Atlas Technical Consultants Q3 2021 Earnings Call Transcript

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Provided by Quartr
November 14, 2021

There are 7 speakers on the call.

Operator

Hello, and welcome to the Atlas Technical Consultants Third Quarter 2021 Conference Call. Currently, all participants are in a listen only mode. A question and answer session will follow the formal presentation. As a reminder, this conference is being recorded. I would now like to turn the call over to your host, Walter Powell, Chief Accounting Officer of Atlas.

Operator

Thank you, sir. You may begin.

Speaker 1

Thank you for joining our Q3 2021 earnings conference call. We hope that you have seen our earnings release issued after the market close today. Please note that we have also posted a presentation in support of this call, which can be found on the Investors section of our website at 1atlas.com. Before we begin, I would like to remind you that today's call may include forward looking Statements. Any statements describing our beliefs, goals, plans, strategies, expectations, projections, forecasts and assumptions are forward looking statements.

Speaker 1

Please note that the company's actual results may differ from those anticipated by such forward looking statements For a variety of reasons, many of which are beyond our control, please see our recent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Identify the principal risks and uncertainties that could affect our business, prospects and future results. We assume no obligation to update publicly any forward looking statements. In addition, we will be discussing or providing certain non GAAP Please see our release and filings for a reconciliation of these non GAAP measures to their most directly comparable GAAP measure. I'll now turn the call over to our Chief Executive Officer, Joe Boyer.

Speaker 2

Thank you, Walter, and I appreciate you joining us today. Before I begin, I'll mention that our Chief Financial Officer, David Quinn, will not be participating on this call as he is currently recovering from a recent medical procedure. It all went well, and he'll be back to work next week. I, along with my Atlas team, wish David well on his road to recovery. So on today's call, I'll provide an overview of the business and give us an operational update, and then Walter will continue with discussion of our financial results and outlook before we open up the call for questions.

Speaker 2

So starting on Slide 4, it gives me great pleasure to speak with you today, not just about another solid quarter of financial and operating results for Atlas, But also to highlight the incredible opportunities we see for growth as we look forward to 20222023. This is backed by expanding market demand, stimulus funding, our tech enabled capabilities And our major projects and program pipeline. Now before I touch on these aspects of our bright future, I'd like to highlight the strength and resilience of our business that delivered solid results in the Q3 despite a number of challenges. This performance is really due to a focused execution by our entire Atlas team, and I'm thankful for that. We delivered over 15% year over year revenue growth, driving an increase in adjusted EBITDA to approximately $20,000,000 Common to our industry, the economy wide labor pressures impacted our margins in the short term as cost recovery programs in the form of pricing increases lag slightly.

Speaker 2

Market shifts in the transportation business Led to volume decreases in some larger projects in the quarter. In comparison to the acceleration of activity In the prior year quarter, when traffic patterns were at an all time low due to COVID. We had a very strong quarter winning work as our backlog again rose to a new record level of 757,000,000 Fueled by new major project infrastructure and environmental related contract awards. This was an incredible feat during our Q3, typically our highest revenue burn quarter. We were successful in converting into backlog nearly half of the roughly $150,000,000 of new awards that were pending contract execution but not yet in backlog at the end of the second quarter.

Speaker 2

And due to our results in winning new business Across markets and through the cross selling, we now have an additional $175,000,000 of awarded but not yet signed contracts. This demonstrates trust placed in us by our clients and the technical expertise of our professional services. Our company is purpose built to ensure quality, longevity and sustainability in our nation's public And private investments in our both natural and built environments. Now detailing from Slide 5, We expect markets and service areas to benefit from strong secular tailwinds unlike any other time that I've seen in my career. As the nation continues to recover from the pandemic, we're seeing a steady ramp in client demand as we move into 2022.

