Commonwealth Associates, Inc. is an American engineering design firm headquartered in Jackson,

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. The firm provides

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

and consulting services to

utilities A public utility company (usually just utility) is an organization that maintains the infrastructure for a public service (often also providing a service using that infrastructure). Public utilities are subject to forms of public control and ...

; independent power producers; government; industrial clients; and academic, research, and healthcare institutions. The company also provides environmental and permitting services, GIS mapping, land and right-of-way acquisition, and document management services. Commonwealth is employee-owned and managed.

History

Commonwealth Associates is part of the United States power industry legacy of engineers, William A. and James B. Foote. The Foote brothers' early efforts birthed some of America's most notable utilities, including Consumers Energy. The brothers transformed life in the area with streetlights, hydropower dams, and long-distance, high-voltage transmission lines. The Jackson, Michigan, office was established in 1886 under the Commonwealth name. It served for years as the engineering arm of five giant utilities held by Commonwealth & Southern Corporation, becoming an independent firm when the federal government ordered the break-up of the holding company in 1949. Computer Sciences Corp. acquired Commonwealth Services, Inc. July 15, 1970. Gilbert Associates, Inc. purchased Commonwealth Associates, Inc. in 1973, forming Gilbert/Commonwealth, Inc. Several thousand megawatts of power generation were designed by the staff in Jackson before Gilbert closed that office in 1988. Rebirthed in that same year as Commonwealth Associates, Inc., engineering consulting and design continued to be provided for electric transmission and distribution facilities, and, in 2011, the company made the decision to once again offer power generation and energy services. In 2013, Commonwealth celebrated its 25th anniversary of being employee-owned.

Expansion

In 1992, Commonwealth opened a regional office in the state of Washington to serve the

Northwestern United States The Northwestern United States, also known as the American Northwest or simply the Northwest, is an informal geographic region of the United States. The region consistently includes the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. ...

. Since then, the company has increased their

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

presence with an office in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...

. They have expanded into the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

with offices in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

, Orlando, Florida, and operations in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, and into the

Southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, N ...

, with a presence in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. In 2013, Commonwealth opened a

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

regional office in neighboring

Spokane, Washington Spokane ( ) is the largest city and county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It is in eastern Washington, along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south of the ...

, which also serves

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

Recognition

Commonwealth Associates was profiled among the 2019 Top 10 Electrical Design Firms by ''EC&M Magazine'' and ranked among the 2019 Top 500 Design Firms by McGraw Hill's ''Engineering News-Record'' (ENR.com). It was designated a 2013 Top 100 Workplace by the ''Detroit Free Press'' and has been named among the Best Places to Work by ''Jackson Magazine'', earning the title of "Rockin' Place to Work" for its Boiler Room Band and other unique employee perks. Commonwealth provided land and right of way acquisition services on the City of Portage, Michigan, Texas Drive - West Milham Ave. - 12th St. Roundabout Project, which was selected as a 2011 Top 10 Right-of-Way Project by the International Right of Way Association.

Practice areas

* Audits * Battery Energy Storage Systems * Commissioning * Construction Services * Cybersecurity * Data and Document Management * Distributed Energy * Electrical System Studies * Environmental and Permitting Services * Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Mapping * Grid Hardening and Resilience * Interconnection * Land and Right of Way Services * Microgrids * NERC Compliance * Owner's Engineering/Program Management * Power Generation and Energy * Substation Engineering * Transmission & Distribution Line Engineering * Unmanned Aircraft System (Drone) Services

System Planning

''Transmission Grid Analytics'' is the latest proprietary planning software brand by Commonwealth. It includes 2012 edition releases of ''Mapping'' and ''Cascade Analysis''. Commonwealth's ''Grid Analytics - Mapping'' and associated products were used to support research by

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

on the development of the Home Emissions Read Out (HERO) smart phone application to give users real-time emissions estimation that would allow them to selectively time their own electricity use to reduce air emissions.

Leadership

* 2017–present: Richard N. Collins, P.E., ''President'' * 2001–2017: Dennis F. DeCosta, P.E., ''President'' * 1988–2001: Lester J. Walcott, P.E., ''President''

References

External links

Corporate Homepage - cai-engr.com
{{Authority control Engineering companies of the United States Companies based in Jackson, Michigan Construction and civil engineering companies established in 1988