National Academy Of Forensic Engineers - Nafe

What National Academy Of Forensic Engineers - Nafe does

NAFE is a private, non-profit professional membership organization founded in 1982 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, that serves licensed professional engineers specializing in forensic engineering. Its membership of approximately 400 board-certified practitioners spans the United States and Canada and is structured across seven tiers (Student Affiliate at $50, Affiliate at $150, Associate Member at $225, Member at $250, Senior Member at $300, Fellow at $350, and Life Member at $100). Candidates must hold a P.E. license, maintain NSPE membership, and demonstrate forensic engineering experience to qualify.

The organization's core products are an integrated suite of member services: a Drupal/CiviCRM member portal at nafe.org handling dues and CPD records; a peer-reviewed Journal of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers published since 1984 and hosted on OJS at journal.nafe.org; a Moodle-based learning management system at education.nafe.org offering on-demand continuing education; and semi-annual in-person conferences (Summer and Winter) held at rotating U.S. venues, each delivering roughly 14 hours of PDH/CE credit. Supporting services include the NAFE1 private email discussion list, a member directory, a document library of practice guidance, a mentor-matching program, and an expert referral service connecting attorneys and claims professionals with NAFE members.

Revenue is generated through recurring annual membership dues, conference registration fees (e.g., $650 for Saturday seminars at the 2026 Portland conference), paid continuing education courses, and individual journal paper downloads. Operating geographies are the U.S. and Canada, with one prior international conference held in Toronto. The organization is governed by an elected Board of Directors and operates without venture or private-equity backing; financial figures are not publicly disclosed.

Name

National Academy Of Forensic Engineers - Nafe

Legal name

National Academy of Forensic Engineers

Website

https://nafe.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

NAFE is a U.S.-based, non-profit professional membership organization founded in 1982 that provides board certification, continuing education, a peer-reviewed journal, and conferences for approximately 400 licensed forensic engineers in the United States and Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Engineering Membership & Certification

NAICS

Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Engineering & Technical Professions (PE, Engineering CPD) (EDAAALAF)

Keywords

• Forensic engineering certification
• Professional engineering membership
• Continuing engineering education
• Expert witness referral
• Peer-reviewed engineering journal

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership dues at multiple tiers ranging from $50 (Student) to $350 (Fellow). Members receive access to the NAFE Journal, online directory, document library, discussion groups, and mentorship programs.
2. Conference Fees: Registration fees for semi-annual conferences. 2026 Portland conference: Saturday Seminars $650, Friday Evening Banquet $110, Guest Meals $200. Each conference offers 14+ continuing education credits.
3. Continuing Education Courses: Online courses for sale through the education platform including Report Writing, Ethics for Engineers, Remote Forensic Inspection, Building Credentials Through Publication. Some courses free, others on payment basis.
4. Journal Publications: The Journal of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers is published quarterly. Members receive PDF downloads as part of annual dues. Individual papers available for purchase and download online.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

NAFE is a private, nonprofit professional membership organization that recruits licensed Professional Engineers into tiered membership grades, provides board certification as Diplomates in Forensic Engineering through CESB, delivers continuing education through bi-annual in-person conferences and an online Moodle-based learning platform, publishes a peer-reviewed quarterly Journal of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers, and connects its ~400 members with attorneys and others seeking forensic engineering expert witnesses.

