The number of industry acquisitions in 2010 rose 5% as of Dec. 23, according to a year-end report by Morrissey-Goodale, a management consulting and research firm in Newton, Mass. It reports a total of 242 deals, up from 229 during the same time in 2009. Company principal Mick Morrissey says the upward trend will continue in 2011, driven in part by newly enacted tax-law changes. But he adds, “Shifts in how owners purchase services, how owners allocate risks and a lack of demand for stock in privately held firms will be the bigger drivers.” Among the firms announcing acquisitions on Dec. 21 were engineers Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., Pasadena, Calif., Montreal-based SNC Lavalin and Houston-based KBR.