An eye on the future

Orlando Business Journal Mary Cristobal July 24-30, 2009 HSA Golden expands into the carbon cap-and-trade international market

Peter Barts, a triathlete and president of HSA Golden — an Orlando-based environmental engineering consultancy — is used to enduring long runs.

This year, he’s celebrating another long run: HSA Golden’s 20th anniversary.

Founded by Philip Hilderbrand in 1989, then-named HSA Technical Services was bought by Barts in 2000. At that time, the company’s net revenue was about $900,000. Three years later, Barts partnered with Jim Golden, changed the company’s name to HSA Golden and grew revenue to $1.2 million. Despite its changes during the past 20 years, one thing that’s remained the same for HSA Golden is its key to success: building a good reputation clients trust and doing cost-effective work, Barts said. “Our customers typically will come with a need or problem. If we fix the problem, then they refer us to someone else,” he said, noting about 80 percent of the firm’s work is from referrals. HSA Golden offers a variety of services, including environmental resource permitting, foundation design, designing and permitting golf courses, designing and installation of industrial waste treatment systems, landfill investigations, air quality testing and permitting, remedial system design, and real estate and land development. Barts’ most recently completed project was a 23-year-old cleanup job in Volusia County he started in 1988 when he first entered the field. Looking forward, Barts wants to expand the firm’s consulting practice internationally through the carbon cap-and-trade market. HSA Golden will work with international clients in their facilities and also assist with project design documents and carbon credit calculations. If the Obama administration successfully integrates the U.S. in the cap-and-trade market, then carbon credits will increase dramatically, said Barts, whose 2010 revenue goal is about $4.5 million — if things go according to plan with the international expansion. HSA Golden also retained its consultancy with the Kennedy Space Center, and the company landed a $30 million brownfields redevelopment project in Winter Haven that involves assessment and cleanup of fertilization plants and other facilities. Regardless of how much it expands its services, Barts sees the company remaining client-focused and small with 25 to 50 employees. “We’re not looking to take over the world,” he said. “We want to do what we do very well and keep our reputation and quality of our work.” Read more: An eye on the future – Orlando Business Journal