Our founder, Lee Bernstein, initially supported construction and environmental projects at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and telecommunications projects throughout the Southeastern US in project management and project controls. He founded SMSI in Albuquerque, NM, in 1999.

Then in May 2000, the Cerro Grande wildfire tore through 47,650 acres of Bandelier National Monument, Santa Fe National Forest, and Los Alamos, destroying homes and burning 28% of land and 112 structures.

Because of his expertise, Mr. Bernstein was asked to help standup a recovery program. SMSI filled a vital need to the northern New Mexico region and delivered value quickly, on time, and under budget.

Since then, SMSI has grown and thrived.

SMSI now has more than 400+ professional staff with experience across government and industrial markets, who possess exceptional capabilities in technical and management disciplines. Our personnel are proven experts in engineering support, nuclear facility operations and safety with industry recognition for safeguards and security. Our staff has conducted decommissioning and demolition planning for our clients, plus Environmental, Safety, and Health and regulatory compliance to ensure projects are executed within all required standards. Our procurement services include an exceptionally skilled staff in specialty and glovebox equipment. Our employees are experienced in information technology and cyber security, performance assurance, and organizational improvement.

In April 2024, Bernhard Capital Partners (Bernhard Capital), a services and infrastructure-focused private equity management firm, acquired SMSI. SMSI is the third acquisition of Bernhard Capital’s dedicated Department of Energy (DOE) services platform which aims to provide vertically integrated capabilities and support for customers across the country executing critical projects in complex environments – ranging from strategic planning and program management to the implementation of critical engineering and production activities. SMSI continues to be led by SMSI President Matthew Nuckols and the current leadership team. We are excited for this next chapter in our history. Read the press release.