Leaders in Municipal Energy Services

Our firm has a 90-year history of being at the front of what our clients need.

In 1967, Lewis J. McCoy opened an individual engineering practice because he believed “everyone deserves clean water.” 5 years later, the Clean Water Act was amended into law. We were ready.

In 1968, Charles Stevens became a partner in the firm, bringing 24 years of environmental and air pollution experience. 2 years later, the Clean Air Act took effect. We were ready.

Our municipal roots date back to Walter Spotts, who served as the Owner and President of an engineering and consulting firm based solely on providing services to municipalities. Today, municipal leaders are embarking on their newest undertaking: to lessen their environmental impact and increase their energy efficiency. We are ready.

Practical Energy Solutions, the Energy Team at SSM

Our Energy and Sustainability Team, Practical Energy Solutions, is not only a leader in the field, but a well-known and trusted advisor for some of the largest municipal entities in the region as well as some of the smallest.

To date, we have completed energy audits on more than 200 municipal facilities. And, more than half of our division’s work each year is for municipalities. Our current and past clients include The City of Philadelphia, The State of Delaware, Chester County, PA, The City of Coatesville, Tredyffrin Township, and more than 80 other municipalities.

Our team recognizes that local governments are setting ambitious energy efficiency and renewable energy goals while also prioritizing the needs of their community and stakeholders. More than ever before, community leaders are under increasing pressure to institute green practices, and sustainable operations. Whether navigating a commitment to reach 100% clean energy or managing implementation of aggressive clean energy goals – we pride ourselves on understanding how to help communities get there.

Our team outshines many similar firms in the area. Not only in expertise, but in experience. We have worked on programs supported by Pennsylvania DEP’s Energy Programs Office, we’ve served on planning commissions, volunteered with energy groups, and even supported advocacy initiatives related to energy policy.

Our work is often used as the template or case study for future energy initiatives both locally and regionally. It’s safe to say we’re the team that “wrote the book” on municipal energy best practices and implementation.

Our team’s capacity to combine both financing expertise with engineering expertise is an invaluable skillset. In short, we tell you what you need, but we also help you get it. From assistance with navigating the financial commitment to system design and modeling, and even coordination as a start-to-finish advisor - we always get the job done.

You Need to Know

There’s one thing we want municipal leaders to know about our energy services: Yes, it is for you.

There’s little argument to the benefits of addressing your building and community’s environmental impact. However, community leaders are often concerned about the fiscal and logistical resources needed to commit to these goals. The truth is, we’ve helped many of our clients discover that they’re actually expending more of those resources by not addressing the energy use in their buildings. And yes, this includes fiscal resources.

Adopting sustainable measures and auditing the energy efficiency of your buildings doesn’t necessarily mean depleting your funds to invest in new systems. We’ve helped clients identify ways to save thousands of dollars annually with simple system adjustments. Some that are no cost to implement.

And for those that would benefit further from a more adept system upgrade, we’ve aided those clients in acquiring the funding and financial incentives they need to make those changes happen. Our team has found hundreds of thousands of dollars over fifteen years of providing energy consulting and design services.

As a firm, we believe our purpose is to help you stick to yours. We like to say that what we do best is find seamless, and timely solutions – so that you get to focus on what it is that you do best. We have 90 years of helping our clients’ visions come true. Ninety years of assisting our clients in the planning, growth, and well-being of their communities. Ninety years of being ready.