What Johnston Houston does

Johnston Houston, now operating as Drees & Sommer UK following a 2024/2025 corporate rebrand, is a UK-based built-environment consultancy and wholly-owned subsidiary of Drees & Sommer, the European market leader in strategic advice and service activation for the built environment. The legal entity is Drees & Sommer UK Limited, registered in England and Wales (company number 03768390) with its registered office at Jackson House, Sibson Road, Sale, Manchester M33 7RR. The firm is led by founder and partner Michael Johnston and operates within a parent group described as a worldwide, partner-managed team of 5,100 people across 59 offices, with 13 documented UK regional locations spanning Manchester, London, Birmingham, Bristol, Leeds, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Belfast, Liverpool, Nottingham, Oxford, and Ashford.

The company delivers an integrated portfolio of 12 advisory and technical service lines covering building surveying, cost management (quantity surveying), project management, mechanical, electrical and public health (MEP) engineering, facilities management, strategic management, sustainability, net zero carbon, green building solutions, circular economy advisory, heat networks, and health & safety consultancy. Services are sold into 15+ vertical sectors — including Central & Local Government, Health, Higher Education, Schools & Academies, Further Education, Data Centres, Automotive, Care, Culture & Sport, Industrial and Logistics, Office, Private Residential, Property Companies, Retail, and Hospitality — with primary emphasis on public-sector estate work, NHS-affiliated healthcare facilities, and commercial real estate development. The 2025 acquisition of RSP Consulting Engineers LLP added structural and civil engineering capacity retained under the RSP brand.

The business model is professional services fee-based, executed through project-based engagements and multi-year framework agreements with government and commercial clients. Distribution is direct enterprise engagement via regional offices; there are no channel partners or marketplace intermediaries. Pricing is determined by scope of work, sector and client requirements, with publicly undisclosed rates. Notable procurement credentials include RICS regulation, Cyber Essentials certification, Investors in People accreditation, and appointment to Crown Commercial Service RM6343 Estate Management Services 2 framework across Lots 4, 8a and 8b. Marketing is conducted through content (project case studies, sector pages), LinkedIn presence, PR coverage, and industry events such as Regeneration Brainery at RICS HQ and UK Parliament.

Name

Johnston Houston

Legal name

Drees & Sommer UK Limited

Website

https://johnstonhouston.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Drees & Sommer UK (formerly Johnston Houston) is a UK built-environment consultancy providing surveying, project management, cost management, MEP engineering, and sustainability advisory services across government, healthcare, education, and commercial real estate sectors, delivered through 13 regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Built Environment Consultancy

NAICS

Management Consulting Services (54161), Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG)

Keywords

• Building surveying services
• Construction cost management
• Project management consulting
• MEP engineering services
• Sustainability advisory

Headquarters

HQ city

Antrim

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices13 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Services: Fee-based consulting and advisory services delivered across multiple service lines including building surveying, cost management, project management, facilities management, sustainability consulting, and engineering services. Revenue generated through project-based engagements and framework agreements with government and commercial clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Johnston Houston, now operating as Drees & Sommer UK, is a built environment consultancy delivering strategic advice and service activation across the full project lifecycle. The firm provides 12 core service lines including building surveying, cost management, project management, MEP engineering, sustainability, net zero carbon advisory, facilities management, health and safety, strategic management, green building solutions, circular economy, and heat networks. Services are delivered to clients in 15 sectors spanning government, healthcare, education, commercial real estate, and data centres through seven UK regional offices backed by the wider Drees & Sommer group of 5,100 professionals across 59 offices worldwide.

