Beca Group
| Company type | Employee-owned |
|---|---|
| Industry | Professional services consultancy |
| Predecessor | Gray and Watts; Gray Watts & Beca; Hollings & Ferner; Steven Fitzmaurice & Partners |
| Founded | 1920 |
| Founder | Arthur Gray |
| Headquarters | Auckland , New Zealand |
Area served | Asia-Pacific region, global offices |
Key people | George Beca (former leader) |
Number of employees | 4300+ |
| Website | www |
Beca Group Limited stands as one of the foremost employee-owned professional services consultancy organizations within the Asia-Pacific region. With a workforce exceeding 4,300 professionals distributed across 25 global offices, its central operations are based in Auckland, New Zealand.
History
The origins of Beca trace back to 1920 when Arthur Gray established an engineering practice following World War I. This enterprise developed into Gray and Watts and later Gray Watts & Beca. In 1968, a merger with Wellington-based Hollings & Ferner resulted in the formation of Beca, Carter, Hollings & Ferner, which ultimately evolved into Beca Group Ltd.
The company’s name pays tribute to George Beca, CBE, DFC, D.Eng (Hon) (1921–2001), who joined Gray and Watts during the early 1950s and led the firm for many years. Throughout its history, the firm underwent multiple rebrandings linked to mergers, notably operating as Beca Steven from 1989 until 2001 following its integration with Steven Fitzmaurice & Partners.
Earthquake Engineering
Beca has established a distinguished reputation in the field of earthquake engineering. John Hollings, a founding partner of Hollings & Ferner, is recognized as the pioneer of capacity design principles, introducing the influential 'strong columns, weak beams' methodology during the construction of Wellington’s 1968 Jerningham Apartment building. This approach now underpins contemporary earthquake resistance strategies and international seismic standards.
The company was responsible for designing the globe’s inaugural base-isolated infrastructure: the South Rangitikei Viaduct completed in 1981. This structure features piers capable of moving up to 13cm in seismic events to absorb energy and minimize damage.
Beca’s recent seismic retrofit initiatives have garnered global acclaim, including base isolation enhancements at Victoria University of Wellington's Rankine Brown Library and seismic reinforcement works on 8 Willis Street, a key office tower in central Wellington.
Awards
At the 2019 Financial Review Client Choice Awards, Beca was honored as the Best Provider to the Power & Utilities sector.
2018
- Leading Consulting Engineering Firm (revenue exceeding $200 million)
- Joint Winner: Best Provider to Government & Community sector
- Best Provider to Power & Utilities sector
- Most Client-focused Practitioner – Hamish Denize
2017
- Joint Winner: Best Professional Services Firm (revenue over $200 million)
- Joint Winner: Best Consulting Engineering Firm (revenue over $200 million)
- Market Leadership: New Zealand
2015
- Market Leader
- Top New Zealand Firm
- Leading Provider to Power & Utilities sector
- Best Service Provider in Professional Services sector
- Premier Provider in Property sector
See also
- Sir Ron Carter, former chairman at Beca