What began in 1981 as a specialized contractor has grown into a full-service engineering company delivering comprehensive energy and design solutions. Nearly 50 years later, our focus remains the same: honest work, personalized attention, and smart, sustainable results built around each client’s needs.
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Tri-State Light & Energy was founded in 1983 by two principals as a regional manufacturer’s representative focused on building automation and controls. Early work centered on specifying, selling, and supporting control systems for commercial and institutional buildings. This role required detailed familiarity with mechanical systems, control sequences, and emerging energy management strategies, as well as close coordination with consulting engineers, installing contractors, and facility owners. Through this work, the firm developed a strong technical grounding in how building systems operate in practice, not just in design intent, and gained early exposure to owner performance concerns like reliability, maintainability, and operating cost.
During the 1990s, the firm expanded beyond pure representation into hands-on project execution, beginning with electrical scope and lighting retrofit work. This shift was driven by an increasing demand from clients to not only specify solutions but also deliver measurable energy and operational improvements. Lighting retrofits required load analysis, fixture and ballast selection, control integration, and on-site installation coordination. By performing this work directly, the company deepened its understanding of field conditions, constructability, and commissioning challenges, while building internal project management and installation oversight capabilities that went beyond a traditional rep model.
In the 2000s, Tri-State’s services expanded further into lighting design and investment grade energy audits. Rather than focusing solely on individual systems, the firm began evaluating buildings holistically by analyzing energy consumption, system interactions, and lifecycle costs. Investment grade audits required detailed data collection, engineering calculations, financial modeling, and defensible savings estimates suitable for capital planning and financing decisions. This period marked a clear transition toward engineering driven services, with increased emphasis on documentation, analysis, and performance verification. The TSLE’s role increasingly aligned with that of an engineering partner rather than a product or installation provider.
In the 2010s, the company expanded into comprehensive energy efficiency services, including utility incentive programs (notably NJOCE’s NJDI and PSE&G), energy audits, and HVAC and refrigeration support. Utility program participation required adherence to prescriptive and custom measure requirements, rigorous technical justification, and coordination with program administrators. HVAC and refrigeration work extended the firm’s technical scope into more complex mechanical systems and whole building interactions. At this stage, projects routinely combined controls, lighting, HVAC, and operational improvements into integrated solutions, reinforcing the firm’s evolution into a whole building efficiency provider with strong engineering and regulatory knowledge.
By the 2020s, Tri State had formalized its evolution into a certified engineering and contracting firm, delivering services through licensed professionals and supported by established utility partnerships and compliance frameworks. During this period, the company was purchased by its current CEO and President, Tejas Desai, marking a pivotal moment in its long-term strategic direction. Today, the firm operates across design, analysis, implementation, and verification, providing end to end delivery of energy and building performance projects. What began as a two-owner regional manufacturer’s representative has matured into a technically driven engineering practice, shaped by incremental expansion of capabilities, sustained real world building performance experience, and a consistent focus on measurable outcomes over product representation. In 2025, this transformation was formally reflected in the company’s rebrand from Tri State Light & Energy (TSLE) to Tri State Energy (TSE), signaling its identity as a comprehensive energy and engineering solutions provider.
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