Parsons Brickerhoff Inc

Real Estate Weekly, May 29, 1996

The announcement, made by PB Chairman Martin Rubin, who also said that the board had appointed Gary E. Griggs (photo) to succeed O'Neill as president of Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade & Douglas, Inc., PB's U.S. infrastructure engineering arm and the oldest and largest of the PB family of companies.

As PB's president and CEO, O'Neill assumes overall management responsibility for a global company with 5,000 employees in more than 100 offices worldwide and annual revenues of $493 million. "Under the guidance and leadership of Jim Lammie, Parsons Brinckerhoff has truly become a global company, while greatly expanding its technical capabilities into such new areas as power, water, airports, facilities and environmental services," O'Neill said. "I intend to continue the PB tradition of technical excellence and client service that has allowed us to achieve significant growth rates at a time when our industry overall has been contracting. I also want to preserve the company culture, because it lies at the core of PB's success."

O'Neill has more than 20 years of professional experience managing major transportation projects, including transit, highway and bridge facilities. Some of his accomplishments as president of PB's infrastructure company include the establishment of new service centers for transit and rail operations and complex bridge design; development of a company-wide project management training program; and the acquisition of AvPlan, one of the country's leading airport consulting firms.

Prior to joining PB in 1992, O'Neill was president, chief operating officer and a member of the board of directors of Tudor Engineering Company, an engineering consulting firm with which PB has frequently served in joint venture. His background includes management responsibilities for the design and construction of Atlanta's MARTA system, a PB/Tudor joint venture that has been ongoing for nearly 30 years.

Gary Griggs, a member of the company's management committee, most recently served as a senior vice president and manager of PB's Northwest District, based in San Francisco, with management and business development responsibilities for operations throughout the northwestern United States and western Canada. Major PB projects in the district include a $2.5 billion extension of the Bay Area Rapid Transit System (BART) in San Francisco and the $688 million Westside light rail project in Portland, Oregon. Griggs is chairman of the joint venture board of principals for the final design of the $250 million light rail transit system at the San Francisco International Airport.

Griggs has held senior management positions with several major consulting engineering firms. He has managed engineering and construction services on major projects throughout the world, including the Seoul Metropolitan Subway system in South Korea and the Long Beach to Los Angeles light rail transit system.