News
Recent News Articles
Sioux Falls Office Helps Create Museum Celebrating City’s Past
Our Sioux Falls office has teamed up with landscape architect Confluence to transform the city's former stockyards into a museum and park, helping to educate the community on its agricultural past. Click here to read the article in the Argus Leader....
WPE Project Featured in Casper Star Tribune
The Casper Star Tribune announced the groundbreaking of Casper Fire-EMS Station No. 6 in March of 2016. West Plains Engineering has worked with the City of Casper on several fire stations over the years, including providing mechanical and electrical design on this...
Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day
Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016 is Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day. Part of Engineers Week, this special day is a movement to show girls how creative engineering is and how engineers are changing our world. What better way to celebrate than to introduce one of our female...
Heinrich Earns BEMP Certification
Michael S. Heinrich, PE, LEED AP, recently passed his examination to earn the ASHRAE-Certified Building Energy Modeling Professional (BEMP) designation. The exam identifies engineers who understand modeling principles and can accurately apply building energy quotient...
Engineering Industry Celebrates 65th Anniversary of National Engineers Week
The engineering industry is celebrating the 65th anniversary of National Engineers Week, Feb. 21-27, 2016. Locally, West Plains Engineering, Inc., is recognizing its team of more than 50 engineers and support staff who have been serving the region since 1984. With...
2016 Walk for Warmth
West Plains Engineering was proud to sponsor the 5th annual Black Hills Energy Walk for Warmth on Saturday, Feb. 6 in Rapid City, SD. The event raises nearly $20,000 annually to provide energy assistance to local households in need to help stay warm in the winter....
Electrical Specialties & Options
West Plain’s Electrical Specialties Division can provide in-depth surveys, design of electrical distribution systems and provide solutions to any electrical challenge. Our services include Arc Flash Mitigation, Harmonic Distortion Correction, Power Quality Analysis,...
Sioux Falls High Performance Buildings
Each year, the South Dakota Bureau of Administration through the Office of the State Engineer (OSE) produces an Annual Project Report which summarizes the facility projects which were overseen by the OSE. The report published for CY2013 discussed high performance...
Fun Ski 2015 Fundraiser
West Plains Engineering staff members participated in the Media One Fun Ski 2015 held at Great Bear in Sioux Falls at the end of January. The event was a benefit for Children’s Inn in Sioux Falls. Children's Inn is a private, non-profit organization founded in 1977...
South Dakota Veterans Home on Track
The new Veterans Home in Hot Springs, SD is taking shape and progressing rapidly. The facility has been designed to provide an energy efficiency that is anticipated to be 24% more efficient than the requirements set forth in ASHRAE 90.1. This means this facility will...
New West Plains President
Douglas R. Feterl, P.E. was named President of West Plains Engineering following Bob Thompson’s retirement. Doug has been with West Plains for 23 years as a Design Engineer, Office Manager and most recently, Business Development Manager for the company. He graduated...
Bob Thompson Retires from West Plains
Robert W. Thompson, Professional Engineer and friend, has retired from West Plains after 30 years of service to our clients. Bob is a fine Electrical Engineer and was a principal at West Plains Engineering for all 30 years. As a company founder, Bob grew with the...
Bismarck Office Now Open!
West Plains Engineering is pleased to announce our new Bismarck, North Dakota Office. Over the last few years, our engineers have completed many jobs in the Bakken oil patch and throughout the state. This increased activity led to us setting up an office to service...
30 Year Anniversary
It's hard to believe that it has been 30 years in business for West Plains Engineering. For the past three decades we have taken great pride in providing Engineering Services to meet the unique needs of our clients and their facilities. We would like to salute the...
Substation Design
The Rush Creek substation located four miles south of Rushville Nebraska is the newest substation belonging to Northwest Rural Public Power District (NRPPD) in Hay Springs, NE. The Substation was designed by West Plains’ power engineers, and greatly enhances the...
Plains Talk Newsletter
The Plains Talk Newsletter is a publication of West Plains Engineering highlighting our projects, challenges and, most importantly, solutions.