Speaker 2

This includes the renewal of infrastructure assets that are overdue for improvement, replacement and connectivity To ensure safety and reliability, along with renewed focus on sustaining and improving our environment, Of course, recent building and bridge collapse tragedies remind us of the importance that quality assurance And asset monitoring plays in keeping us safe, which is driving growing demand for higher safety, regulatory and code compliance. We continue to see growth in outsourcing by state DOTs, cities and municipalities and the private sector For both project and quality assurance services, this urgency to address overdue upgrades to our nation's infrastructure Has only been heightened by the rise of climate impacts and the threats to public health and security. Growth of Environmental, Social and Governance or ESG has increased awareness on enhancing the quality of life for communities and Clients are also looking for public and security improvements for the well-being and Safety of community infrastructure and workplaces. With increasing climate and pandemic related tragedies occurring, Atlas has responded with critical monitoring of air quality for fires in the West, assessments of possible viral exposure pathways for infection and healthy building studies in hurricane flooded areas. The commonality of all these focal points is resilience.

Speaker 2

In the broadest definition, it's about strengthening Our infrastructure, our environment, our communities and economies to survive extraordinary challenges. At Atlas, we've built a company that's uniquely positioned to address those challenges. Take a closer look at the next slide, please. And as you can see on Slide 6, the Atlas platform is Directly aligned with the critical ESG focus areas of our clients. Our technical experts created innovative solutions That I will discuss a bit later on Slide 9 are at the forefront of addressing our clients' diverse needs, whether it's connecting smart cities, Protecting our ecosystems, upgrading to healthy buildings or other technical services required for today's Rapidly evolving standards.

Speaker 2

Starting with the focus on mobility across modes of transportation and technology, All 4 of our service areas are engaged to capitalize on macro trends. Same holds True for risk, quality and safety. Our ability to successfully win work in all these service areas through cross selling And to consistently advance our acquisition and integration strategy is contributing to our growth and record backlog. We continue to execute on our disciplined M and A strategy, targeting companies that bring rich Cross selling opportunities to the Atlas platform and are well positioned to capitalize on the infrastructure and environmental market tailwinds. Our pipeline is very healthy and composed of proprietary opportunities that are both technical experts and fit this mold.

Speaker 2

These targets are typically firms that have seen the rapid growth and success at Atlas over a short period of time are excited to be part of the future success of this company. And this lends itself to deleveraging transaction structures The principals are eager to take Atlas stock and have a vested interest in the future growth of Atlas. Several of the targets in our pipeline are in advanced stages of due diligence. And as a result, we're well positioned To expedite our strategic growth initiatives, reap revenue synergies through cross selling and accelerate the deleveraging of our balance sheet. Beyond these prevalent market tailwinds, the enactment of the $1,200,000,000,000 U.

Speaker 2

S. Infrastructure bill Sloan on Slide 7 will represent a milestone moment for the nation and for Atlas. As I said earlier, And even more so with this federal bill. This renewed focus and investment in infrastructure and environment may be the best I've seen in my career. In tandem with the upward trend of outsourcing critical technical and proprietary professional services that Atlas provides, This bill is an extremely positive catalyst for our business in the upcoming years.

Speaker 2

The spending bill is directly focused In the markets and services provided by Atlas with transportation being the biggest, followed by water and utilities. Medical services typically represent about 6% to 8% of the spending on infrastructure and environmental projects, So this represents large incremental opportunities for our services. We look forward to working with our diversified portfolio of public And private sector clients to drive value added services in the focus areas of the bill as new programs and spending comes online late in 2022 beyond. Just as important as the absolute funding levels, This federal investment tailwind prioritizes the need for performance improvement and life cycle extension of critical assets stressed by climate, Health and economic impacts. That's exactly what we do here at Atlas and our momentum in winning larger projects continues to increase.

Speaker 2

Moving on to Slide 8. We have some significant sized projects planned for kickoff by the end of the year and into the Q1 of 2022. Consistent with this, I'm excited to profile our recent $15,000,000 I-thirty five project win, For the $1,500,000,000 I-thirty five Northeast Expansion Design Build Project as a partner The Alamo NEX Construction JV team. This section of I-thirty five is a major gateway into the San Antonio area is one of the Congested roads in Texas. The proposed improvements will include elevated highway lanes, additional connector bridges, Construction of general purpose lanes, revisions to ramps, improving interchanges and other enhancements such as drainage utilities and signs.

