Overland Park, Kan.-based Black & Veatch has opened a new office in downtown San Francisco. The office houses engineering and management consulting experts in six fields: heavy civil engineering, management consulting, renewable energy, smart grid, wastewater and water reuse.

The ribbon-cutting event on April 15 included local and global partners, including guests from Australia. As part of the ceremony, Ralph Eberts, executive vice president in Black & Veatch’s global water business, on behalf of Black & Veatch’s Building a World of Difference Foundation, presented a donation of $20,000 to Chet Aukley, a Volunteer Services Board Committee Member of the charitable organization Water For People.

Eberts relocated to the new San Francisco office from his previous post in Singapore, where he oversaw large-scale infrastructure projects across the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia. “Water scarcity and renewable energy implementation are significant challenges for all who live and work in California,” he said. “Solutions we have implemented in other parts of the world, particularly in Australia, provide a blueprint for sustainable development here in the Bay Area. In addition, our breadth and depth of expertise both locally and globally enable us to provide our clients with a single point of contact for their management consulting, energy, water and telecommunications needs.”

In addition to the San Francisco location, Black & Veatch also maintains an office in Walnut Creek, Calif. Black & Veatch has grown its presence in the Bay Area since the 1980s. “The installation of renewable resources is a major driver in the work we do in California,” said Ryan Pletka, director of Renewables Strategy and Planning for Black & Veatch’s global energy business. “The new office in downtown San Francisco will help us best serve those client initiatives.”

A website, www.bvbaybuzz.com, provides background information on the office expansion.