The United States is entering an energy infrastructure buildout defined by rising electricity demand, accelerating utility capital programs and a limited supply of experienced technical and field professionals. The question is no longer simply whether projects will be funded. It is whether owners can assemble the leadership, engineering, project controls, construction oversight and safety capabilities required to execute them.
The pressure is visible across the market. The U.S. Department of Energy announced an approximately $1.9 billion SPARK funding opportunity in March 2026 to accelerate transmission upgrades that increase grid capacity and reliability. At the same time, the U.S. Energy Information Administration expects electricity use by data center servers to continue rising, adding pressure across generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure.
That execution challenge sits at the center of CEIS's strategy.
Following CEIS's acquisition of One Tech Engineering & Power, CEO Mike Kaveney describes a combined organization designed to occupy a specific position in the market: more accountable and technically integrated than a traditional staffing provider, while remaining more flexible and owner-focused than a large engineering, procurement and construction firm.
Why One Tech Was a Strategic Fit for CEIS
CEIS acquired One Tech to support the continued growth of its energy infrastructure platform and expand its position in transmission and distribution. The acquisition also added an important consultative capability that CEIS did not previously offer at the same level: safety program management.
One Tech was founded in 1982 and developed from a technical staffing business into a provider of utility field services, project delivery support and safety consulting. That evolution closely parallels CEIS, which uses its recruiting infrastructure to build specialized teams but increasingly delivers through consulting, project and program-led engagements.
Their history, their structure, their approach, essentially, their DNA is very similar to CEIS. It is a natural fit and allows for a rapid, seamless integration.
Mike Kaveney, Chief Executive Officer, CEIS
One Tech also brought an established utility customer base and a growing safety program management practice. This creates two immediate opportunities: introduce CEIS's broader project delivery capabilities to One Tech clients, and bring One Tech's consultative safety approach to existing CEIS relationships.
What Capabilities Does CEIS Provide Today?
CEIS is broadly focused on four markets where infrastructure demand and execution pressure are converging.
Engineering, project delivery, controls and specialized professionals for complex nuclear programs.
Consulting and project support for gas turbine, fossil, renewable and balance-of-plant needs.
Transmission, distribution, substation and grid modernization project support.
Project, field, safety, controls, commissioning and specialized workforce support.
Across those markets, CEIS can provide:
- Strategic Consulting & EngineeringTechnical insight and engineering support aligned with the client's project needs.Explore service →
- Owner's Engineering & OversightOwner-aligned technical and project oversight across infrastructure programs.Explore service →
- Program & Project ManagementEmbedded leadership that connects scope, teams, schedule and execution.Explore service →
- Project Controls & SchedulingPlanning, schedule management, progress visibility and reporting discipline.Explore service →
- Engineering, Procurement & Construction SupportCoordinated expertise that connects planning decisions with execution.Explore service →
- Procurement & Fabrication OversightVisibility into supplier engineering, materials and fabrication activity.Explore service →
- Construction Management & Field ServicesSite leadership, field coordination, inspection and execution oversight.Explore service →
- Safety Program ManagementConsultative safety leadership integrated across the project organization.Explore service →
- Commissioning & Turnover SupportCompletion planning, startup coordination and turnover readiness.Explore service →
- Operations & Maintenance SupportSpecialized operational and maintenance expertise where included in scope.Explore service →
- Specialized Staffing & Team BuildoutHard-to-source professionals assembled around project requirements.Explore service →
The specific delivery model depends on the project. CEIS may provide an individual specialist, embed a multidisciplinary team within an owner's or contractor's organization, lead a defined project function, or expand an existing team as the size and complexity of the work increase.
Project Support From Early Planning Through Turnover
CEIS can enter during early engineering and procurement, then continue supporting the owner as work progresses into fabrication, construction, commissioning and turnover.
Owner's engineering, design coordination, planning and constructability support.
Procurement coordination and owner-side oversight of supplier activities.
Project leadership, construction management, controls, inspection and safety.
Completion planning, commissioning coordination and turnover readiness.
