What PACE Advanced Water Engineering does

PACE Advanced Water Engineering (legal name Pacific Advanced Civil Engineering, Inc.) is a private civil engineering consulting firm founded in 1987 and headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, with a regional office in Scottsdale, Arizona. The firm is staffed by 101-250 employees — including PhDs, university instructors, and researchers — and delivers specialized engineering services across nine integrated disciplines: water treatment, wastewater treatment and recycled water, water infrastructure, wastewater and recycled infrastructure, stormwater management and flood control, lake/water feature systems, GIS water resource applications, instrumentation and controls (SCADA), and electrical engineering. Differentiated technical capabilities include an in-house water quality laboratory with pilot tanks and an on-site Controls/Instrumentation/SCADA lab that enables rapid process piloting and in-house controls programming, reducing reliance on third-party programmers.

PACE generates revenue through professional services fees on project-based contracts, primarily with municipal water districts, wastewater agencies, flood control districts, land developers, and government agencies across California and Arizona. Engagements are pursued through competitive RFP/RFQ procurement for public works and direct relationships for private developers, delivered through both design-bid-build and design-build project models. The firm serves as engineer-of-record on recurring design-build alliances with PERC Water Corporation and Kiewit Infrastructure on marquee recycled water and indirect potable reuse facilities (e.g., SWIP AWTF in Santa Monica, Sarival WRF in Arizona). The firm also performs master-planned community water infrastructure (Pardee Homes, Rancho Mission Viejo) and signature water feature design (Four Seasons Calistoga). PACE holds no disclosed patents, has not raised institutional capital beyond a 2016 National Science Foundation $225,000 grant, and operates from a privately held ownership structure with no parent company or public listing. Awards from ACEC, APWA, ASCE, CASQA, CWEA, WateReuse, ENR, and AZ Water across 2015-2025 establish credibility with public-sector procurement.

Name

PACE Advanced Water Engineering

Legal name

Pacific Advanced Civil Engineering, Inc.

Website

https://pacewater.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

PACE Advanced Water Engineering is a private California-based civil engineering consultancy, founded in 1987, that delivers water treatment, wastewater, stormwater, infrastructure, GIS, SCADA/controls, and electrical engineering services to municipalities, water districts, and land developers across California and Arizona.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Resource Engineering Services

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (541620)

SIC

Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623), Pumps & Pumping Equipment (3561)

akta.pro primary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Construction Management & Delivery (EPCM/CMAR/Design-Build Oversight) (EUANALAE), Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance (BPAHAJAJ)

Keywords

• Water resource engineering
• Civil engineering consulting
• Wastewater treatment design
• Stormwater management services
• Water infrastructure design

Headquarters

HQ city

Fountain Valley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Engineering Design and Consulting Services: PACE provides civil engineering consulting services for water resources projects including planning, design, permitting, and construction support. Revenue is generated through professional services fees on project-based contracts with municipalities, water districts, and land developers, typically in design-bid-build or design-build delivery models.
2. Advanced Treatment Technology Design: Design of advanced water and wastewater treatment facilities using sophisticated process technologies including MBR, reverse osmosis, sequential batch reactors, and advanced filtration for potable reuse. Services include facility planning, process optimization, energy efficiency audits, and permitting.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

PACE is a civil engineering consulting firm that plans, designs, permits, and provides construction support for water and wastewater treatment facilities, water and wastewater infrastructure, stormwater management and flood control systems, lake/water feature systems, GIS applications, and instrumentation, controls, and electrical systems for water resource projects. The firm serves municipalities, water districts, land developers, and government agencies across California and Arizona under design-bid-build and design-build delivery models, leveraging an in-house water quality/pilot laboratory and an on-site SCADA/controls lab.

