Hill International
Corporate brand
UnclaimedGlobal construction consulting and project-management firm serving major infrastructure and building programs.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Hill International is a United States-based construction consulting and project-management firm established in 1976 by Irvin E. Richter and Michael W. C. Emerson. The business began as a construction-claims consultancy and later broadened into construction management, project management, program management, scheduling, cost management, risk management, advisory work, facilities management, commissioning, quality assurance, and project-management oversight. Its corporate headquarters are in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, while its work has extended across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, the Caribbean, Australia, Africa, and parts of Asia. The company’s name was chosen to suggest a preferred office location in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. Its first offices operated from Richter’s home in Willingboro, New Jersey. Early growth came from claims, dispute, and scheduling assignments, including work connected with federally funded environmental infrastructure. Hill also acquired Construction Management Services, a critical-path-method scheduling specialist whose personnel included early practitioners of computer-assisted construction scheduling and forensic schedule analysis. During the late 1970s and 1980s, the firm benefited from the increasing complexity of public procurement, regulated infrastructure, and nuclear-power construction. Cost overruns, schedule delays, project cancellations, and disputes created demand for claims evaluation, contract administration, and litigation support. Hill gradually moved beyond post-dispute consulting into active construction and project management. Its work on the Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City, Niagara Falls wastewater-treatment facilities, and other troubled projects helped establish a turnaround and construction-management capability. Hill also became involved in federal transit oversight. It served as a project-management oversight contractor for the Federal Transit Administration on projects including Sacramento light rail and the Los Angeles Metro. The company expanded geographically, opening a Los Angeles office in 1984 and developing international assignments in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and Asia. Its international work included claims and dispute services in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, support for the Channel Tunnel rescue effort, and project-management roles connected with the Athens Metro, the National Library of Latvia, the Petronas Twin Towers, and Dubai’s Palm Islands development. Acquisitions were an important part of Hill’s strategy. In 1988 it acquired Gibbs & Hill, an engineering and design firm, and Kaselaan & D’Angelo, an environmental and air-quality consultancy. Hill later sold both businesses and refocused on its core claims, construction-management, project-management, and program-management activities. In 2006 it became a publicly traded company through a reverse merger with Arpeggio Acquisition Corporation, adopting the Hill International name and initially trading on Nasdaq. It moved to the New York Stock Exchange in 2008 under the symbol HIL and subsequently pursued an extensive acquisition program involving firms in claims consulting, project management, scheduling, cost estimating, and construction management. The company’s acquired businesses expanded its reach into the United Kingdom, Spain, Poland, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Turkey, Canada, Southeast Asia, and the western and southern United States. Hill’s service model combines technical project controls with commercial and contractual advice, allowing it to work for public agencies, owners, contractors, lenders, and other participants in large capital programs. Typical assignments include infrastructure, transportation, water and wastewater, buildings, energy, institutional facilities, and complex public-sector programs. Hill is associated with more than 90,000 project assignments representing an aggregate construction value exceeding $1 trillion, according to the cited company description. In 2024, Building Design+Construction ranked it third among United States fee-based construction-management firms, while Engineering News-Record ranked it seventh among program-management firms. Hill is described as part of the Global Infrastructure Solutions family of companies. Its former public-company identity and ticker are historical rather than current trading information.
