Big Apple Group Joins RMA Companies

Addition of leading inspection, testing, and monitoring firm in New York supports RMA’s national growth strategy

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--RMA Companies (“RMA”) today announced the addition of Big Apple Group (“Big Apple”), a leading testing and inspection services firm based in New York, to its family of companies. With this transaction, RMA has successfully partnered with nine firms throughout the United States as it builds a national platform for geotechnical engineering, environmental consulting, construction materials testing, inspection, and certification services to support the development of critical infrastructure.

Big Apple provides geotechnical investigations, construction materials testing, special inspections, and monitoring services serving developers, contractors, and public agencies throughout the eastern United States. Founded in 2015 and led by Joe Lowy (Founder) and Sara Gottlieb (President), Big Apple employs leading experts in special inspections, materials testing, and remote monitoring across offices in New York and New Jersey. Its portfolio of advanced optical scanning, vibration, tilt, sound, and settlement monitoring services helps clients mitigate risk and drive quality assurance. Big Apple will operate as a business unit of RMA and continue providing exceptional service to its clients.

“RMA is experiencing transformational growth, as we build a portfolio of differentiated and technology-enabled services to serve the testing and inspection requirements of infrastructure asset owners, contractors, developers, and public agencies,” said Ed Lyon, CEO of RMA. “We are thrilled to have Big Apple join the RMA family. The addition of state-of-the-art monitoring, optical scanning, and remote sensing capabilities enables us to better support our clients. Big Apple also supports our geographic expansion strategy by solidifying RMA’s growing presence in key markets.”

“I am excited to work with RMA during this next chapter of growth for Big Apple,” said Joe Lowy. “Big Apple has built a strong reputation for providing the highest quality inspection and monitoring services in the Tri-State Area. Joining RMA allows us to better serve our clients by offering a broader portfolio of services and access to greater corporate resources. Under RMA, Big Apple will be able to accelerate our growth trajectory and serve a wider clientele, cross-sell across a larger client base, and provide incredible growth opportunities for our talented team of employees.”

Womble Bond Dickinson, LLP acted as legal adviser to RMA. Raymond James & Associates, Inc. served as financial advisor, and Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP served as legal advisor to Big Apple.

About RMA Companies

RMA is a leading provider of professional services in environmental consulting, geosciences, and materials testing and inspection for critical public and private infrastructure assets across diverse government and commercial end-markets, including transportation, healthcare, education, renewable energy, and water resources. RMA’s team of engineers, geologists, inspectors, and technicians help infrastructure asset owners, engineering firms, and construction companies maintain compliance with strict regulatory and operating requirements through a range of geotechnical, environmental, and materials testing services. Founded in 1962, RMA is headquartered in Rancho Cucamonga, California. RMA is a portfolio company of OceanSound Partners. For more information, please visit www.rmacompanies.com.

About Big Apple Group

Founded in 2015, Big Apple is a leading provider of monitoring, inspection and lab-based testing services for private and public infrastructure projects with approximately 100 employees. Big Apple offers a technology-enabled solution that streamlines both field operations and customer experience for development projects throughout the greater New York City-area and beyond. For more information, please visit www.bigapplegroupny.com.

About OceanSound Partners

OceanSound Partners is a New York-based private equity firm that pursues control investments in technology and technology-enabled services companies serving government and enterprise end-markets. OceanSound employs a partnership approach, working closely with founders, entrepreneurs, and executives of middle market businesses to drive transformational growth. For more information, please visit www.oceansoundpartners.com.