What Engineering Systems Inc. (ESI) does

Engineering Systems Inc. (ESi) is a U.S. private forensic engineering and scientific investigation firm that provides multidisciplinary expert services to insurance carriers, law firms, government agencies, and industrial clients. Operating since the late 1980s across 23+ U.S. offices with 251-500 employees, ESi delivers project-based investigations spanning accident reconstruction, failure analysis, fire and explosion origin-and-cause, catastrophe response, biomechanical and biomedical analysis, product liability, and risk assessment across 17 engineering and scientific practice areas.

The firm's technical platform combines ISO 17025 accredited laboratories with proprietary and third-party advanced instrumentation, including ESi Live Remote Inspections, Computed Tomography (CT) scanning, 3D laser scanning with FARO systems, drone imaging, motion capture, Finite Element Analysis, and Computational Fluid Dynamics. Expert deliverables include courtroom-ready visualization in VR, demonstrative exhibits, and expert witness testimony, supported by a bench of PhDs, PEs, and board-certified consultants (CFEI, CVFI, ACTAR, AIA/NCARB) many of whom participate in industry standards development.

ESi makes money through project-based professional services engagements priced on scope, expertise, and testing requirements; no public pricing exists. The go-to-market is sales-led, combining enterprise direct engagement with insurance carriers, major law firms, and large industrial clients via senior consultants and principals, and an inside sales team covering mid-market and regional accounts. Customer segmentation spans Insurance, Legal Professionals, Government (CPSC, FAA, FDA, NHTSA, NTSB), Manufacturing & Industrial, Transportation, Construction, Power & Energy, and Life Sciences/Medical Devices, with active expansion into rail and defense verticals during 2025.

Name

Engineering Systems Inc. (ESI)

Legal name

Engineering Systems Inc.

Website

https://engsys.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Engineering Systems Inc. (ESi) is a U.S. private forensic engineering and scientific investigation firm delivering multidisciplinary accident reconstruction, failure analysis, and expert witness services to insurance carriers, law firms, government agencies, and industrial clients across 23+ U.S. offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Aurora

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices22 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Forensic Engineering Consulting Services: Project-based professional services providing forensic investigations, failure analysis, accident reconstruction, and expert testimony. Services are typically engaged on a per-project basis for legal, insurance, and industrial clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Engineering Systems Inc. (ESi) provides multidisciplinary forensic engineering and scientific investigation services for legal, insurance, government, and industrial clients. Its core offerings include failure analysis, accident reconstruction, fire and explosion investigations, catastrophe response, expert witness testimony, and specialized lab and inspection services such as CT scanning and remote inspections.

