Willdan strengthens storage engineering with KCS acquisition
Energy infrastructure firm Willdan Group Inc. has acquired all assets of Chicagoland-based engineering consulting firm KCS Corp.
Financial details of the acquisition, which Willdan officials announced Aug. 17, have not been made public.
KCS currently specializes in “power delivery engineering for critical infrastructure,” according to Willdan representatives. The Schaumberg, Illinois-based firm has a crew of 15 people, the company says, all of whom will help to expand Willdan’s in-house engineering and project management capabilities.
“The demand for our energy infrastructure services has continued to grow,” says Willdan Group CEO Mike Bieber. “In partnering with KCS on several substation and renewables projects, we recognized engineers and project managers who acted as a natural extension of our team.
“We’re pleased to welcome everyone at KCS to Willdan. Their addition further strengthens our in-house capabilities and allows our combined team to more efficiently execute on our power project pipeline and proactively meet this growing demand.”
Diversifying the pipeline for the modern era
Willdan subsidiary APG, an EPC firm focusing on energy resources and utility interconnections, will absorb the KCS Corp. team into its ranks, the companies say. Once acclimated to the new company, the team will support Willdan’s growing pipeline of battery storage, grid modernization practices, and data center infrastructure.
KCS president Seemesh M. Sethi says his company is excited to join the Willdan group of companies. The team is looking forward to the new opportunities Willdan’s business is sure to present, he adds.
“Building KCS Corporation has been an incredibly rewarding journey and we are proud of what we have accomplished together with our employees and clients,” Sethi says.
Willdan expects to become a major player in the AI data center powering space, officials say, as the company puts a greater focus on energy storage and other data center-related infrastructure.
“We’ve worked closely with the APG team, now part of Willdan, and have experienced firsthand the strong alignment between our teams and how we serve clients,” Sethi adds. “Bringing our capabilities together will allow us to offer our clients a broader range of engineering services while maintaining the personalized approach that has been central to KCS.”
