Who We Are

• More than 100,000 Canadians owe their livelihood directly to the business of consulting engineering. The gross revenues of member consulting engineering firms contribute in excess of $17.8 billion to the Canadian economy.
• Most firms are privately owned enterprises, operating at the community level and employing fewer than 25 people. The industry also includes large integrated firms offering a wide range of professional and business services.
• The industry boasts an increasing number of small, medium and large firms competing successfully at the international level. Canada ranks fourth in the world in terms of revenues derived from the export of engineering services. It is respected for its ability to adapt to the needs of its customers.
• Consulting engineers support private and/or public sector clients in the resource-based industries, in the sectors of energy, environment, transportation and manufacturing, and to other service providers in finding innovative technical solutions to business and management problems.
• Members of the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies-Canada (ACEC) adhere to the highest standards of competence and professional practice. ACEC has established its own voluntary Code of Ethics and endorses the professional standards adopted by the industry's international governing body, The International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC).
• The industry's professional engineering practices are provincially regulated.
• As a knowledge-based industry, consulting engineers exhibit a strong commitment to continued learning and to promoting higher education in engineering.
• Consulting engineers also enjoy a long history of community and volunteer involvement.

What We Do

The business of consulting engineering is a prime example of a knowledge-based industry in which state-of-the-art technology, innovation and global experience are embodied in its greatest assets - its professionals.

Consulting engineers provide a wide range of services, including:

• pre-feasibility/investment studies
• social and environmental impact studies
• preliminary and final design (for projects ranging in scale from multi-purpose hydroelectric projects to housing complexes to client-specific software)
• the preparation of contract documents and/or bid evaluations
• supervision and inspection of construction, and/or on-site project management
• technical assistance and advice

More information on the services provided by ACEC members can be found in the ACEC Directory of Members.

Consulting engineers can offer clients comprehensive solutions which extend far beyond traditional engineering skills to include financing, planning, marketing and day to day operating expertise in customized packages such as design-build (D/B) and build-operate-transfer (BOT).

Canadian firms participate in joint ventures and consortia where the scope and scale of projects increasingly transcend national borders in the selection of expertise. Typical clients include all levels of government, manufacturers, resource-based industries, transportation systems, the energy sector, private and public sector joint ventures, information technology and telecommunications as well as complex multi-purpose international development projects involving varying blends of professional skills.

As prominent members of Team Canada, Canadian consulting engineers have extensive experience in projects supported by international financial institutions such as the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Asian Development Bank. Experience gained in the Canadian market is readily applied to the international sector.