Business Details
45 Years
experience
Emergency
services
Your Trusted Partner for Utility Engineering Solutions
Forster Electrical Engineering has been delivering specialized electrical engineering consulting services since 1981, focusing on municipal utilities, rural electric cooperatives, and industrial clients. Our team of engineers, designers, and CAD technicians brings over 150 years of combined experience to address complex power distribution challenges. We specialize in proactive utility asset management, electrical distribution system reviews, and customized solutions for substation and grid design. Our services include load forecasting, contingency planning, GIS mapping, and distributed generation interconnection analysis.As an employee-owned business, we prioritize collaborative partnerships, offering flexible engagement models to align with client budgets and timelines. Our expertise in high-voltage power line design, cable testing, and SCADA system implementation ensures reliable infrastructure for communities nationwide. We maintain recognition as an approved insulated power cable testing laboratory by the National Electric Cooperative Association, underscoring our technical authority. Our commitment to innovation and client-centric solutions has established us as trusted advisors in utility modernization and asset lifecycle management.
Services
Electrical Distribution Design
Load Forecasting
Contingency Planning
GIS Mapping
Cable Testing
Distributed Generation
Substation Design
Transmission Line Engineering
SCADA System Design
Equipment Maintenance
Details
- Year established: 1981
Highlights and features
- We offer 40+ years of specialized expertise in utility electrical systems
- Our team has completed projects involving over 1,200 miles of power lines
- We provide proactive asset management to minimize system downtime
- Our GIS mapping solutions enhance grid planning and maintenance efficiency
- We maintain one of the few specialized cable testing laboratories in the US
Associations and certifications
- National Electric Cooperative Association
Services
Electrical Distribution Design
Our electrical distribution design services create optimized power grid solutions for municipal utilities. We develop comprehensive plans for overhead and underground distribution systems, incorporating sag and tension specifications, easement acquisition assistance, and joint use pole analysis. Our designs ensure compliance with NESC standards while addressing future growth requirements through advanced load forecasting and capacity planning.
Load Forecasting
We provide precise load forecasting to help utilities plan for future energy demands. Our analysis combines municipal planning data, utility personnel input, and comparative system benchmarks to project electrical loads over ten-year periods. This enables strategic infrastructure investments and capacity expansion planning while maintaining competitive rate structures for utility customers.
GIS Mapping
Our GIS mapping solutions create detailed digital representations of electrical distribution systems. We integrate GPS data with asset management systems to enable efficient planning, maintenance, and emergency response. The technology supports proactive infrastructure management through visual mapping of equipment locations, condition assessments, and maintenance history tracking.
Cable Testing
We operate one of the few specialized cable testing laboratories in the United States. Our services include incoming cable quality control, microscopic analysis of failed cables, and random sample examination. We identify manufacturing defects, water ingress, and insulation degradation to ensure reliable system performance and inform maintenance prioritization decisions.
Distributed Generation
Our distributed generation services facilitate the integration of renewable energy sources into existing distribution systems. We conduct interconnection analysis, develop relay settings for grid stability, and perform power quality assessments. Our solutions optimize battery backup specifications and collector system designs for wind farms while ensuring worker safety during grid maintenance operations.
People
Charles Forster
Founder
Charles Forster established the company in 1981 with a vision to provide specialized electrical engineering solutions for municipal utilities. His leadership laid the foundation for the firm's technical excellence and client-focused approach.
Bruce Beth
President
Bruce Beth became president in 2000, expanding the company's capabilities while maintaining its commitment to utility clients. He oversees strategic direction and ensures continued delivery of high-quality engineering services to municipal and industrial clients.
Questions
What electrical engineering services do you offer for municipal utilities?
We provide comprehensive services including distribution system reviews, substation design, transmission line engineering, GIS mapping, cable testing, and distributed generation integration tailored to municipal utility needs.
How do you help utilities improve grid reliability?
We conduct system reviews to identify deficiencies, develop contingency plans, implement SCADA systems, and perform power quality measurements to enhance grid stability and minimize outages.
What makes your GIS mapping services unique?
Our GIS solutions combine GPS data with asset management systems to create interactive maps that support proactive maintenance planning and emergency response coordination for electrical distribution networks.
How do you ensure cable quality for electrical systems?
We operate an NERC-approved cable testing laboratory that performs incoming quality control, microscopic analysis, and failure investigations to verify cable integrity before installation.
Can you help with renewable energy integration?
Yes, we specialize in distributed generation interconnection analysis, battery storage specification, and wind farm collector system design to optimize renewable energy integration into existing grids.
Do you provide emergency grid restoration services?
We offer rapid response solutions for grid restoration, including fault analysis, equipment replacement planning, and system reconfiguration to restore power after outages.
