CH2M HILL: born in an earthquake, raised on oil.

• Author: Hollander, Zaz
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: Corporate 100

CH2M HILL made its name in Alaska's oilfields. But the global engineering giant first came to the state in the aftermath of another piece of Alaska history: the devastating 1964 Good Friday earthquake.

Since then, the company has become one of Alaska's largest private employers. CH2M HILL employs about 3,000 people in the state. Facility, equipment and infrastructure investment tops $300 million.

"Over the years, we've done a tremendous amount of work around the state," says Tom Maloney, CH2M HILL's Alaska area manager.

The company spans a wide range of geography. Its main office is located on 36th Avenue in Anchorage. Construction subsidiary Norcon operates offices, a shop and warehouse in town as well. Other facilities are located in Fairbanks, Kenai and Deadhorse. CH2M HILL in 2007 acquired another established company in the oilfield service business, Veco, which began operations on the Kenai Peninsula in 1968.

What They Do

The company is headquartered outside Denver, Colo. Its name derives from the initials of its founders, four Oregon State University civil engineers, plus the name of a company acquired in the 1970s.

The original company started out in 1946. CH2M HILL came to Alaska in 1964. Today, it handles projects such as engineering, environmental services, construction, fabrication, operations and maintenance.

CH2M HILL's reach in Alaska is almost too big to define. A recent listing of job openings shows the company's depth: electrical quality control inspector, Prudhoe Bay; travel planner, Anchorage; pipe welder, Kenai; not to mention numerous drafting, engineering and construction positions.

Maloney divides his company's Alaska profile into four general groups: engineering and consulting; program management; construction; and operations and maintenance plus well-support services. That last one's the biggie.

CH2M HILL provides engineering, repairs, installation, and maintenance services for the Trans Alaska Pipeline System, or TAPS, which is operated by Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. Alyeska has a contract with CH2M HILL Engineering, and recently awarded the company a five-year Master Services Agreement, according to Alyeska spokeswoman Michelle Egan.

Alyeska has "a long history of working with CH2M HILL," Egan says.

CH2M HILL supports major operations in Alaska, western Canada, the United States, Russia and the Middle East. The oil patch figures prominently into CH2M HILL's business today.

The North Slope houses the bulk of the...