Black & Veatch Names James Bleak President of its Bird Electric Operations
May 22 2024 - 10:00AM
Business Wire
Incoming executive brings deep critical infrastructure
expertise to company on growth trajectory
Sustainable critical infrastructure leader Black & Veatch
has named James Bleak as the new president of its Bird Electric
business, one year after acquiring the self-perform construction
services provider in bringing Black & Veatch’s growing
construction portfolio capabilities to a wider client base.
Bleak, who has most recently served as president of Quanta
Telecom Solutions, brings three decades of experience to Black
& Veatch, having served in roles of increasing responsibility
and diversity during his construction industry career.
Black & Veatch, through its Bird Electric entity, continues
to expand its electrical construction services to electric utility,
oil and gas, and data center clients while extending its national
reach in emergency power restoration.
“James’ deep infrastructure expertise and established client
relationships will be instrumental in continuing our exciting
energy transition growth trajectory,” Black & Veatch Chairman
and CEO Mario Azar said. “Bird Electric is a core element of our
solutions portfolio enabling the national expansion and resiliency
essential for a secure supply of electricity.”
“Bird Electric, as part of Black & Veatch possesses a strong
vision and culture of execution excellence that will advance our
efforts in better meeting the needs of an ever-expanding client
base,” Bleak said, noting that the company also has an
industry-leading safety record and strong training programs.
Bleak will report to Rich Jacober – a Black & Veatch
executive vice president and distributed infrastructure solutions
leader. Previous Bird Electric leader Brian Bird will work to
support Bleak to ensure a smooth transition, then concentrate on
the accelerated growth of the company’s storm-restoration
business.
With more than 600 employees, Bird Electric has a much
sought-after national reach in emergency power restoration – a key
area Black & Veatch has focused on growing when it acquired
Bird Electric Enterprises and Bird Electric Properties –
collectively known as Bird Electric – in early 2023.
Before joining Quanta, Bleak was a Forbes Brothers manager for
the Southwest region that includes Nevada, California and Arizona.
He also served as president of KK&L Inc., specializing in city
and state road work, large utility projects, estimating and
negotiating contracts while supervising administrative aspects of
all jobs. Before that, he was a general superintendent with TAB
Contractors, where he monitored subcontractor activities and
established safety practices for highway and public works
construction projects.
About Black & Veatch
Black & Veatch is a 100-percent employee-owned global
engineering, procurement, consulting and construction company with
a more than 100-year track record of innovation in sustainable
infrastructure. Since 1915, we have helped our clients improve the
lives of people around the world by addressing the resilience and
reliability of our most important infrastructure assets. Follow us
on www.bv.com and on social media.
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