Irving B. Fordham, MBA, P.E.

Irving Bernard Fordham’s design career in electrical engineering spans over thirty years. His primary education was within the parochial school system in his hometown, Charleston, S.C. He attended Immaculate Conception School (ICS) then Bishop England High School (BEHS) where he eventually became a National Achievement Finalist and Scholarship winner. Irving Fordham earned a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering degree  from Georgia Tech (BEE '80) and a Masters of Business Administration from Georgia State University (MBA '84) in Atlanta, GA. After completing his formal education, he decided  to join the Catholic community of Saints Peter and Paul Church in Decatur, Ga. during the mid-1980's where he is a member with his two daughters. He became a Georgia registered professional engineer in 1990. 

Irving Fordham is a member of the international technical society, Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Within the various sections of IEEE, he is a member of the Power Engineering Society (PES) and the Industrial Application Society (IAS).

His engineering experiences at the senior electrical engineer level have primarily been in power applications for electric utility , industrial, and commercial projects. These technical assignments include over 110 transmission and distribution substation projects  for Georgia Power Company. Modern Pyramids, Inc. (MPI)  was incorporated during this time at the beginning of 1993 in Atlanta, GA. 

To increase his technical breadth and depth in industrial and manufacturing electrical engineering applications, Irving Fordham choose to work for General Electric and Siemens to diversify his electrical engineering background. The exposure provided invaluable experiences designing,  specifying, and reviewing  electrical devices: medium-voltage and low-voltage switchgear, Motor Control Centers (MCC's), Variable Frequency Drives (VFD's), instrumentation, protective relaying, isolated switches, and circuit breakers.  His initial involvement at Siemens was in the delivery of turn-key customer substations projects to serve the natural gas industry which were located in the midwestern region of the United States. These lucrative projects provided Siemens with opportunities to furnish  substation equipment, variable frequenct drives, as well as  industrial automation (e.g. programmable logic controllers - PLC's). Furthermore, Siemens-Norwood (Ohio) was the supplier of compressor motors whose nominal size was 5,500 hp. Large industrial motor applications often require high-voltage and medium-voltage bulk power for sufficient break-away torque for motor starting. These industrial electrical engineering applications need professional analysis utilizing complex electrical engineering evaluation tools. 

At Siemens Energy and Automation, Irving Fordham took advantage of an opportunity to specialize in industrial power quality applications. His duties required technical report writing and the completion of power system studies utilizing EDSA, electrical engineering software. His  evaluations comprised of software modelling of large industrial electrical distribution systems. Electrical engineering analysis included load flows, short-circuit analysis, analysis for electromagnetic transients, power factor correction, harmonic filtering, and protective relay coordination. The resulting technical reports were needed by on-site Siemens industrial service engineers for setting protective relays during commissioning. These variable frequency drive (VFD) applications primarily served heavy industrial consumers (e.g. steel, aluminum, paper, etc.) with operations throughout the United States.  

Commonwealth Sprague Capacitors Inc. (CSCI) in North Adams, Massachusetts recruited him to design and launch their new medium-voltage product line of harmonic filters and power factor correction capacitors. His design expertise was utilized to specify and design energy-saving products, AutoVAR MV for CSCI. CSCI relied on an international network of comissioned salespersons to promote and sell CSCI products in their respective sales territories. Irving Fordham's duties also included providing sales quotations and technical support to CSCI's marketing network.

MPI projects remind me of my first electrical engineering design assignment after college. Construction crews build from the details that engineers design, draft, specify, sketch, etc. The design and construction process amazes me like our customers. We encounter many, great people during our travails. Here are some of the favorite times in my professional engineering career: I feel tremendous fun, joy, pride, accomplishment when I observe the improvements that our professional services add to communities. I see and meet talented subcontractors who build and renovate these facilities.  

He now concentrates on leading MPI with sizing and specifying electrical equipment for industrial, commercial, and electric utility applications to national standards and local building codes. He is strategically positioning MPI to cover the areas of Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama. MPI will focus on designing customized electrical engineering solutions for commercial and light industrial electrical distribution systems. Emphasis is placed on technical applications that either 1) reduce significant financial expenditures because of economic inefficiencies or industrial power quality operational problems or 2) require comprehensive design of a commercial or institutional electrical distribution system. The complexity of the engineering issues require experienced, professional electrical engineering analysis at the senior engineering level. 

Irving Fordham has had the opportunity during his career to  confer and apprentice with many other senior electrical engineers and technical specialists. His background covers MEP projects within aviation, criminal justice, tenant fits, educational, waste-water treatment for private and governmental consumers. Most of these applications include interior and exterior lighting plus power to HVAC equipment and other demand loads. These projects include specification writing, emergency power, fire alarm, ADA and NFPA applications.

"....from my vantage point, it's fascinating to pour yourself into these engineering design projects. The excitement lingers for several years and months after initial conversations with the owner or project architect.

I love to return to these sites both during the construction and post-construction phases. I marvel at the scenery. While I am humbled and continuously grateful for our customer, my excitement and anticipation for the imminent arrival of their patrons intensifies. I witness and observe their consumers utilize these new and renovated edifices. Our visions, dreams, and ideas successfully have merged. We've accepted the challenged and overcomed obstacles during our journey. When I see individuals either spending productive moments or enjoying their family and friends, I am happy, thrilled, and glad because Modern Pyramids, Inc. shared and played a significant role during that developmental process.  ....."Welcome to our world....Imagine the possibilities....Let's work together....Create spectacular ideas like the Sphynx, Khafra, or Khufu....A world filled with magnificent Modern Pyramids!!!"

                                                                      -Irving Bernard Fordham