Speaker 2

And this is expected to have a significant improvement in safety and mobility, reduced congestion And accommodate the future traffic demands from the growth of the 3rd most populous city of Texas. Under this phase of the contract, Atlas will provide design review of infrastructure assets to assure compliance For the design build contract and TxDOT codes and specifications. We are thrilled to be part of this major project and anticipate being part of the construction phase as well. Our long standing relationship with trust in our expertise to deliver this major infrastructure project and will play a pivotal role in the growth of the area. And as I mentioned earlier, we bring both technical expertise and innovative solutions to our clients.

Speaker 2

On Slide 9, I'll provide a couple examples of how our technology applications and innovative solutions strengthen our service offerings Help us deliver results for our clients. Our client for a University of Washington project was faced With the costly challenge of addressing contaminated assets during a stadium renovation, our team's in-depth understanding of materials reactivity Allowed us to sustainably reuse materials while complying with the environmental cleanup and code requirements. A proprietary Atlas design leachability and geotechnical Testing modeling program enabled the reuse of 60,000 cubic yards of concrete debris into the newly renovated stadium While reducing construction disposal waste and enhancing protection of nearby wetlands and groundwater quality. As another example, I'm very proud of our team's work with the City of San Diego's critical water infrastructure. Access to this certain stretch of coastline was heavily constrained, so we used extensive geotechnical technologies, Including vibrating wire pathometers and vibration monitoring equipment to develop an early warning system to coastal bluff erosion as a major threat to this Critical water asset.

Speaker 2

Our technical experts continually use proven technologies from varying applications to develop unique solutions From GIS integration, for monitoring and modeling wildfire impacts on high speed rail, the geophysics searching Deep aquifers in the West, extremely proud of our diverse technical capabilities. Now let me address our record backlog and 3rd quarter key wins. As I said earlier, 3rd quarter backlog increased $757,000,000 with a number of major project wins across services and geographies. We saw particular strength in new awards as our state and municipal agency markets are getting back to a more normal course of business Regarding contract procurement and letting opportunities. As you can see on Slide 10, the strength of our diversity of our service offering Plays well to the increased demand for our infrastructure and environmental capabilities, which in turn drives backlog growth and visibility into future revenues.

Speaker 2

So with that, I'll turn the call back over to Walter. Thanks,

Speaker 1

Joe, and please turn to Slide 11. Now for the details of the quarter. Gross revenue of $138,700,000 was up 15.1% Compared to the prior year quarter, driven by strong execution across all service offerings and contributions that were both organic and from recent acquisitions. Our Environmental Solutions Services saw the biggest gains this quarter along with Engineering and Design Services As we continue to see commercial markets accelerate and larger projects and programs enter the portfolio. Net revenue of $112,500,000 was 15% higher than the prior year period And represented approximately 81% of gross revenues, consistent with our strategy to cross sell and self perform more work to improve margins.

Speaker 1

We realized improved utilization rates even as we grew our workforce during the quarter. Like many businesses, We're managing through the great resignation, but our marquee awards tend to attract highly qualified professionals and we have been successfully increasing our workforce this year. Adjusted EBITDA of $19,800,000 was 4.1% higher than the Q3 of 2020 And represented 17.6 percent of net revenue compared to 19.4% in the prior year quarter. Revenue growth supported our EBITDA growth, while project mix and some labor cost inflation had a temporary impact on margins. For the Q3, we produced adjusted net income of $4,600,000 and adjusted EPS of $0.14 Versus $0.18 in the prior year quarter with some differential in EPS related to the conversion of Class B to Class A shares over the past year.

Speaker 1

Moving to Slide 12. Year to date, we have delivered positive cash flow from operations. During the Q3, cash flow from operations was a use of $6,200,000 The primary driver of this was a larger than typical build capital requirements to support our revenue growth. We expect a very strong cash quarter in Q4, Driving cash flow and liquidity to the highest levels during 2021 as we close the year with net leverage on path It'd be at approximately 6 times by year end. Moving to our full year outlook on Slide 13.