Product overview

NAFE operates as a professional membership organization offering an integrated suite of services for forensic engineers. The core offerings include: the main membership portal (nafe.org) for member management, a peer-reviewed technical journal (Journal of NAFE) published since 1984, an online learning management system (NAFE Education on Moodle) providing on-demand courses and CE credits, and bi-annual conferences (Summer and Winter) delivering 14 hours of continuing education each. Supporting services include the NAFE1 private email discussion list, an online member directory, a document library with practice guidance, a mentorship matching program, and an expert referral service connecting members with those seeking forensic engineering expertise.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• NAFE Membership Tiered annual membership program (Fellow $350, Senior Member $300, Member $250, Associate $225, Affiliate $150, Student $50, Life Member $100) for licensed P.E.s practicing forensic engineering; includes board certification through CESB, access to the Journal, member directory, document library, NAFE1 discussion group, and mentorship program.
• NAFE Bi-Annual Conferences (Summer & Winter) Semi-annual in-person conferences (January/Winter and July/Summer) held in different US locations, providing ~14 hours of continuing education credits each through technical presentations, professional development sessions, and networking. Includes paid registration items such as Saturday Seminars ($650), Friday Evening Banquet ($110), and Guest Meals ($200) for the 2026 Portland conference.
• Journal of the National Academy of Forensic Engineers (JotNAFE) Peer-reviewed quarterly technical journal covering forensic engineering topics across civil, mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering disciplines. Members receive PDF downloads as part of annual dues; individual papers are available for separate online purchase and download.
• NAFE Education Online Learning Platform

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAFE requires candidate members to be members of NSPE. The organizations collaborate on professional development standards and NAFE was conceived in conjunction with NSPE meetings. NSPE members receive discounted journal pricing.
• ASTM International E58 CommitteeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNAFE maintains liaison connections to the ASTM E58 Committee on Forensic Engineering. The committee meets during NAFE conferences, typically Friday afternoons.
• LGI Forensic EngineeringminorGTM or Marketing PartnerConference sponsor for NAFE 2026 Summer Conference in Portland, Maine. Sponsor recognition includes linked logo on conference website, logo in email communications, and on-site signage.
• Trinity Engineering PLLCminorGTM or Marketing PartnerConference sponsor for NAFE 2026 Summer Conference in Portland, Maine. Sponsor recognition includes linked logo on conference website, logo in email communications, and on-site signage.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE): ASCE is a large, established engineering professional society offering CPD, peer-reviewed journals, conferences, and specialty credentials. It overlaps with NAFE in serving civil/structural forensic engineers and shares the continuing-education-driven membership model at far greater scale.
• American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME): ASME is a broad engineering professional society providing CPD, certification, peer-reviewed publications, and conferences. It serves mechanical engineers — many of whom practice in forensic engineering — and competes for the same CPD-dollar member.
• Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE): IEEE is a global engineering professional society offering extensive CPD, certifications, journals, and conferences. Its overlap with NAFE is narrower (electrical engineering forensic practice) but the membership model and education-led value proposition are directly comparable.
• American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC): ACEC is the trade association for US engineering firms, many of whose partners and senior staff serve as forensic engineering experts. It addresses adjacent practitioner needs — business practice, advocacy, peer benchmarking — relevant to NAFE members who run forensic practices.

Emerging players

• Society of Fire Protection Engineers (SFPE): SFPE is a specialty engineering society offering PE-focused CPD, certifications, and a peer-reviewed journal — a structural analog to NAFE but focused on fire protection. It demonstrates the specialty-society model NAFE operates within.

Direct peers

• National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE): NSPE is the national professional society for licensed professional engineers in the US and the parent organization with which NAFE requires candidate members to hold membership. Both operate as PE-focused membership bodies offering CPD, advocacy, and professional standards.
• American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS): AAFS is a professional membership organization dedicated to forensic sciences broadly, with multi-disciplinary sections including engineering. It is the closest analog to NAFE in mission and member-driven forensic expertise development.
• ASTM International E58 Committee on Forensic Engineering: The ASTM E58 Committee develops forensic engineering standards and holds meetings during NAFE conferences under a liaison relationship. It is the primary standards-setting peer addressing forensic engineering practice.

Others

• ABET (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology): ABET accredits engineering and technology degree programs, serving as a complementary credentialing infrastructure to NAFE's CESB Diplomate designation. Both organizations anchor the standards ecosystem for professional engineering competency.
• Council of Engineering and Scientific Specialty Boards (CESB): CESB is the accreditation body that grants board certification to NAFE Members, Senior Members and Fellows as Diplomates in Forensic Engineering. It is the certifying authority behind NAFE's most differentiated value proposition.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/national-academy-of-forensic-engineers-nafe

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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