This continuity matters because many project failures occur at the interfaces between phases. Engineering decisions affect procurement. Procurement delays affect construction sequencing. Incomplete construction affects commissioning. Safety requirements span every stage.
The Missing Middle Between Staffing Firms and Large EPCs
We fit in that underserved space between large engineering firms and a traditional staffing agency. Our capabilities and service-orientation far surpass that of staffing firms, and we are a much more flexible and nimble, customer-focused engineering and consulting firm, highly attuned to the customer's specific needs, not operating by rigid playbooks developed for someone else.
Mike Kaveney, Chief Executive Officer, CEIS
A staffing firm typically focuses on filling an open role. A large EPC may assume broad contractual responsibility through a standardized delivery model. CEIS first seeks to understand the total project challenge, then recommends the people, leadership structure and defined services needed to address it.
| Delivery model | Primary role | Typical relationship |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional staffing provider | Supplies individual resources | Placement-focused support managed by the client |
| Large EPC firm | Delivers engineering, procurement and construction under a broad contract | Contractor-led delivery with significant transferred scope and risk |
| CEIS | Provides owner-aligned consulting, project leadership and scalable specialist teams | Flexible support designed around the client's organization and needs |
The goal is not to displace the owner or force a larger scope than the project requires. It is to give the client experienced leadership and delivery capacity while preserving control.
What One Tech Adds: Safety as a Managed Program
The most important new capability One Tech brings to CEIS is not simply access to additional safety professionals. It is the ability to assess, organize and manage safety as a program across a utility's portfolio.
This distinction matters for utilities executing many capital projects at once. Site-level safety personnel remain essential, but individual assignments do not automatically create consistent standards, reporting, accountability or leadership across the organization.
One Tech's consultative model helps build that connective structure. Combined with CEIS's owner's engineering, project management, construction oversight and project controls capabilities, safety can be integrated into delivery instead of treated as a separate workstream.
Why Mid-Sized Utilities Are an Important Fit
CEIS can support utilities of different sizes, but Kaveney identified small and mid-sized utilities as a particularly strong fit. Many are managing capital programs that have expanded faster than their internal oversight teams. They need contractors to perform the work, but they may also need experienced owner-side professionals to manage interfaces, oversee execution, reinforce safety expectations and preserve accountability.
Larger utilities may have more extensive internal infrastructure or long-established delivery systems. Mid-sized organizations often need a partner that can add targeted capability without requiring the utility to hand over the entire project.
CEIS has supported work in more than 35 states and can deploy teams throughout the United States. Its national recruiting and human capital infrastructure is central to that ability.
A Human Capital Engine Built for Project Delivery
The ability to find specialized professionals remains one of CEIS's foundations, but recruiting is not treated as the final product. It is the engine used to build project teams around experienced internal leaders.
CEIS can begin with a core consulting or project management team and add engineers, construction managers, controls professionals, field leaders or safety specialists as the work expands. This is especially relevant when the hardest roles require a rare combination of technical credentials, industry experience and willingness to work at a specific project location.
What Scalable Delivery Looks Like in Practice
Two recent CEIS engagements discussed by Kaveney show how the model can work. Client names have been withheld for publication.
Texas Transmission Program
A utility needed additional construction management capacity across a large transmission portfolio. CEIS identified a senior construction management leader and built a team of approximately 10 to 12 professionals within weeks.
The team entered the field quickly, strengthened management oversight and reinforced safety expectations by identifying activities that were not meeting required standards.
Nuclear Life-Extension Program
CEIS initially assembled eight engineers across mechanical, electrical, digital and civil disciplines over several months for a major nuclear life-extension initiative.
After demonstrating value, the team expanded to 17 professionals, with potential to reach approximately 20 by the end of 2026, while adding leadership, project controls and procurement engineering support.
Clear Boundaries Preserve Client Control
The client retains final decisions involving pricing, contract awards and the risks associated with project, supply, performance and engineering outcomes. CEIS supplies the expertise, management structure, oversight and specialized teams needed to help the client make and execute those decisions effectively.