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2024
- September/October – MEP Impact on the IIJA
- Transportation Take Off: Sioux Falls Regional Airport Expansion
- The MEP Factor: Bringing IIJA Infrastructure to Life
- Exploring New Waters: Lewis & Clark Regional Water System
- Infrastructure Integration: Alliance Solar Farm Transmission Line
- July/August – Designing for the Next Generation
- Review Before Renovations: White River School District
- Student-Centered MEP Design Approach
- Combatting Crowded Classrooms: Tri-Valley Elementary & High School
- Making Good Bones Great: Lisbon High School
- May/June – Factories of the Future
- Backyard Building – Maven Outdoor Equipment Company
- Post-Pandemic Manufacturing Growth
- Manufacturing Modern Tech: BAE Systems
- Small Business Boom: Scherer, Inc.
- March/April – Hats Off to Higher Education
- Beyond Books: SD Mines Devereaux Library Modernization
- Putting Design on the Docket: USD Knudson School of Law Upgrades
- Upping Their Game: SDSU Stanley J. Marshall Center Improvements
- January/February – 40th Anniversary
- WPE 40th Anniversary Announcement
- A Message from WPE President, Marty Christensen
- Daren Beckloff, P.E. Promoted to Engineering & Operations Director
2023
- November/December
- 2023 in Review
- September/October
- Preserving the Past: MEP Design for Historic Renovations
- Doubling Down on Deadwood: Historic Franklin Hotel Renovations
- Repurpose with a Purpose: Colonial Building Affordable Housing Conversion
- Governing Through the Ages: Weston County Courthouse Repairs & Renovations
- July/August
- MEP Underground: Campus Steam Tunnel Design
- Campus Growth 101: SD Mines Utility Infrastructure Study & Upgrades
- Chilling with the Jacks: SDSU SW Quadrant Utility Repairs & Extensions
- Powering Progress: Northwest College Medium Voltage Upgrades
- May/June
- Specialty Medical Design: How MEP Impacts Procedures
- Environments For Imaging: Black Hills & Sioux Falls VA Health Care Systems MRI Site Preparation
- Filling the Gap: Casper Medical Imaging Expansion
- Understanding the Nuances of Care: Sioux Falls Specialty Hospital
- March/April
- Building Management Made Better: The Benefits of BAS
- Intelligent Automation: Thinking Outside the BAS Box
- Control & Monitoring Standards: USP Requirements of Healthcare & Pharmaceuticals
- January/February
- Beyond Bars & Fences: Design For Secure Prison Spaces
- Keeping Up With the Times: Mike Durfee State Prison Barracks HVAC Upgrades
- Cross-Functional Corrections: South Dakota State Women’s Prison
- Safety First: 6th Judicial District Facility Improvements
2022
- November/December
- A Letter from Doug Feterl, P.E. – WPE President
- Looking Back at 2022 By the Numbers
- September/October
- Strategic Direction Report: Electric Vehicle Charger Design Considerations
- The Federal Response: EV & the Existing Transportation Infrastructure
- The Adoption Trend: EV Stations & Existing Fueling Sites
- July/August
- Strategic Direction Report: The Serious Work of Student Safety
- Stronger Together: Russell-Tyler-Ruthton School & Fieldhouse
- Getting Ahead of the Curve: Chamberlaid CSD Elementary & HS Gym
- Finding Space: Cotter Elementary Addition & Renovation
- May/June
- Strategic Direction Report: Finding Non-Linear Approaches to Design Delivery
- Working Backward Underground: SDSTA 3650 Pump Room Rehab
- Parallel Procurement: Bringing On Sub-Constractors Prior to Design Completion
- March/April
- Strategic Direction Report: Geothermal/Water Source Heat Pump Systems
- Military Mechanical Sustainability: South Dakota Army National Guard
- What’s Remotely Possible: Sutton Bay Golf Course & Resort
- Thinking Long Term: Geothermal Systems for Schools
- January/February
- Strategic Direction Report: Putting the IQ in IDIQ
- Prime Opportunity with a World-Renowned Client: SDSTA
- As-Needed for Any Need: UIHC
- On-Call MEP for M&R: South Dakota State University