WEST CHESTER, PA. — Core States Group has acquired Barghausen Consulting Engineers Inc., of Kent, WA. The purchase price for the architecture, engineering, and construction company was not disclosed.
Included in the deal are Barghausen's headquarters in Kent as well
as their branch offices in Puyallup, Chehalis, and Richland, Washington; Klamath Falls, Oregon; and Long Beach and Roseville, California. It is expected the company's employees will be offered jobs with Core States Group.
When the acquisition is complete, Core States Group will have 25 offices nationwide and over 600 employees.
"The leadership at Barghausen is confident that this acquisition will allow our company to better serve our customers and employees alike," said Chris Jensen, Barghausen vice president and principal engineer.
"When I started Barghausen in 1982, I just wanted to help my clients be successful by providing good service and quality work product at a fair price," said Tom Barghausen, president of Barghausen Consulting Engineers. "We have since grown into an entire team of dedicated, talented individuals working together. As we transition into becoming a legacy firm, I am confident that the decision to join forces with Core States Group is the right one for both companies at this time. We complement each other extremely well, and I'm excited about what the future holds."
Barghausen will stay with the company under Core States leadership and "will actively continue in his role managing projects and supporting clients."
"I am honored by the trust Tom Barghausen, Chris Jensen, and the Barghausen leadership team have in Core States Group to take what they have built and carry on their legacy," said D. David Dugan, president and CEO of Core States Group. "This is a significant milestone in building the Core States Group of the future, and I'm so excited to see the growth of our amazing team of professionals."
CHEVRON TO MOVE HQ FROM CALIFORNIA TO TEXAS
SAN RAMON, CA. — After over 140 years of being headquartered in California, Chevron leadership announced they would move the company's headquarters from San Ramon, California to Houston, Texas.
Chevron officials stated, "There will be minimal immediate relocation impacts to other employees currently based in San Ramon." Positions in support of the company's California operations will remain in San Ramon but all corporate functions are expected to migrate to Houston over the next five years.
The move was not unexpected after Chevron sold its California headquarters building and moved to a smaller location in San Ramon in 2023. At the time, Chevron said it needed less space as more and more of its employees were being relocated to Texas.
Since 2019, Chevron has moved the majority of its U.S. employees to downtown Houston where approximately 7,000 workers are now based. There are approximately 2,000 workers at the San Ramon headquarters.
At the time, Chevron officials said the company would remain headquartered in California, given the oil company's history and assets in the state, despite the majority of the workforce being based elsewhere.
Chevron Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth said Chevron was making the move "to be closer to the core epicenter of our industry." Wirth explained, "Houston is the energy capital of the world," he said. "It's a natural place for companies in our industry to have their home office and headquarters."
"We've had some policy differences with California," Wirth noted during a Bloomberg Television interview. "But this isn't a move about politics. It's a move about what's good for our company to compete and perform."
In an official statement, Alex Stack, a spokesperson for California
Governor Newsom wrote, "This announcement is the logical culmination
of a long process that has repeatedly been foreshadowed by Chevron."
Running for office in 2022, Newsom had a platform of "waging war on
big oil," and in the years since, he has asked lawmakers to impose a "price gouging" tax on oil companies, and has ordered the phase-out of gasoline powered automobiles in the state.
By contrast, Texas Governor Greg Abbott welcomed Chevron to its "true home" on social media, adding "Drill baby drill."
Chevron had been headquartered in California's Bay Area since 1879, when its original parent company, Pacific Coast Oil Company, set up shop.
STARBUCKS AND
MERCEDES TO INSTALL EV CHARGERS ON I-5
SEATTLE, WA. — Starbucks has signed a deal with Mercedes-Benz to to offer electric vehicle charging across over 100 Starbucks stores across the United States.
As part of the "strategic collaboration," high-power EV chargers will be installed at the chain's stores along Interstate 5 by Mercedes-Benz High-Power Charging.
Charging locations on the I-5 route will cover a 1,400-mile route from Washington to California and feature the Alpitronic Hypercharger 400, which are equipped with NACS cables and have the capability to support vehicles with a wide voltage range.
"At Starbucks, we have a long history of bringing renewable and clean energy projects to connect communities that lack the infrastructure. Partnering with Mercedes is the next step in expanding our EV charging network so our customers can refuel sustainably while they enjoy Starbucks," said Michael Kobori, chief sustainability officer at Starbucks, announcing the deal.