Product overview

Drees & Sommer UK (formerly Johnston Houston) operates as a multi-service professional consultancy offering a unified portfolio of advisory and service activation solutions for the built environment. The company provides 12 core service lines spanning building surveying, cost management, project management, MEP engineering, sustainability, and facilities management. The recent acquisition of RSP Consulting Engineers LLP expanded their engineering capabilities. Services are delivered across 15 industry sectors including healthcare, government, education, data centres, and commercial property, with a presence of 7 offices across key UK regions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Building Surveying Professional building surveying services for construction and property projects, covering condition, defect and technical due diligence surveys for clients in government, healthcare, education and commercial real estate sectors.
• Circular Economy Advisory services focused on circular economy principles for sustainable construction, resource efficiency and material reuse in built environment projects.
• Cost Management Comprehensive cost management and quantity surveying services covering budgeting, cost planning and financial control for construction projects.
• Facilities Management Integrated facilities management advisory services supporting operational excellence and lifecycle performance of buildings and estates.
• Green Building Solutions Sustainable building design and certification advisory services, supporting clients pursuing green building certifications and standards.
• Health & Safety Health and safety consultancy ensuring regulatory compliance across construction projects and operational estates.
• Heat Networks Specialist advisory services for district heating and cooling network solutions, supporting low-carbon energy infrastructure for built environment clients.
• Mechanical, Electrical and Public Health Engineering (MEP) Engineering consultancy for mechanical, electrical and public health systems in buildings, covering design advisory and performance optimisation for new builds and refurbishments.
• Net Zero Carbon Strategic advisory services helping clients plan, measure and achieve net zero carbon targets across their built environment portfolios.
• Project Management End-to-end project management services for construction and infrastructure projects, spanning initiation, delivery and handover stages.
• Strategic Management Strategic advisory services for organisational transformation and operational strategy within built environment organisations.
• Sustainability Comprehensive sustainability consulting covering ESG strategy, reporting and implementation across the built environment.
• RSP Consulting Engineers Engineering consultancy specialising in structural and civil engineering services, integrated into Drees & Sommer UK following the 2025 acquisition to strengthen engineering capabilities.

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• RSP Consulting Engineers LLPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDrees & Sommer UK acquired RSP Consulting Engineers LLP, a leading engineering firm. This acquisition strengthens the UK engineering capabilities and expands the service offering in MEP and structural engineering services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Arup: Global design, engineering and advisory firm with strong UK presence across buildings, transport and energy. Overlaps with Drees & Sommer UK on building services, MEP, sustainability and strategic advisory for major built-environment clients.
• Arcadis: Global design and consultancy firm with UK cost, project and asset management services for real estate and infrastructure. Comparable on PM/cost and sustainability advisory, but operates at a larger, more diversified scale.
• WSP: Global professional services consultancy with UK built-environment practice delivering PM, cost, sustainability and engineering. Competes with Drees & Sommer UK on multidisciplinary property and infrastructure bids but at much greater scale and breadth.
• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting firm with a substantial UK building engineering and project management practice. Overlaps with Drees & Sommer UK across PM, cost, sustainability and engineering on UK public and commercial estates.
• Mott MacDonald: Global engineering, management and development consultancy with extensive UK public-sector and infrastructure work. Competes with Drees & Sommer UK on larger multidisciplinary built-environment briefs but operates as a much broader engineering and infrastructure consultant.

Direct peers

• Turner & Townsend: Global cost management, project management and consultancy firm with a major UK footprint across infrastructure, real estate and natural resources. Closely matches Drees & Sommer UK's core service mix of cost management, project management and building surveying delivered through UK regional offices.
• Currie & Brown: UK-headquartered cost management, project management and advisory consultancy serving built-environment clients across real estate, infrastructure and energy. Comparable as a mid-tier built-environment consultancy operating across similar service lines and client verticals.
• Mace Group: UK-based global consultancy and construction firm offering project management, cost consultancy and facilities management alongside its contracting business. Overlaps with Drees & Sommer UK in PM, cost and facilities management services for built-environment clients.
• Rider Levett Bucknall (RLB): Global quantity surveying and construction consultancy with deep UK public- and private-sector penetration. Directly comparable on core surveying, cost management and project management services delivered to government, healthcare and education clients.

Emerging players

• Pick Everard: UK mid-market built-environment consultancy providing project management, cost management, building surveying and engineering services to public and private clients. Comparable as a smaller UK-headquartered multi-service consultancy competing for similar mid-sized UK framework and project work.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/jh_belfast
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/johnstonhouston

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Johnston Houston