In September 2001, Hugh and Linda Saurenman did what all small business owners do; they took a risk. With one potential contract in hand, the couple embarked on a new adventure in a familiar place, traveling across the country from their home in Massachusetts to start anew in Southern California.

Moving mere miles away from Hugh’s childhood neighborhood, he and Linda set down roots and began to carve their own corner of the noise and vibration consulting industry. The journey began locally with the LA Metro Gold Line Extension, and ATS quickly grew to be a part of numerous project teams in Southern California and across North America. From evaluating atmospheric effects for the Arizona DOT, to assessing vibration impacts on The Walt Disney Concert Hall and surrounding studios in DTLA for the LA Metro Expo Corridor, to influencing the Final Design of the SANDAG Mid-Coast Trolley. In just ten years, ATS established itself as one of the industry’s leading noise and vibration consultants for rail and other transportation projects.

ATS Consulting has now provided expert service on over 500 projects with Hugh Saurenman at the helm as President and Project Lead. Most notable have been the projects with our strongest teammates to date: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) and Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority (Sound Transit). Through early subconsulting projects, ATS quickly established a strong reputation for noise and vibration assessment and mitigation. This led to the creation of our ATS OnTrack™ system designed to monitor onboard noise and rail corrugation at BART and Sound Transit. Today we are handing over the ATS OnTrack™ reins to Spy Pond Partners and Cross Spectrum Acoustics to expand this service and software in an effort to support more transit agencies across North America.

In more than two decades time, ATS has developed a strong footing in the field of noise and vibration and will leave a lasting legacy as Hugh and Linda Saurenman close the company and embark on their next chapter: retirement.