50 Phase I Environmental Site Assessments across 18 states — delivered in under 4 weeks through PEC's collaborative consulting model to support a major corporate acquisition.
When a major transportation and logistics company sought to acquire a competitor's fleet operations and physical assets across the United States, the transaction required rapid environmental due diligence on 50 facilities spanning 18 states — on a compressed acquisition timeline.
PEC was engaged as the lead environmental consultant and immediately mobilized its collaborative consulting network. Leveraging its partnership with a national environmental consulting firm, PEC coordinated a seamless, parallel workflow that allowed site research, site reconnaissance, and report preparation to proceed simultaneously across multiple geographic regions.
PEC directly managed and delivered 42 of the 50 Phase I ESAs — completing the full scope in just 3.5 weeks. The remaining 8 assessments were completed by PEC's collaborative partner, operating under a unified quality standard and coordinated project management framework. All 50 reports were delivered to support the client's acquisition timeline.
The portfolio spanned a broad geographic footprint concentrated in the Midwest, South, and Southeast — reflecting the operational territory of the target company's trucking network. Ohio represented the highest site concentration, with 9 facilities assessed.
Gold badges indicate highest site concentration. All site names, addresses, and identifying information have been omitted to protect client confidentiality.
Corporate acquisitions move on financial timelines, not environmental ones. The client required a complete environmental due diligence package within a window that would have been impossible for a single-firm, sequential approach. The engagement presented four distinct challenges:
Fifty Phase I ESAs needed to be completed within weeks, not months, to align with the acquisition closing schedule. Any delay risked disrupting the transaction.
Sites were distributed across 18 states, requiring coordinated site reconnaissance logistics, local records research, and multi-jurisdiction regulatory database searches simultaneously.
All 50 reports needed to meet a uniform quality standard and format — regardless of which consultant conducted the fieldwork — to support a cohesive due diligence package for the acquirer.
Many facilities were active trucking operations, requiring coordination with site management to schedule reconnaissance visits without disrupting ongoing business operations.
PEC's response to this engagement was built on its collaborative consulting model — mobilizing a coordinated team capable of executing multiple Phase I ESAs simultaneously across the country, without sacrificing quality or consistency.
Upon engagement, PEC rapidly assembled its project team and activated its collaborative consulting partnership, assigning sites based on geographic proximity and team capacity to maximize parallel execution.
PEC developed and maintained a comprehensive portfolio tracking system — monitoring the status of all 50 sites across every phase of the Phase I ESA workflow, from records research through final report QA/QC.
Federal and state regulatory database searches, historical aerial photograph reviews, Sanborn fire insurance map research, and city directory reviews were conducted simultaneously across all sites.
PEC and its collaborative partner conducted site reconnaissance visits across 18 states in parallel, documenting current site conditions, surrounding land use, and potential Recognized Environmental Conditions (RECs).
All Phase I ESA reports were prepared using a consistent format and quality standard, with PEC performing QA/QC review on all deliverables — including those prepared by the collaborative partner — prior to client submission.
PEC's collaborative consulting partner seamlessly handled 8 sites in regions where geographic coverage was optimized by their team, operating under PEC's project management framework and quality standards.
This engagement is a direct demonstration of PEC's collaborative consulting model — where PEC partners with other qualified environmental consulting firms to expand capacity and geographic reach bilaterally, ensuring clients across the country receive the same level of service regardless of location.
Project leadership, client communication, centralized tracking and coordination, QA/QC oversight of all 50 reports, direct delivery of 42 Phase I ESAs, and final package assembly for the client.
Geographic coverage for 8 sites, local records research expertise, site reconnaissance in partner-proximate regions, and report preparation — all executed under PEC's quality framework and project standards.
No single firm could have mobilized the personnel and geographic reach required to complete 50 Phase I ESAs across 18 states in 3.5 weeks while maintaining ASTM E1527-21 compliance and report consistency. PEC's collaborative model eliminated that constraint — delivering the full capacity of a large national firm while maintaining the responsiveness, accountability, and client focus of a specialized boutique consultancy.
Each of the 50 Phase I ESAs followed the full ASTM E1527-21 standard scope of work, with all workflow components tracked in real time across the portfolio.
Federal and state regulatory database searches, FOIA requests, historical records, and agency file reviews for each site.
Aerial photograph review, Sanborn fire insurance maps, topographic maps, city directories, and building permits.
Physical site visit, photographic documentation, observation of current conditions, surrounding land use, and potential RECs.
Key informant interviews with site managers, owners, and local government representatives to identify historical site uses.
Full ASTM E1527-21 compliant report including findings, REC identification, conclusions, and recommendations.
PEC performed quality assurance and quality control review on all 50 reports prior to final delivery to the client.