Product overview

PACE (Pacific Advanced Civil Engineering) is a civil engineering firm offering advanced water resource engineering services. Founded in 1987, the company provides a comprehensive portfolio of specialized services organized around water resources: Water Treatment, Wastewater Treatment/Recycled Water, Water Infrastructure, Wastewater/Recycled Infrastructure, Stormwater Management/Flood Control, Lake Systems/Water Features/Pools, GIS Water Resource Applications, Instrumentation and Controls, and Electrical Engineering. The firm operates from headquarters in Fountain Valley, CA and has an Arizona office in Scottsdale. PACE serves municipalities, land developers, and water districts throughout California and Arizona, delivering practical engineering solutions for both traditional design-bid-build and design-build project settings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Treatment Planning, design, permitting, and construction support for water treatment facilities, including conventional potable water treatment, alternative water supply sources, brackish and seawater desalination, trace contaminant removal (arsenic, iron, manganese, nitrate, selenium, uranium), indirect/direct potable reuse, water quality characterization, natural water treatment, and non-potable water treatment. Supported by an in-house water quality laboratory and pilot tanks at the Fountain Valley, CA headquarters. Target customers are municipal water utilities and districts.
• Wastewater Treatment / Recycled Water Design of wastewater treatment facilities for municipalities and land developers under design-bid-build and design-build delivery, including wastewater facility planning, quality assessment, advanced treatment (RO, EDR, ion exchange), permitting, bio-solids reuse, energy efficiency audits, and recycled water polishing. Target customers are municipal wastewater agencies and land developers.
• Water Infrastructure Planning, consulting, design, and implementation of water infrastructure including water planning, sustainable supply analysis, distribution system design, well-head investigation, surface water intake and pump station design, water storage tank design, and booster pump station design. Target customers are water infrastructure owners including utilities and districts.
• Wastewater / Recycled Infrastructure Planning, engineering, construction support, and operation of wastewater conveyance systems including sewer collection pipelines, sewer lift stations, recycled water storage facilities, and recycled water distribution, using state-of-the-art modeling software and AutoCAD tools. Target customers are municipalities and land developers.
• Stormwater Management / Flood Control Stormwater and floodplain management services including hydrology, hydraulics, sediment transport, computer modeling, flood control systems, floodplain mapping, river and wetland restoration, hydraulic modeling, watershed analysis, river engineering, stormwater quality management, and urban drainage. Target customers are flood control agencies, counties, municipalities, and developers.
• Lake Systems / Water Features / Pools Design of water features including manmade lakes, streams, swimming pools, lagoons, spas, interactive water features, entry features, and freeform water features, integrating stormwater capture, detention, retention, groundwater recharge, and irrigation storage into aesthetic water amenities. Target customers are resort, hospitality, and high-end residential developers.
• GIS Water Resource Applications Advanced GIS applications for water resources including GIS data management, hydraulics automation and analysis, geomorphology analysis, application development, EIR/EIS support, 3D GIS, and field survey services. Target customers are municipalities, water agencies, and developers requiring spatial planning and analysis.
• Instrumentation and Controls In-house instrumentation and controls services for water and wastewater systems, including master planning, energy efficiency, full-service I&C design, HMI and PLC migration, PLC/DCS/HMI programming, radio and telemetry system planning and design, and operational improvements, supported by an on-site Controls, Instrumentation, and SCADA lab. Target customers are water and wastewater utilities.
• Electrical Engineering Electrical engineering services for water and wastewater facilities including pump stations, groundwater wells, booster stations, reservoirs, and treatment plants, covering motor control centers, VFD systems, standby generators, electrical service design, arc flash studies, harmonic analysis, and grounding studies, with power system studies performed per NFPA 70E and IEEE 1584 standards. Target customers are water and wastewater utilities and developers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 36-38 million gallons of potable water saved annually per advanced water recycling project
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• PERC Water CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPACE has an established working relationship with PERC Water Corporation serving as engineer-of-record on multiple design-build water and wastewater projects. Notable collaborations include the SWIP AWTF in Santa Monica (1.0 MGD indirect potable reuse facility) and the Sarival Water Reclamation Facility in Arizona. PERC Water serves as the design-builder on these projects with PACE providing engineering design services.
• Kiewit Infrastructure West Co.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPACE served as engineer-of-record for the SWIP AWTF as part of the PERC Water Team under Design-Builder Kiewit Infrastructure West Co. The project involved treating blended wastewater, stormwater, and dry weather runoff for groundwater recharge via direct injection, with treatment occurring beneath the City of Santa Monica's Civic Center parking lot.
• Liberty UtilitiescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPACE serves as subconsultant to PERC Water on the Sarival Water Reclamation Facility project for Liberty Utilities. Liberty Utilities partnered with PERC Water and PACE to fast-track the Sarival Facility to support rapid growth in the Goodyear and Litchfield Park regions of Arizona.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• GHD: Global engineering consultancy with North American water practice. Competes with PACE on Western U.S. municipal water and stormwater engagements with similar multidisciplinary model.
• Brown and Caldwell: Largest U.S. water and environmental engineering consulting firm. Directly competes with PACE on municipal water and wastewater treatment design across the Western U.S., serving similar utility clients through similar RFP-driven procurement.
• Carollo Engineers: Pure-play water/wastewater engineering consultant headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA. Overlaps directly with PACE on treatment plant design, water reuse, and biosolids engineering for California municipalities.
• Woodard & Curran: Environmental and infrastructure engineering firm with strong water/wastewater practice. Directly comparable in service mix and municipal client profile, though with broader East Coast presence.
• Kennedy Jenks Consultants: Mid-size West Coast water and environmental engineering firm. Competitor on the same Southern California municipal water/wastewater RFPs as PACE, with comparable expertise in treatment and reuse.

Broad incumbents

• Stantec: Global engineering consultancy with major water practice (formerly MWH Global). Broad incumbent competitor that bids against PACE on large design-build water/wastewater programs and stormwater master planning.
• AECOM: Largest global infrastructure consulting firm. Broad incumbent competing on large-scale municipal water, wastewater, and stormwater programs, typically much larger than PACE but overlapping on California utilities.
• Black & Veatch: Global engineering firm with water practice focused on design-build delivery. Overlaps with PACE where PACE serves as engineer-of-record on design-build pursuits alongside PERC Water and Kiewit.
• Tetra Tech: Large environmental and water-resources engineering firm. Competes broadly with PACE on stormwater, environmental compliance, and water quality work but at significantly larger scale across broader end markets.
• Jacobs: Large global engineering and professional services firm. Broad incumbent competing with PACE on major municipal water/wastewater programs and as program manager where PACE could be subconsultant.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pacific-advanced-civil-engineering-inc-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PACE Advanced Water Engineering