Speaker 1

We are raising the low end of our revenue range for the full year 2021. We now project revenue to be in the range of $530,000,000 $540,000,000 This outlook reflects the continued strength of our backlog and operational performance, the current visibility on the timing of work And the contributions from recent acquisitions. We anticipate that adjusted EBITDA will come in closer to the low end of our unchanged $73,000,000 to $80,000,000 range. This is primarily due to incurring higher labor costs that impacted margins in the 3rd quarter Ahead of labor rates resetting. Given our business is approximately 90% cost reimbursable, We actively mitigate this as we price new contracts and rates on existing contracts reset.

Speaker 1

As Joe mentioned, we are excited about the passage of the federal infrastructure bill and are looking forward to incremental investments Strong market tailwinds and the accretive benefits of recent M and A, we expect adjusted EBITDA to grow in 2022 In the low to mid teen percent range. We are all extremely excited by the growth potential for our business moving forward. Thank you. And I'll now turn the call back to Joe for closing remarks.

Speaker 2

Great. Thank you again, Walter. I am proud to represent Atlas' 3,600 plus employees who are passionately working hard on critical infrastructure and environmental projects across the U. S. Our ability to deliver growth in revenues and EBITDA, while pushing backlog to record levels highlights the immense potential Our success in winning work reflects our effectiveness in integrating acquisitions, Cross selling services and providing technology solutions to our client network.

Speaker 2

Our growth efforts continue to gain steam, Supported by our resilient business model and the alignment of our business to strong long term key market growth drivers. These market tailwinds include the renewal of aging infrastructure, broad based commitments to environmental stewardship and the need to improve quality, safety and resiliency for our communities. We anticipate The infrastructure build will help accelerate these tailwinds in coming years, and we look forward to help the nation advance its transformational investments in infrastructure and the environment. I firmly believe in the power and potential of this organization, particularly our ability to deliver solid margin performance, all while deleveraging our balance sheet. I look forward to continuing our positive momentum in the final quarter of 2021 and for many years to come.

Speaker 2

Thank you again for joining us today. And operator, you can now open up the lines for Q and A, please.

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, we will now be conducting a question and answer session. A confirmation Our first question comes from the line of Rob Brown with Lake Street Capital Markets. Please proceed with your question.

Speaker 3

Hi, Joe. Hi, Walter.

Speaker 2

Hey, Rob. How are you?

Speaker 3

Great. Nice job in the quarter and I see some strong growth. Just thinking about the growth environment, I think you had a pretty nice backlog of projects you've won that haven't been Put in the backlog yet, but maybe could you comment a little bit about how the growth environment or the new contract environment is coming through right now and how you see it playing out over the next few quarters?

Speaker 2

Certainly. Really good question, Rob. So as I've said, in my experience, this This industry has always been in a tight labor market, right? So we've built our business to address this challenge. I think We focus on being an employer of choice with a heart led culture and being competitive in compensation and benefits.

Speaker 2

I've also found that people like to work on marquee projects and high profile projects. And with our backlog of major projects growing, we have been a net importer of technical talent and Successful in attracting some highly competent colleagues. So we're excited about that. I think our recruiters have done an absolutely excellent job Despite the labor challenges and we see the need to continue investing there. So we'll continue our sharp Focus on labor resources to address our revenue projections.

Speaker 3

Okay. And maybe you could clarify how the contracting works as labor prices go up. Do you Contractually, are you able to pass that on? And does that ultimately show up a quarter or 2 later? How does it sort of work in terms of getting the price increases?

Speaker 2

Yes, we do. We basically, we've already addressed our pricing on our commercial work And those costs have already been projected forward. On our more public work, we get a chance to pass on those costs. We do those on a term basis or on an annual basis renewal. So basically, we have a short term lag in that and it typically is a 1 to 2 quarter lag.

Speaker 2

So we'll start to see those impacts On our labor rates improving in Q4 and into H1 of 2022.

