Impulse Inc.

After working for multiple companies as an electrical engineer, Michelle Mobbs, along with her brother John Benbow, decided to start their own company. Impulse Inc. was founded in 2006 as an electrical contracting company working directly for Nissan. Located in Mount Juliet, Tennessee, Impulse has established mechanical and general construction divisions in addition to an electrical arm.

After studying electrical engineering in college, Mobbs began working for A & S Electric at the age of 18. Once she learned the industry and increased her skills, Mobbs left A & S after five years to work as an engineer for Duff Brown Engineering before becoming an electrical designer for Ted Wynne Engineering. “I’ve always been in the electrical industry in some form,” she says.

Getting started

In 2006 Mobbs’ brother came to her with the idea of starting their own electrical company. At the time, Benbow was working at a company called NKC and was involved with a Nissan Plant in Smyrna, Tennessee.

Benbow felt that his installation skills, paired with Mobbs engineering experience, was a formula for a winning team.  “Once we started the company, John told Nissan that were we were opening our doors and the very next day we had a trailer at the Nissan plant and started working for them directly,” Mobbs recounts. “We did all the electrical installations and controls for the manufacturing plant at that time.”

For the first few years in its existence, Impulse strictly worked in the automotive sector. Looking to expand its market share, the company began performing commercial work. “It made sense because my background was in the commercial sector,” says Mobbs.

Once the market expansion proved to be successful, Mobbs and Benbow decided to open a mechanical division within the company. With Impulse’s connection to the automotive industry, the company utilized its new division to perform conveyor installations at numerous automotive plants. “We started doing work for Nissan and Honda, in Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Ohio,” she says.

Continuing to expand, Impulse established a general construction division in 2011. The company uses in-house divisions to perform the electrical and mechanical aspects of every job, while hiring subcontractors to complete the remaining portions of each project. “The general contracting division has been very successful,” says Mobbs. “We do a lot of work for the state of Tennessee while continuing our electrical and mechanical work in the automotive industry.”

A growing portfolio

Impulse recently completed a renovation job on the second floor of the William R. Snodgrass Tennessee Tower. “It was a complete renovation,” says Mobbs. “We had to gut it and then replace it.”

Normally Impulse would perform all of the electrical and mechanical work on this type of project but in this instance the company chose to sub out the mechanical work. “We had so much mechanical work happening elsewhere that we decided to hire a subcontractor for that job,” notes Mobbs. “That’s one of the nice things about having a general contracting division. We can choose to self-perform or sub out certain jobs.”

Mobbs says the company was cautious about maintaining relationships when Impulse started its general contracting division. “We were so good at the electrical and mechanical side of things so we didn’t want to step on anybody’s toes,” says Mobbs. “Fortunately, we have not run into any issues with that.”

In the mechanical division, Impulse was recently involved in an engine and transmission ring line project with Nissan. Impulse utilized its mechanical and millwright department to install conveyor systems at the manufacturing plant. “Our electrical division installed a control system,” says Mobbs. “We also did all the piping and wiring for those controls to make the system operate.”

A team effort

Impulse is a solutions driven company. Mobbs takes pride in the fact that her company will do whatever it takes to not only solve problems, but also will take measures to prevent any issues from arising for its clients. “Not only do we do our jobs but we also look for anything that may occur,” Mobbs explains. “We are always there to resolve any problems that may occur.”

As a safety-conscious company, all of Impulse’s supervisors are Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)-30 certified. “All of our journeymen are OSHA-10 certified,” says Mobbs. “All of our electricians go through our four-year Associated Builders & Contractors [ABC] training program where they learn all aspects of the industry from safety to control systems.”

The comradery of the staff at Impulse is an aspect that Mobbs says is unmatched in its niche. Even with different divisions and departments every employee is on the same team. “We have an amazing staff,” says Mobbs. “Everyone is here to help each other in any way.”

Impulse continues to be a growing business. The company is looking to double its revenue over the next two years. “We have a general construction project coming up that could potentially put us over that mark singe-handedly,” says Mobbs. “We’ll also be looking to expand our workforce.”

As the company continues to expand, Impulse Inc. will always remain a solutions-based company in the mechanical, electrical and general contracting industry.