History
Hill International was founded in 1976 by Irvin E. Richter and Michael W. C. Emerson. Richter had worked in construction-claims consulting before establishing the firm, initially operating from his home in Willingboro, New Jersey. The name Hill referred to the intended Cherry Hill, New Jersey, location of the company’s office. One of the early strategic moves was the acquisition of Construction Management Services, a critical-path-method scheduling consultancy. Its personnel brought expertise in computer-based construction scheduling and forensic schedule analysis, capabilities that became important to Hill’s claims and project-controls work. The firm expanded during the late 1970s as federally supported environmental construction created demand for contract administration and claims analysis. Hill opened a Washington, D.C., office in 1980 to serve government agencies and contractors. The nuclear-power construction boom of the 1970s and 1980s generated another major source of work. Highly regulated projects frequently experienced delays, cancellations, cost escalation, and disputes, creating demand for claims evaluation, termination analysis, and litigation support. William J. Doyle was brought in to oversee a growing nuclear-related claims practice and other major assignments. Hill’s role evolved from claims consulting into construction and project management. In 1981, the firm supported litigation and project completion work relating to the Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City, a development whose projected cost had risen substantially. Hill later assisted the City of Niagara Falls, New York, in regaining control of a stalled wastewater-treatment project and subsequently acted as construction manager for its completion. Comparable troubled-project work was undertaken for the Point Pleasant water-intake and pump-station project in Pennsylvania. These assignments helped establish the firm’s ability to intervene in distressed projects rather than only analyze disputes after the fact. The company also became an early project-management oversight contractor for the Federal Transit Administration. It worked on the Sacramento light-rail project and the Los Angeles Metro, joining a group of established firms providing oversight on federally supported transit construction. Hill opened a Los Angeles office in 1984. In 1988, it acquired Gibbs & Hill, a New York engineering and design firm, and Kaselaan & D’Angelo, an air-quality and asbestos-cleanup consultancy. The acquisitions increased the company’s scale, but Hill later sold both businesses and returned its emphasis to construction claims and project, construction, and program management. International work developed alongside the domestic business. Hill supported assignments in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East from its early years, including work related to Saudi Arabia’s King Khalid Military City and claims involving projects in Egypt and Kuwait. In the early 1980s, the firm established a profitable Abu Dhabi office and served as a lead consultant to the Abu Dhabi Claims Committee. An attempted London office opened in 1981 but closed in 1985; the company later re-established a London presence through its work on the Channel Tunnel. Hill joined a Bechtel-led effort to help address claims, schedule, cost, and safety problems affecting the Channel Tunnel project. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Hill’s construction-management activities expanded under European leadership. Projects and assignments included the Athens Metro, the National Library of Latvia, the Petronas Twin Towers, and the Palm Islands development in Dubai. Hill became program manager for the New Jersey Turnpike widening program in 1991, overseeing a large multi-contract transportation program. The company moved its headquarters from Willingboro to Marlton, New Jersey, in 2002 and had approximately 500 professionals in 25 offices by 2004. Hill became public through a reverse merger with Arpeggio Acquisition Corporation. The transaction closed in June 2006, after which the combined company adopted the Hill International name and traded on Nasdaq. The public listing supplied capital for acquisitions. Hill purchased J. R. Knowles in 2006, described as a leading construction-claims company, and acquired KJM & Associates in 2007. In 2008, it moved to the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HIL. From 2008 through 2011, Hill pursued a broad acquisition program. Transactions and investments involved John Shreeves Holdings in London, Gerens Management Group in Madrid, Euromost in Poland, PCI and Chitester in the United States, Boyken International, McLachlan Lister in Australia, TRS Consultants, and Engineering S.A. in Brazil. These deals expanded its capabilities in project management, cost estimating, scheduling, construction claims, dispute resolution, and software support, while extending its geographic coverage into Latin America, Australia, Poland, Spain, the United Kingdom, and other markets. Hill is now presented as a global construction consulting firm within the Global Infrastructure Solutions family of companies. Its scope includes program and project management, construction management, project-management oversight, advisory work, cost and schedule control, facilities management, commissioning, quality assurance, and risk management. The firm reports participation in more than 90,000 project assignments with an aggregate construction value above $1 trillion. Industry rankings cited for 2024 placed Hill among the leading United States fee-based construction-management and program-management firms.
- 2024
Hill receives major United States industry rankings
[1]Building Design+Construction and Engineering News-Record place Hill among leading United States construction-management and program-management firms.
- 2008
NYSE listing begins
[1]Hill changes its exchange listing from Nasdaq to the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HIL.
- 2006
Reverse merger creates publicly traded Hill International
[1]The merger with Arpeggio Acquisition Corporation gives Hill a public-market listing on Nasdaq.
