ESG Design

Everything has been great. They were very detailed/thorough in analysis and writeup. I was also able to quickly and easily follow up with questions and advice at later times as the designs were implemented. We will definitely use them again in future projects.

Everything has been great. He is quick and thorough, taking pictures and notes that are later included in his report. He has been great answering followup questions and providing alternatives if the recommended materials can't be found. We have been very happy and plan to use his services again with future projects.

Great! Eli arrived early and was very professional. He took photos and measurements, and did some exploration in the attic. He was able to quickly tell me that the walls were not load bearing, and therefore could be removed easily. ESG then provided me with a letter to include with my building permits, to show the city his findings if any questions were to arise during construction. Almost every engineering firm I approached, gave me a runaround or told me that they could maybe squeeze me into their schedule in a month or two. It was painfully obvious that the didn't want to deal with my "small" project. Eli and ESG were wonderfully responsive and came to my house within a week.

He's pretty busy, so it took a few weeks before he could come out. He spent approx an hour and a half under the house evaluating the situation, and talking with me about the different approaches that were being proposed. His explanations were extremely helpful in going forward with the contractors bidding the work. We had expected to get a written report so that we wouldn't have to rely on notes taken during our discussion, but that wasn't forthcoming. He's pretty busy, I guess.

Eli was polite and professional. My house is very South of his shop and he came through I-5 traffic to meet me at a convenient time for my schedule. I was working with a tight timeline and Eli bumped up his expected turn around time for the beam report in order to meet my schedule. I chose him because of his Angie's List reviews and I am glad I did.

Excellent. Eli worked late at night to submit an excellent report for removing a structural wall for a kitchen remodel. He also worked with our general contractor and the City of Mercer Island (e.g., phone calls, emails, etc.) to make sure everyone was happy that the job would be done write. The best part, he included this additional service at no charge because we paid for written report in a prior analysis. He updated everything (added 3 pages and load calculations) at no charge. What a great guy and engineer!

Very well. Eli is an excellent engineer and willing to work quickly to provide you with plans and a report. Eli worked with our general contractor to help up obtain approval from Mercer Island and our HOA to remove a few walls (including some structural walls). His prices were reasonable compared other engineers. He was willing get things done quickly (even worked late at night). He also came out twice, and charged us less for a the second trip to reanalyze a wall we wanted to remove with a more complicated beam install.

Eli was very professional and responsive - returned call within an hour and written report received within 2 days after consultation. Amazing! He arrived on time, review all areas and talked through with us options and answered our many questions.

We used Eli for a remodel project…A great guy to work with, very knowledgeable, responsive and delivered what he said he would. I would highly recommend ESG!

I was happy with Eli's service and in the end I received what I wanted. I was new to the process, so make certain you ask lots of questions and be very clear what you actually need to avoid confusion and rework. I would highly recommend ESG.

While I didn't ultimately use ESG, but Eric was very prompt in getting back to me and very open and helpful about the permitting process.

No service was provided, but advice via email was invaluable.

Eli is very knowledgable. We're happy with his work. The only thing I would mention is the need to give better cost estimation..

Could not have been more pleased with Eli's even thought I was unable to build our new home because of my wife's illness and eventual passing.

'Principles in ESG firm are Eli Grassley the structural engineer and Linda Makin, architect. Began by giving them a basic floor plan provided by Eric Gedney, an architect I hired for a 3-hour consultation (an Angie's list "deal"). Worked with both Linda and Eli for about 6 weeks, refining the project. They were amenable to almost all of my suggestions, which were frequent and copious, from such major changes as extending an existing roof to gain more headroom and put supporting columns in advantageous places (to avoid going through existing windows, and using a chimney foundation for a center support column) and using SIP panels for the roof rather than conventional framing, to minor changes in framing details as I came across and purchased high-end windows on Craigslist that were of different sizes than had been proposed. All suggestions were treated courteously and, if feasible, incorporated into the plan, even though they resulted in changes to architectural drawings and structural details. The original contract for around $2800 was increased by 15% because of these revisions, but I was forewarned about the increase and agreed to it before it was imposed. I found the increase reasonable and justified. The end result was a set of plans and structural data suitable both to seek a building permit and to put out for bids to contractors. All in all, a very satisfactory experience, and I would have no hesitation in recommending the ESG firm to others for similar work.