Speaker 4

Okay. Okay,

Speaker 3

great. And then last question is on the infrastructure bill. I think you talked about that sort of hitting your We're starting to hit your growth in later next year. How do you sort of see that playing out? And how does it these federal spending, how does that normally flow through to your business?

Speaker 2

Sure. So as I did say, first of all, I'm just very glad To see this long overdue federal investment, I know we've talked about that in the past. The strength of this company is squarely in the focus of that bill, Infrastructure renewal, environmental stewardship and the climate resilience is squarely where we focus. So So from my experience, it will take at least a few quarters to see impacts from this bill And that's even on shovel ready projects. So it's going to take a little bit of a few quarters to see that come through.

Speaker 2

And I said, we're already in a great environment without the bill, but certainly even better so now. And I think this speaks to the sustainability of our company. Just a reminder that I know we put out this early guidance for 2022, but it does not include the impacts of this bill as of yet.

Speaker 3

Okay, great. Thank you. I'll turn it over.

Speaker 2

Thanks, Rob.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Brent Thielman with D. A. Davidson. Please proceed with your question.

Speaker 4

Hey, thanks. Hey, Joe. Hey, Walter.

Speaker 2

Hey, Brent. Hey, there.

Speaker 4

Yes. I guess, first on the outlook for the rest of the year on the revenue side, I mean, implies a pretty big step up here in the Q4, reasonable step up. Is that typical for your business or is that just a culmination of this backlog of work that you're going to start burning through?

Speaker 2

Yes. Let me say that, I think we have a really good visibility Into the remainder of the year, given our current book of business and our stickiness to our investor I mean, and our Client relationships, our backlog is steady, and we were comfortable raising the low end of that revenue range because of that. We still are making the decision to focus and invest in 2022 and growth and beyond. And I think that we feel comfortable and that revenue is out there. I will remind you that what we are seeing is a Steady growth across just about all of our markets and geographies.

Speaker 2

I think our environmental and testing inspection services are They're steadily growing to support pickup and commercial activity that we're seeing. Real estate transactions are increasing with Financial institutions funding deals which drives commercial activity. Our petroleum clients are now spending on capital programs and back to Almost normal levels for us. The public sector clients have been a little bit inconsistent, but But are releasing delayed programs from city agencies and schools and such, and I'd say with the exception of New York, which isn't completely back steady. And then I think most important are transportation clients now with new budgets coming forward, beginning to release new projects and budgets.

Speaker 2

And so we feel really good about what we've put out for our guidance in Q4.

Speaker 4

Okay, understood. And then Joe, I just want to clarify. It sounds like At the time you get through the first half of next year, you'll sort of be caught up with respect to where you see sort of pricing on contracts today relative to Inflation you felt through the business, is that a fair way to think about in terms of margin performance?

Speaker 2

Yes, I think that's fair, Brent. I've reminded that those are costs that we've incurred today, right? If we continue to see Wage inflation going forward, of course, it'll be a little bit of a lag, but we'll continue to pass that cost on as well. I think that's fair to what you characterize, Brent.

Speaker 4

Okay. And then the 170 5,000,000 in work that does that get signed this quarter and presumably fill in backlog? I'm just wondering if Any of that's the carryover of last quarter, whether the processes to turn these kind of new contracts are taking longer, Joe, any thoughts there?

Speaker 2

Sure. So Rob, let me give you as you remember last quarter, we had $150,000,000 of Awarded but unsigned, which at that time, as I told you, was an increase, a steady increase over what we normally see. So we signed about $70,000,000 of that In Q3. So we still got another, what, 80 or so to book and we added to that $95,000,000 of awarded not signed contracts. So I would tell you that I'd expect I'd hope that half of that would be signed in Q4 and probably continue on into Q1.

Speaker 2

But it is a direct reflection of our Clients being back to work and getting their contracts groups and procurement resources back. So it is a little slower than normal, But that's what I anticipate.

Speaker 4

Okay. That's great. Thank you, guys.

