E&C now means "evolve and combine"

In recent years, major mergers and acquisitions have transformed many sectors of the chemical process industries (CPI), including petroleum refining, basic and specialty chemicals, pharmaceuticals, and foods. In contrast, the engineering and construction (E&C) industry has witnessed relatively less amalgamation - but the shake-ups, and shake-outs among E&Cs have been accelerating in recent months.

In July, the U.S. contracting scene saw two significant moves affecting top names in the E&C world. Both Raytheon Engineers & Constructors (RE&C) and Stone & Webster now find themselves under new management after running into serious losses on major power projects …