History

It was founded in 1893 by Charles T. Main

Charles T. Main

Charles Thomas Main was a mechanical engineer from the United States who worked for New England textile mills, and also in the then new field of hydroelectricity.-Biography:...

, an engineer for the textile mills of New England

New England

New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...

. It was privately owned by its senior engineers, it being felt that this would leave decision making to those that knew the industry best. In addition to the then-traditional business of water and steam power, Main soon expanded into the new field of water resource engineering and hydroelectric generation

Electrical generator

In electricity generation, an electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy to electrical energy. A generator forces electric charge to flow through an external electrical circuit. It is analogous to a water pump, which causes water to flow...

. In 1949 it began as association with the United States Atomic Energy Commission

United States Atomic Energy Commission

The United States Atomic Energy Commission was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by Congress to foster and control the peace time development of atomic science and technology. President Harry S...

 working on projects relating to plutonium

Plutonium

Plutonium is a transuranic radioactive chemical element with the chemical symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, forming a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibits six allotropes and four oxidation...

-based nuclear reactor

Nuclear reactor

A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...

s. It rose to become a worldwide player in the utility industries, providing many wide-ranging engineering services. For example, in the mid-1950s Charles T. Main was responsible for the building of a hydro-electric plant in Turkey (Sarıyar Dam

Sariyar Dam

Sarıyar Dam is north of Nallıhan town west of Ankara which is capital city of the country in central Turkey and located upstream of Gökçekaya Dam on the Sakarya River which runs into the Black Sea. It was completed in 1956. Total power output from the hydroelectric facility is 160 MW ....

).

According to John Perkins, Main Inc. was additionally a consulting firm, which trapped Third World

Third World

The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either capitalism and NATO , or communism and the Soviet Union...

 countries into international debts they could not repay. He published his account in his book Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man is a book written by John Perkins and published in 2004. It provides Perkins' account of his career with consulting firm Chas. T. Main in Boston. Before employment with the firm, he interviewed for a job with the National Security Agency...

(2004).

In the mid 1980s, mismanagement led to the downfall of Main and it was bought by Parsons Corporation

Parsons Corporation

Parsons Corporation is an engineering, construction, and technical and management services firm headquartered in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1944 by engineer Ralph M. Parsons, Parsons Corporation is currently one of the largest such companies in the United States, with revenues exceeding...

 of Pasadena, California

Pasadena, California

Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...

 in 1985, which changed its name to Parsons Main, Inc. in January 1992.