- 2006
J. R. Knowles is acquired
[1]The acquisition strengthens Hill’s construction-claims platform and adds international market access.
- 2002
Headquarters moves to Marlton
[1]The company relocates its headquarters within New Jersey as international construction-management work grows.
- 1991
New Jersey Turnpike widening program begins
[1]Hill becomes program manager for a multi-contract widening program covering interchanges 11 through 14.
- 1988
Gibbs & Hill and Kaselaan & D’Angelo are acquired
[1]The acquisitions add engineering, design, environmental, air-quality, and asbestos-cleanup capabilities.
- 1984
Los Angeles office opens
[1]Hill expands its United States presence while performing Federal Transit Administration project-management oversight.
- 1981
Expansion into troubled-project management
[1]Work connected with the Tropicana project demonstrates Hill’s transition from claims consulting toward construction management and project completion.
- 1980
Washington, D.C. office opens
[1]Hill opens its first branch office to serve United States government agencies and government contractors.
Products and positioning
Independent, high-end engineering and construction consultancy focused on managing complex capital projects, controlling cost and schedule risk, and resolving contractual and construction disputes.
Engineering and construction services
Program management
Hill manages portfolios of related construction and infrastructure projects, coordinating design, procurement, construction packages, stakeholders, schedules, interfaces, and reporting. Its program-management work has included transportation and other public infrastructure programs with numerous contracts and delivery sections.
Engineering and construction services
Project and construction management
The firm provides owner-side and delivery-focused management for individual capital projects. Services can cover procurement, contractor coordination, construction administration, quality assurance, schedule control, cost control, commissioning, and completion. Hill developed this capability partly through assignments to stabilize and finish troubled projects.
Professional consulting · 1976
Construction claims and dispute consulting
Claims consulting is Hill’s historical core. The service includes contract analysis, entitlement review, delay and disruption analysis, loss evaluation, termination claims, dispute support, and technical assistance for negotiation, arbitration, or litigation. The practice serves owners, contractors, engineers, public agencies, and other project participants.
Engineering and construction services
Project controls, scheduling, and cost management
Hill applies critical-path-method scheduling, project controls, cost estimating, risk analysis, forecasting, and performance reporting to help clients identify and manage deviations in time, cost, scope, and delivery risk.
Public infrastructure oversight
Project-management oversight
Through project-management oversight assignments, Hill independently reviews major public projects for sponsors and funding agencies. The work may address schedule, cost, risk, compliance, procurement, readiness, and delivery performance. The company performed this role on Federal Transit Administration-supported projects.
Brand decisions
2008
Move the stock listing to the NYSEStrategyBackground
Following its 2006 public-market entry, Hill continued to pursue scale through organic growth and acquisitions.
Action taken
The company transferred its listing to the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HIL.
Aftermath
The move coincided with an acquisition-led expansion into additional project-management and claims-consulting markets.
2006
Use a reverse merger to enter public marketsM&ABackground
Hill had long sought public-company status, but an initial public offering was difficult after financial problems in the 1990s.
Action taken
Hill merged with blank-check company Arpeggio Acquisition Corporation, which then adopted the Hill International name.
Aftermath
The transaction produced a Nasdaq listing and provided capital for acquisitions and broader international expansion.
Recent events
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Hill International steps up its operations in Ukraine[2]
Hill International, an international program, project, and construction management company, is stepping up its operations in Ukraine, where it currently has a very limited presence. The company said it is actively expanding in the energy sector and positions itself as a partner in the development of critical and industrial infrastructure.
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Hill International appoints Alex Gittelson as director[2]
Hill International, an international program, project, and construction management company, announced via its social media posts that Alex Gittelson has been appointed director as the company steps up its operations in Ukraine. Gittelson previously served as managing director of Egis covering Ukraine, Moldova, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. The president of the company's European division said the appointment is expected to help fulfill Hill's long-term commitments to Ukraine.
Sources2 sources
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