, water resources, and municipal infrastructure in Colorado. Comparable in service mix and Colorado public-sector focus.

Broad incumbents

• Kimley-Horn: Kimley-Horn is a national engineering, planning, and design consulting firm with growing Colorado presence in transportation, land development, and water. Comparable in service mix but larger and employee-owned.
• Stantec: Stantec is a global engineering, architecture, and environmental services firm with substantial Colorado municipal infrastructure presence. Comparable as a broader incumbent pursuing similar public-sector water, transportation, and site development work.
• Jacobs Solutions: Jacobs is a global professional services firm with a major water, transportation, and civil infrastructure practice competing in Colorado. Comparable as a broad incumbent pursuing similar public-sector work at larger scale.
• AECOM: AECOM is a global infrastructure consulting firm that competes for large Colorado municipal, transportation, and water infrastructure contracts. Comparable in core service lines but with far greater scale and geographic reach.
• Burns & McDonnell: Burns & McDonnell is a national engineering, construction, and architecture firm competing for Colorado water, utility, and public infrastructure projects. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping municipal and utility-sector work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/drexel-barrell

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 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 Drexel, Barrell & co