Eli designed a horizontal beam and attachments to replace some old vertical posts that were supporting the floor above. The finished product, a permit plan (including drawings, beam-size calculations, and attachment diagrams) was thorough and easy to understand, and was used by our contractor to install the beam. What really stood out was Eli?s responsiveness; he was consistently a very prompt and helpful communicator, which was always appreciated but was especially critical during certain key phases of the process. Tip: Since travel time is billable, consider timing your project so it gets combined with another in your area.

I interviewed four structural engineers before selecting Eli. Eli was prompt, communicative and very professional. His services are very well priced and the pricing is very straight forward. The price quoted is the price paid. Eli teamed up with the architectural firm to create the structural engineering design and permit plans for our new residence. Eli posed structural design questions from the beginning which aided the architectural firm in their design work. We had to meet a very tight deadline in order to submit our building permit with the county. Eli was able to fit the project into his very busy schedule and complete the work within the timeline that was given. I look forward to working with Eli through the construction of our project. I give Eli my highest recommendation.

Eli completed his site review and written directives in a very effective and specific format. I appreciate his level of detail.

We highly recommend ESG Design as he was extremely professional and proactive, finding time in he's busy schedule for our urgently needed report, and sending the report in a very prompt manner.

Eli was very thorough in his inspection and we learned a couple of things that we did not know about the structure(we did have the original plans). His analysis and recommendations were clear and we now have a plan to re-enforce the rafters and fix the header above the garage door. I HIGHLY recommend Eli and would not hesitate to use him again! Money well spent to ensure our safety.

Eli was very thorough, professional and pleasant. He explained all his findings to me clearly.

I had submitted our remodel plans and the city planner asked if I could verify that the walls we were taking down were not load-bearing. I needed to turn this around quickly. I called Eli in the morning and he returned the call within a couple of hours. He was able to fit me in his schedule that same day and said he might be late because of traffic. He called at our appointed time and told me he'd be there in 20 minutes. He came into the house, looked at the existing walls and planned walls, the wood trusses, took pictures, and measured distances in about 40 minutes. He gave me a verbal report that the interior walls were not load-bearing and would verify it with the measurements he took. He told me he could have a letter to me by early afternoon the following day. The letter arrived at 1:05p the next day and the city planner issued us our permit. Eli was very professional, responsive, thorough, and informative. Very glad I utilitzed his services.

Mr. Grassley replied promptly and was very professional. My job was a small one, so I appreciated the quick response. He explained his findings in detail, but also in easily understandable terms, and submitted a thorough report including photographs. While I haven't yet followed up he indicated he could provide the names of some possible contractors to do the structural work. Having never used such services before I have no comparison in terms of cost, but the fee seemed reasonable to me given the amount of time, his qualifications, and the deliverable.

It went very well. Eli came up with a structural approach that was simple, and cost-effective. He did a good job understanding our ultimate vision for our kitchen remodel, and developed a design to help us achieve it. We wanted to keep a clean high ceiling in the kitchen, and not have columns or soffits cluttering up the feel of the room. His design will allow us to improve our kitchen with the necessary structural elements not visible, or in the way. Eli was flexible in how he did the work. I happen to have the ability to create CAD drawings myself, so I sent Eli my basic drawings showing the existing kitchen in elevation and section, and Eli used those to add his structural markups and details. FYI - For those not able to do CAD drawings, he is able to do this all himelf, I just did it to save some a bit on cost. Ultimately, when I went for permits with the City of Seattle, they focused most on the structural modifications. The design that Eli created was easily understood by the permit reviiewers, and approved without issue. Eli's fees aren't inexpensive, but they shouldn't be. If structural modifications are part of your project, then you need a good structural engineer. My feeling is that the structural design that Eli developed will ultimately pay for itself in that it will be simple to construct, and save time and money to implement.

Mr. Grassley responded quickly to our request for service made an appointment with us at our convenience. He was on time, asked us questions about the project under consideration and then set about making his assessment. We received his written report within two business days. We found him to be professional and responsive to our needs. We would consider hiring him again if we need these services again.