This distinction is central to the value proposition. Clients gain additional capability without surrendering control of the project to an outside organization.
Track Record Is the Ultimate Measure of Value
Service organizations live and die off their performance. Your track record is your demonstration of value, and when a past customer speaks of your top performance it is the best salesperson you could ever have.
Mike Kaveney, Chief Executive Officer, CEIS
For CEIS, growth depends on entering a client organization with a defined need, delivering successfully and earning the opportunity to expand. Credibility is built through project performance, repeat engagements and customers who are willing to speak directly about the results CEIS has delivered.
When Should an Infrastructure Owner Contact CEIS?
- Capital spending is accelerating faster than internal delivery capacity.
- The owner needs stronger engineering, project management or construction oversight.
- Safety performance must be managed consistently across projects or regions.
- A program requires hard-to-source engineers, controls specialists or field leaders.
- Existing suppliers can fill roles but cannot provide the leadership needed to organize the work.
- A broad EPC delivery structure does not fit the specific execution problem.
- Project needs will change and the team must scale without losing continuity.
- Data center growth or another major load is increasing pressure on generation or power delivery infrastructure.
The Next Phase of the CEIS Platform
The long-term objective is to integrate One Tech's people and capabilities into CEIS's transmission and distribution operations instead of maintaining them as an isolated service. Safety program management can then be offered across the broader CEIS customer base, while CEIS's engineering, project management, field execution and specialist staffing capabilities become available to One Tech clients.
The acquisition is more than an increase in headcount or geographic reach. It adds a new consulting capability and strengthens CEIS's ability to support infrastructure owners from early planning through field execution and turnover.
As demand increases across power generation, power delivery and data center infrastructure, capital alone will not determine which projects succeed. Execution capacity will.
Frequently Asked Questions
What did CEIS gain through the One Tech acquisition?
The acquisition added and strengthened utility field services, safety management and project delivery capabilities. Mike Kaveney identified One Tech's consultative safety program management approach as the most important capability CEIS did not previously have at the same level.
What energy infrastructure services does CEIS provide?
CEIS provides strategic consulting and engineering, owner's engineering and oversight, program and project management, procurement coordination, construction management, field services, project controls, safety program management, commissioning and turnover support, operations and maintenance support, and specialized technical staffing. Exact scope depends on the market and engagement.
Which markets does CEIS serve?
CEIS focuses on nuclear power generation, non-nuclear power generation, power delivery through transmission and distribution, and data center and mission critical infrastructure. The broader CEIS platform also supports government energy and national security missions.
Is CEIS a staffing company?
CEIS has a strong recruiting and human capital engine, but its model extends beyond individual placements. CEIS can organize and lead project teams, provide consulting and program management, and scale specialized resources around a defined client need.
Is CEIS an EPC firm or general contractor?
CEIS is not positioned as a self-performing EPC or general contractor under its current model. It typically provides owner-side consulting, engineering, project management, oversight and embedded specialists. The client retains final decision-making and project risk.
What size of utility is the best fit for CEIS?
CEIS can support utilities of different sizes. Small and mid-sized utilities may be a particularly strong fit because they often manage significant capital programs with lean internal oversight teams.
Can CEIS support projects nationwide?
Yes. CEIS has supported work in more than 35 states, including Hawaii, and can pursue and support projects across all 50 states. Deployment depends on required expertise, project location, schedule and scope.
How quickly can CEIS build a project team?
Timing depends on the roles and requirements. In one transmission engagement described by Mike Kaveney, CEIS identified a senior construction management leader and assembled approximately 10 to 12 professionals within weeks. Highly specialized roles may require more time.
Sources
- Mike Kaveney, Chief Executive Officer, CEIS. Interview conducted September 8, 2026.
- U.S. Department of Energy: $1.9B Investment in Critical Grid Infrastructure.
- U.S. Energy Information Administration: Data Center Server Energy Use.
- White Wolf Capital: CEIS Acquires One Tech Engineering & Power.