Speaker 2

Sure.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Daniel Burke with Johnson Rice. Please proceed with your question.

Speaker 5

Yes. Good afternoon, guys.

Speaker 2

Hey, Dan. Hey, how are you?

Speaker 5

Just one on the M and A pipeline for you all. You noted you had some Good opportunity still in front of you. But I guess I just wanted to ask with the infrastructure bill now a reality, how does that influence maybe bid ask spreads

Speaker 2

So let me start by saying that I think the infrastructure bill just reinforces that we're confident in our strategy. I think we are focused squarely Where the bill is focused in infrastructure and environmental tailwind. So as we continue to look And those markets and we really are focused on really geographies where the states are being creative And particularly, alternate funding means we love the transportation space, road bridges, highways, water systems, transit rail and utilities, that's where we're As you mentioned, we had focused on proprietary opportunities. So, we typically shy away from broker led deals. And we're looking for technology leaders and those businesses that are focused in the same market growth drivers that we are currently in and Leverage those to cross sell services.

Speaker 2

So we have seen a slight uptick and there's certainly some Higher multiples being paid out there, but given our strategy and where we focus, we haven't seen that much of an impact On increase in maybe a half of a turn from where we've been traditionally focused, if that helps you.

Speaker 5

Yes, it does, Joe. Thanks. And then I guess maybe to pivot just a little and refer back to an earlier question. I don't want to get too myopically focused on a singular quarter, but when you think about order inbounds and backlog trending through year end, I mean, you do have the benefit of your customers in many cases being back in the office and the fact that The pending contract award figure is up versus 3 months ago. I mean, it would seem to suggest a positive environment and the potential for sequential improvement in bookings in Q4 and further rise in backlog, but I want to make sure I appreciate any sort of seasonal elements that Q4 can sometimes that might affect bookings you'd expect to see in the Q4, if you could comment on that.

Speaker 2

Certainly. Daniel, so I would say, I think you're fair to assume that. I will tell you that actually Q4 is our I guess, I'm sorry, Q3 is our biggest burning quarter. So backlog growth in this quarter is a real positive sign for us. Obviously, I think with the I'm just talking about normal signings of these awarded projects yet to be Signed, should in fact grow our backlog, would be a positive impact to our current backlog levels.

Speaker 1

Many of the state DOTs, Daniel

Speaker 2

sorry, go ahead, Daniel.

Speaker 5

No, no, Walter, please go ahead.

Speaker 1

Yes. So many of our state DOTs, they just got into their new fiscal year. So we see usually here some increased letting here in the 4th quarter As they kind of tap into their new budgets.

Speaker 5

Okay. That's helpful. And then a last simple one. Can you guys give me Just an estimate on where organic revenue growth was year over year in Q3?

Speaker 1

Yes, Daniel. So year to date We're above 3% organic growth. This quarter was down a little, but we don't guide quarter to quarter In terms of revenue growth and organic growth, for the year, we expect to be in the mid single digits for the full year 2021. It's in line with our expectations and on track with our guidance.

Speaker 5

Got it. Okay. Thank you, guys. I appreciate the time this afternoon.

Speaker 2

You bet. Thank you, Daniel. Appreciate it.

Operator

Thank you. Our next question comes from the line of Kathryn Thompson with Thompson Research Group. Please proceed with your question.

Speaker 6

Hi. Thank you for taking my questions today. On large project loans, you've discussed this year how you're seeing larger Projects this year as the company grows, the platform builds, and you're just able to win larger, more complex projects. And even recently with the quality assurance project that you announced in Texas is testament to that. How what if any change do you see with that with the passage of the federal infrastructure bill?

Speaker 6

And it's Stepping back and looking forward, Creeks, really more interested in terms of what your end customers are saying and how they plan for large projects based on a potential passage of the bill. Thank you.

Speaker 2

Sure. Hi, Catherine. Let me say that, I think we will continue to see, some of these larger projects and the importance that Quality assurance plays in these larger projects, which is relatively New scope of work, the larger design build opportunities. So I think to answer your question, I think our The projects that our state DOTs are planning on putting out is probably for large projects. It's already been on the radar screen And have been bid or at least planned previously.