Product overview

Engineering Systems Inc. (ESi) is a forensic engineering and scientific investigation firm offering multidisciplinary consulting services. The company provides a broad portfolio of professional services organized by expertise areas (Biomechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, Building Sciences, Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Civil & Structural Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Fire Protection Engineering, Geotechnical Engineering, Human Factors, Materials Science, Mechanical Engineering, Polymer Science, Safety, Thermal Sciences, and Vehicle Engineering) and core service lines (Accident Reconstruction, Catastrophe Response, Failure Analysis, Fire & Explosion Investigations). Key specialized offerings include ESi Live Remote Inspections, Battery Cell Testing, and Computed Tomography (CT) Scanning as part of their Lab & Inspection Services, along with Rail Risk Management and Rail Litigation & Claims for the rail industry. ESi operates as a service-based consulting firm rather than a software product company.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Accident Reconstruction Reconstructs incidents using full-scale crash testing, video analysis, and computer simulations for civil and criminal litigation, supporting attorneys and insurance claims handlers.
• Failure Analysis Identifies root causes of failures in products, systems, and materials with comprehensive analytical techniques, supporting manufacturers, insurers, and legal teams.
• Fire & Explosion Investigations Origin and cause investigations of fires and explosions with fire dynamics analysis for insurance, legal, and industrial clients.
• Catastrophe Response Rapid response to disasters including disaster investigations, storm damage investigation, and wildfire investigations for insurance carriers and government agencies.
• Construction Defect Investigations Investigates construction defects for property owners, contractors, insurers, and legal teams to determine causation and responsibility.
• Biomechanical Engineering Analyzes human movements to reconstruct accidents, determine forces involved, assess injuries, and provide scientific evidence using motion capture, wearable sensors, ATDs, and computer simulations for legal and insurance clients.
• Biomedical Engineering & Sciences Advanced biomedical consulting for medical device design, testing, failure analysis, and regulatory compliance, supporting manufacturers, insurers, and legal teams.
• Building Sciences Assesses durability and safety of building systems, evaluating MEP and HVAC systems for efficiency, safety, and occupant comfort.
• Civil & Structural Engineering Analyzes structural failures, ensures safety, and evaluates liability using FARO 3D laser scanning and drone imaging.
• Chemical Engineering Investigates chemical incidents, assesses hazards, and improves safety through process hazard analysis, consequence modeling, and failure analysis.
• Electrical Engineering Analyzes electrical failures, investigates accidents, and determines root causes for consumer electronics, batteries, power systems, and electrical safety.
• Fire Protection Engineering Evaluates fire protection systems, fire dynamics, and thermal modeling to determine performance during catastrophic events.
• Geotechnical Engineering Expert analysis to assess damage from earth movement, landslides, and natural disasters, ensuring infrastructure stability.
• Human Factors Analyzes human behavior, evaluates errors, and assesses safety issues using motion capture systems and video analysis.
• Materials Science Provides precision testing and expert analysis for metals, polymers, composites, and construction materials with failure analysis capabilities.
• Mechanical Engineering Delivers mechanical analysis, failure analysis, and risk assessment using 3D modeling, FEA, fracture mechanics, and specialized instrumentation.
• Polymer Science Root-cause failure analysis of plastic, composite, and non-metallic materials through microscopic examination, chemical analysis, and CT scanning.
• Vehicle Engineering Expert engineering analysis for vehicles including ADAS, crashworthiness, batteries, electrical certification, and accident reconstruction.
• Thermal Sciences Determines causes of fires, explosions, and thermal events using fire dynamics modeling and computational fluid dynamics.
• Safety Investigations Risk assessments, consumer product design safety analysis, industrial plant safety investigations, and OSHA compliance evaluations.
• Risk Assessment and Mitigation Risk assessments and mitigation services including specialized Rail Risk Management services for the rail industry.
• Rail Litigation & Claims Comprehensive rail incident investigation and litigation support including derailment analysis, FELA investigations, and expert testimony for the rail industry.
• Defense Industry Support Forensic engineering and technical investigation services supporting defense industry clients.
• Intellectual Property Investigations Forensic investigation services for intellectual property disputes, including patent and trade secret matters.
• Materials Testing Laboratory materials testing services for clients across industries to characterize materials and component performance.
• Medical Investigations Medical-related forensic investigations for legal, insurance, and medical device clients.
• Process Hazard Management Process hazard analysis and management services for industrial, chemical, and energy clients.
• Product Design & Analysis Engineering analysis supporting product design, evaluation, and performance assessments for manufacturers.
• Recorded Data Recovery Forensic recorded data recovery services for accident and incident investigations.
• Slip, Trip, & Fall Services Forensic investigation services for slip, trip, and fall incidents, supporting insurance and legal clients.
• Structural Analysis Structural engineering analysis for buildings, infrastructure, and failure investigations.
• Visualization Visualization services including 3D reconstructions, animations, and demonstrative exhibits for litigation and courtroom presentations.
• Fuel Gas Odorant Analysis Specialized forensic analysis of fuel gas odorants for the energy and utilities industry.
• Geotechnical Investigations Geotechnical investigations covering earth movement, dams and embankments for construction, legal, and insurance clients.
• Security Services Security-related forensic engineering services for clients across industries.
• Chemistry Applies forensic and analytical chemistry to investigate failures, support litigation, and improve safety across industries through materials identification and chemical analysis.

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Donan: Fire origin-and-cause and forensic investigation firm serving the U.S. property insurance industry — directly comparable to ESi's Fire & Explosion Investigations and origin-and-cause service line.
• Jensen Hughes: Engineering consultancy with strong fire protection, forensic and origin-and-cause capabilities serving legal, insurance and industrial clients — directly overlapping ESi's Fire Protection Engineering, Fire & Explosion Investigations and Catastrophe Response practices.
• Rimkus Consulting Group: Multi-disciplinary forensic engineering and consulting firm serving insurance, legal and industrial clients with failure analysis, accident reconstruction, and expert witness services — directly overlapping ESi's core service lines and customer base.
• ARCCA (now part of Rimkus): Forensic engineering and accident reconstruction firm (acquired by Rimkus) serving insurance carriers, attorneys and corporations with biomechanical, mechanical and human factors investigations — comparable to ESi's biomechanical and accident reconstruction practices.
• EFI Global (Sedgwick): Forensic engineering and fire investigation firm (now part of Sedgwick) serving insurance carriers and law firms with property, casualty and liability investigations — a frequent head-to-head competitor for ESi's insurance-segment work.
• Haag Engineering: Forensic engineering firm focused on failure analysis, accident reconstruction and catastrophe response for the insurance and legal industries, with comparable civil/structural and storm damage capabilities to ESi's Catastrophe Response practice.
• Robson Forensic: Multi-disciplinary forensic engineering firm providing expert witness and litigation support across accident reconstruction, biomechanics, fire, electrical and mechanical disciplines — overlapping ESi's 17-practice-area delivery model to legal clients.
• S-E-A: Multi-disciplinary forensic engineering and fire investigation firm with similar mix of failure analysis, accident reconstruction and expert testimony for legal and insurance clients — overlapping ESi's structural, mechanical and fire practice areas.
• Exponent: Largest pure-play forensic engineering and scientific consulting firm in the U.S., offering multidisciplinary failure analysis, accident reconstruction, and expert testimony across virtually the same end markets (insurance, legal, government, industrial). Exponent is the closest public-market comparable for ESi's service model.

Broad incumbents

• Battelle Memorial Institute: Large applied science and engineering R&D organization that performs failure analysis, materials testing, and accident investigation for government and industrial clients — broader in scope than ESi, but overlapping in laboratory analytics and government-sector forensic work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/engineeringsystems

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Engineering Systems Inc. (ESI)