Archives West Finding Aid
Table of Contents
R.W. Beck and Associates records, 1941-1981
Overview of the Collection
- Creator
- R.W. Beck and Associates
- Title
- R.W. Beck and Associates records
- Dates
- 1941-1981 (inclusive)19411981
- Quantity
- 0.97 cubic feet (3 boxes)
- Collection Number
- 4291 (Accession No. 4291-001)
- Summary
- Records of an engineering firm that was a consultant to public power districts and public utility analysts
- Repository
-
University of Washington Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections
University of Washington Libraries
Box 352900
Seattle, WA
98195-2900
Telephone: 2065431929
Fax: 2065431931
speccoll@uw.edu - Access Restrictions
-
No restrictions on access.
Material stored offsite; advance notice required for use.
- Languages
- English
Biographical NoteReturn to Top
R. W. Beck, Inc. was a design engineering company focused primarily on public and private infrastructure organizations. The company, though founded in Nebraska, was most recently based in Seattle. It also had offices in several US states and in Singapore. R.W. Beck Inc. was founded in 1942 by Robert W. Beck in Columbus, Nebraska. He was a founding member of the American Public Power Association. In 1954 the company became a partnership, R.W. Beck & Associates, diversifying into new private markets with hydroelectric projects and electrical design and construction management. During 1957, R.W. Beck & Associates helped form the nation’s first Joint Action Agency, Washington Public Power Supply System. Water and wastewater management services were added in the 1960s and solid waste services in the 1970s. The firm incorporated in 1996 becoming R.W. Beck, Inc., a privately held corporation. R.W. Beck Inc. served public and private infrastructure organizations and financiers in the energy, water, wastewater, and solid waste industries. At its peak in the early 2000s, the company employed as many as 650 engineers, economists, analysts, scientists, and other professionals. R.W. Beck's customers included utility organizations, municipalities and other government entities, financial institutions, and private developers and investors. A subsidiary of R.W. Beck Inc., Beck Disaster Recovery Inc, provided emergency management consultancies in hazards mitigation, preparedness/planning, response, recovery and reconstruction services; continuity and emergency operations planning; risk management and mitigation; and training services to local and state government agencies nationwide. R.W. Beck Inc. had approximately sixteen offices in the United States, including key offices in Boston, Denver, Seattle, Orlando, and Nashville; and in 2004, R.W. Beck Inc. established a Singapore office.
In 2007, R.W. Beck Inc. acquired Plexus Research, Inc. a Boxborough, Massachusetts-based technology and management consulting firm that provided utility industry consulting services in the technologies, applications, and economics of advanced energy systems. Plexus specialized in the areas of Advanced Metering Infrastructure and Automatic Meter Reading applications. In 2007, R.W. Beck Inc. acquired Barnes & Click, Inc., a Plano, Texas-based firm that provided consulting services to the hydrocarbon processing industries, including petroleum refining, gas midstream, and petrochemical sectors.
In July 2009, Science Applications International Corporation acquired R.W. Beck, Inc.; and in 2011, R.W. Beck Inc. became part of SAIC's Energy, Environment, & Infrastructure LLC Division, which is now Leidos Engineering LLC.
Content DescriptionReturn to Top
Reports, ephemera.
Use of the CollectionReturn to Top
Restrictions on Use
Creator's literary rights not transferred to the University of Washington Libraries.
Administrative InformationReturn to Top
Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top
Series 1: Newsletters, 1965-1971Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
1 | "RW Beck and Associates Newsletter, Analytical and
Consulting Engineers" |
1965-1971 |
Series 2: Reports, 1954-1978Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
1 | Periodic Survey and Report, Public Utility District
(PUD) Snohomish County |
1954 |
1 | Feasibility of Hydroelectric and Water Supply
Development of Sultan River, Sunset Falls, Lake Isabel |
1954 |
1 | Inventory and Valuation of Chelan Service Area
Distribution System |
|
1 | Engineering Feasibility Report - Power Plant and
Utilities System Expansion Program, Farmington, New Mexico |
1958 |
1 | Comprehensive Management and Operational Study - Sulphur
Springs Valley Electric Cooperation, Wilcoz, Arizona |
1960 |
1 | Electric Rate Study - Navajo Tribal Utility Authority,
Window Rock, Arizona |
1962 |
1 | Electric Rate Study - Anchorage, Alaska |
1960 |
1 | Power Supply Study - Gallup, New Mexico |
1962 |
1 | Periodic Survey and Report - PUD Okanogan
County |
1962 |
1 | Engineering Report - Hanford Electric Generating
Project, WPPSS |
1963 |
1 | System Study and Report - Electric Utility System,
Redding, California |
1965 |
1 | Additional Generating Capacity at Moccasin Power Plant,
Public Utilities Commission, San Francisco, California |
1965 |
2 | Periodic Survey and Report, PUD Franklin
County |
1965 |
2 | Economic Study - Columbus Region for Loup Public Power
District, Columbus, Nebraska |
1966 |
2 | Periodic Survey and Report, PUD Snohomish
County |
1966 |
2 | Operating Statistics and Indices of 22 PUDs in
Washington |
1952-1969 |
2 | Analysis of Operations - Honolulu and Maui Boards of
Water Supply |
1965-1969 |
2 | Analysis of Operations - Farmington, New
Mexico |
1965-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - Fairbanks, Alaska |
1956-1969 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Chelan
County |
1957-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Douglas
County |
1963-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Lewis
County |
1948-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Pend Oreille
County |
1956-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Skagit
County |
1962-1970 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Snohomish
County |
1949-1978 |
3 | Analysis of Operations - PUDS of Stevens
County |
1952-1954 |
3 | Report in Respect to Construction - WPSS, Packwood Lake
Electric Project |
1962-1970 |
3 | Summary and Comments on Operations of the District,
Skagit County, Washington |
1965 |
3 | Annual Reports - PUD Snohomish County |
1970-1973 |
Series 3: Writings, undatedReturn to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
3 | Writings - Nuclear
"Nuclear Energy for the Utility," by Dr. Emerson Jones, and
"Nuclear Fuel: A New Challenge to Utility Management," by Richard F.
Corlett
|
undated |
Series 4: Invitation, 1967Return to Top
Container(s) | Description | Dates |
---|---|---|
Box/Folder | ||
3 | Invitation
Invitation to the opening of R.W. Beck and Associates' opening
of an area offic in Boston, Massachusetts
|
1967 |
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Engineering--Washington (State)
- Public utilities--Washington (State)
Corporate Names
- R.W. Beck and Associates--Archives
Form or Genre Terms
- Ephemera
- Newsletters
- Technical reports
Names and SubjectsReturn to Top
Subject Terms
- Personal Papers/Corporate Records (University of Washington)