Speaker 2

I don't know that this infrastructure bill will have a dramatic impact On some of the larger projects outside of maybe Georgia 400 project in Georgia. But I'm sure there's a number of other larger projects that I'm currently not aware of that my technical team would be. But I'd say the answer to that is, Again, I don't think there's a huge pickup in large design build pickups that this infrastructure bill will push through. And we think it's going to go mainly through state DOTs, cities and municipalities, which would lend itself to more, don't want to say just more smaller projects and ties.

Speaker 6

Okay. A lot of focus on the Surface transportation, but there are definitely some larger dollars set aside for wastewater. How has your work and Project activity has been around water and wastewater, progressed into the back half of the year. You started to see early signs in the first half, Particularly as you had residential build out progressing. What are you seeing now?

Speaker 6

And what does this look like over the next, say, 12 to 18 months based on your experience and what you're seeing now in the pipeline.

Speaker 2

So let me say that we have seen around our Pennsylvania, Philadelphia area, we have seen a pickup And our wastewater design and oversight services in that area, I would say, that's about the only area that I can tell you that I can Think of that has a dramatic improvement at least over last year in services in the water wastewater area. We are seeing Obviously, more construction engineering and inspection projects coming online in regards to water. So there's water projects being built out. But outside of that, Catherine, I can't say that I have a crystal ball into the next 12, 24 months around water And water and projector for us, I would say that majority of our projects that we have that are currently out there are really focused more on the transportation side of the business, including transit and rail and all forms of those projects.

Speaker 6

Okay. Thank you. Helpful in that. And then on the labor front, obviously, has been a focal point throughout this year. Also have the added vaccination mandate.

Speaker 6

And we're hearing from a wide variety of our Industry contacts that has created additional complications, just in getting jobs done. How are you managing that? And what update, if any, can you give on the labor front in terms of just getting projects done?

Speaker 2

Sure. Well, I will tell you that for us, it currently hasn't had an impact to us in regard to getting projects done Or even to a turnover in stat. I will tell you, we are obviously in the middle Of a vaccine bill, there's a federal mandate on federally funded contracts. And then yet we have some state Contracts that are absolutely counter to that same mandate. So we are trying to work through The differing requirements that are out there in regards to vaccines, and still a top priority to us, but it has not been A current impact to getting our projects done or even turnover in our staff that I'm aware of.

Speaker 6

Okay. Thank you. And have you And once again, a lot of focus on infrastructure, but one thing that we have seen in leading into potential passage of these bills or Long term highway bill, sometimes you'll see people hold back bidding just to see what happens, but that doesn't appear to be the case this time around. Case in point, you were saying that you're seeing a level of bidding activity like you've not seen before. Just has this momentum continued?

Speaker 6

And is there any momentum in turning these bids into projects And part of the infrastructure bill or other factors that we may not take into consideration?

Speaker 2

Let me say that we saw a tremendous Pickup in transportation work both mainly in the execution of the work in Q3 and Q4 of last year, right. So Our transportation business grew 24% in 2020. So as the state agencies were really accelerating work due to low traffic volumes. And so we were caught in a little bit of a volume downturn in 2021 as Some of the particularly around the Texas DOT markets had really accelerated work. So we're now seeing that the new budgets are sort of Back on track to normal historic levels there.

Speaker 2

I haven't seen I can't cite a specific example Of any impact we've seen currently from the federal infrastructure bill on transportation, at least not in the lettings currently. And I don't know how else to answer that other than what I just communicated unless I've missed something.

Speaker 6

That's helpful. And thank you for answering that question today. Best of luck.

Speaker 2

Thank you, Kath. I appreciate it.

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, at this time, there are no further questions. I would like to turn the floor back to management for closing comments.

Speaker 2

So let me thank everyone for joining us today. We really appreciate your support of Atlas, and I look forward to updating you on our progress. Thank you very much. Thank you.

Operator

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

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Atlas Technical Consultants Q3 2021
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