Respondents to the Consulting-Specifying Engineer 2018 Electrical & Power Study identified six high-level findings impacting the electrical and power industries today:

1. Electrical, power revenue: The average engineering firm specifies about $2.98 million annually for electrical and power systems in new and existing buildings, up 4.4% over 2016 data.
2. Systems specified: Eight in 10 engineers currently specify circuit breakers, fuses, etc.; cable, wire, etc.; and electrical distribution systems or equipment.
3. Selection involvement: Eight-three percent of respondents are responsible for determining the requirements/writing specifications for electrical or power systems. Another 68% research and evaluate options, while 65% recommend the brand or supervise/consult on projects.
4. Specifications: Twenty-eight percent of respondents always write performance electrical or power specifications, and another 46% frequently write this type of specification.
5. Design factors: Ninety-seven percent of engineers agree that product quality is the most important factor to their specification of one electrical or power system over another, followed by technical advantage (87%), service support (86%), and manufacturer’s reputation (86%).
6. Top challenges: Eight in 10 engineers agree that an inadequate budget for high-quality design is a difficult challenge affecting the future of electrical and power systems, engineers, and/or the industry; other top challenges include speed of project delivery (73%), and energy efficiency (66%).

Access the full 2018 Electrical & Power Study here. View additional research from Consulting-Specifying Engineer: www.csemag.com/research