Our History, Your Future

Generations of Excellence

History

Founded in 1945 by Mr. James Garnet Fortney, Garnet Electric Company Inc. began as a motor and transformer repair and service shop, with construction as a secondary market. In 1946, Mr. Fortney sold the business to two brothers, Warren and Sam McMahan. The McMahans were primarily interested in the construction and service operation and by 1947 they sold the motor and transformer repair operation back to Mr. Fortney.

During the years following the acquisition, the McMahan brothers, with the addition of their brother-in-law, Joseph Giobbi, expanded their operation into all types of electrical construction, including residential wiring, commercial and institutional construction, and industrial construction. With the growth of the Shoals area during the 1960s, the company began to concentrate its efforts on commercial and industrial customers.

Today, Garnet Electric is an established electrical contractor with many years of diverse experience in the electrical contracting industry. The company continues to serve the Shoals and the surrounding area in all facets of electrical construction and maintenance work, and in the past 78 years Garnet Electric has never failed to complete a contract.

From 1945 until 1971 the company maintained its office and warehouse on North Wood Avenue, in Florence, Alabama. In 1971 the company relocated to its current location at 1615 State Street, Sheffield Alabama. 

Capabilities

Garnet Electric provides an array of services which can be custom fit to a client’s specific needs, these services include:

  • Heavy Commercial Construction

  • Industrial Construction

  • Substation Construction

  • Tele/Data Installation

  • Budgeting

  • Estimating

  • Value Engineering

  • Testing and Startup

  • Plant Maintenance

  • Design Assist

  • Design Build

Who We Are Today

Garnet Electric is currently owned by Mr. John Charles Crow and Mr. Jerrold Skipworth. At peak operation we employ 100 to 130 workers. Garnet Electric is licensed as a General Contractor with a specialty in Electrical Construction in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

We have a history of successfully completing major electrical projects for
state, federal, transportation, utilities, commercial and industrial markets. We benefit from repeat business by building strong relationships with owners, general contractors, engineers and architects. We take pride in our long-standing reputation and proven ability to complete projects on time, within budget and safely.

Our Quality

It is now necessary to do more than say that you are a quality company, you must document your quality. Fortunately for us, documenting according to industry standards is all Garnet needs to do. We feel that we can say this because quality is a philosophy Garnet employed long before it became fashionable. We offer our many years of success as evidence.

As a firm which must compete with others, often where price is the determining factor, we welcome the circumstances which will cause all bidders to document their ability to deliver quality. An environment where quality must be documented as well as demonstrated is an advantage for Garnet Electric

Reputation

Since 1946, Garnet Electric has maintained a reputation as a company known for meeting or exceeding it customers expectations. We strive to maintain sound customer relationships and to have positive relationships with our suppliers and subcontractors. We take great pride in our long standing reputation for competence, integrity and stability in our industry. A large percentage of Garnet Electric’s annual sales is on a negotiated and “extension of contract basis” due to our company’s strong relationship with our customers.

Safety

Garnet’s Safety program is practiced and enforced at all levels; from our Executive Officers to the site superintendents, foremen and electricians. We maintain an excellent industry standard safety ratings.