What AE2S (Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc.) does

AE2S (Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, LLC) is a 100% employee-owned civil and environmental engineering consulting firm founded in 1991 and headquartered in North Dakota, with an additional principal office cited in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and a network of 21–22 offices spanning North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, and Wisconsin. The firm delivers professional engineering services across water treatment, wastewater, rural and regional water systems, water resources, civil engineering, utility planning, surveying (including 3D laser scanning and drone/UAS), electrical, structural, mechanical, instrumentation and controls (SCADA/PLC), energy, and industrial services, with two wholly-owned sub-brands — AE2S Nexus Financial Services and AE2S Communications — extending into utility financial consulting and public outreach.

Its technology stack centers on specialized water and wastewater treatment engineering (membrane filtration, reverse osmosis, lime softening, ozonation, UV disinfection), SCADA and PLC-based remote monitoring and control for treatment plants and distribution networks (e.g., a 30+ site WAWSA deployment across 10 counties), 3D laser scanning and drone-based topographic and bathymetric surveying, and hydraulic/GIS modeling. The firm has executed complex programs such as the Grand Forks Regional Water Treatment Plant (20 MGD hybrid conventional/membrane facility with $48M+ in improvements since 2000) and tribal regional water systems exceeding 750 miles of pipeline, demonstrating capability in large, multi-jurisdictional infrastructure.

AE2S makes money through project-based professional engineering fees under contracts with municipalities, regional water authorities, tribal governments, and select industrial clients, secured via competitive bidding on public projects and direct negotiation. GTM is enterprise field sales supported by industry conferences (AWWA, ElevateAEC), three recurring newsletters (AE2S & Beyond, The Update, The Source), and an annual Utility Rate Survey used for both client benchmarking and lead generation. Customer segments are vertical: municipalities/utilities (primary), regional/rural water systems (primary), tribal communities, and industrial clients. No public pricing, revenue, or contract-value disclosures are available.

Name

AE2S (Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc.)

Legal name

Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, LLC

Website

https://ae2s.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

AE2S is a 100% employee-owned civil and environmental engineering firm serving municipal, regional, tribal, and industrial clients across 8 upper Midwest and Mountain West states with specialized water, wastewater, SCADA, and surveying services delivered through 21 regional offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil and Environmental Engineering Services

NAICS

Engineering Services (541330), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Water, Wastewater & Hydraulics Engineering Consulting (BPAHAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance (BPAHAJAJ), Water & Wastewater Compliance (NPDES/Stormwater, Pretreatment, Drinking Water/SDWA) (EUAHABAB)

Keywords

• Water treatment engineering
• Wastewater engineering services
• Municipal civil engineering
• SCADA instrumentation controls
• Utility financial consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Grand Forks

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices21 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Engineering Consulting Services: Project-based professional engineering consulting fees for municipal water, wastewater, civil engineering, and environmental projects. Revenue is generated through consulting contracts, project fees, and professional service agreements with municipalities, regional water authorities, tribal governments, and industrial clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

AE2S is a 100% employee-owned civil and environmental engineering consulting firm delivering specialized services for water treatment, wastewater, regional/rural water systems, water resources, civil engineering, utility planning, surveying, electrical, structural, mechanical, instrumentation and controls, energy, and industrial projects. The firm also operates two wholly-owned sub-brands—AE2S Nexus Financial Services (utility rate surveys and financial consulting) and AE2S Communications (marketing and public engagement)—that extend its offerings to public-sector utility clients across the upper Midwest and Mountain West.

Product overview

AE2S (Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services) is a 100% employee-owned civil and environmental engineering firm offering a comprehensive portfolio of engineering consulting services. The company's core offerings include specialized engineering services for water, wastewater, rural/regional water, water resources, civil engineering, utility planning, surveying, electrical, structural, mechanical, instrumentation and controls, energy, and industrial services. The firm also operates two sub-brands: AE2S Nexus Financial Services (providing utility rate surveys and financial consulting) and AE2S Communications (providing marketing and public engagement services). Content offerings include the AE2S & Beyond newsletter, The Update newsletter, and The Source newsletter. The company serves municipal utilities, tribal communities, and industrial clients across the upper Midwest and Mountain West regions of the United States.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Engineering Services Civil and environmental engineering consulting for water treatment, distribution, and infrastructure projects including water treatment plants, booster stations, storage reservoirs, and distribution pipelines for municipal and regional clients.
• Wastewater Engineering Services Engineering services for wastewater collection systems, treatment facilities, water resource recovery facilities (WRRF), and biosolids management for municipal clients.
• Rural/Regional Water Services Regional water system planning, design, and implementation for rural communities, including pipeline networks, pump stations, and storage facilities serving tribal communities and multi-jurisdictional water systems.
• Water Resources Services Water resources engineering including floodplain analysis, storm drain design, river bank stabilization, drought resiliency planning, and stormwater management.
• Civil Engineering Services Civil engineering for municipal infrastructure including street improvements, utility design, site development, and public works facilities.
• Utility Planning Services Utility master planning, capital improvement planning, GIS integration, hydraulic modeling, and long-term infrastructure renewal planning for water and wastewater utilities.
• Surveying Services Land surveying including boundary surveys, topographic surveys, bathymetric surveys, 3D laser scanning, drone/UAS surveys, PLSS monument rehabilitation, and construction staking.
• Electrical Engineering Services Electrical engineering for water/wastewater facilities including service upgrades, motor controls, emergency power generation, variable frequency drives, and arc flash analysis.
• Structural Engineering Services Structural engineering for treatment facilities, buildings, and infrastructure including concrete, precast, structural steel, and cold-formed steel design.
• Mechanical Engineering Services Mechanical engineering services for pump stations, treatment equipment, and industrial process systems.
• Instrumentation and Controls Services SCADA systems, PLC programming, control panel design, telemetry systems, and automation for water/wastewater facilities.
• Energy Services Energy planning, renewable energy integration, and energy efficiency improvements for utility infrastructure.
• Industrial Services Industrial wastewater treatment design, process optimization, SPCC/SWPPP plans, and environmental compliance services for manufacturing and processing facilities.
• AE2S Nexus Financial Services Financial consulting and utility rate survey services for water and wastewater utilities, including rate modeling and financial planning, operated as a wholly-owned sub-brand.
• AE2S Communications Marketing communications, brand development, community engagement, and public outreach services for utilities and economic development organizations, operated as a wholly-owned sub-brand.
• AE2S Utility Rate Survey Annual utility rate survey comparing water and wastewater rates across utilities, helping utilities benchmark rates against similar sized systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Ranked 9th in Civil Engineering category in Zweig Group's Top 10 Best Firms to Work For
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Bolton & Menk: Upper Midwest employee-owned engineering firm providing water, wastewater, and municipal infrastructure services. Closely comparable to AE2S on geography (MN/IA/upper Midwest), service portfolio, and employee-ownership culture.
• Bartlett & West: Midwest-based engineering firm with municipal water, wastewater, and utility planning services. Comparable to AE2S in scale and service mix, with overlapping geography in the upper Midwest; serves similar small-to-mid sized municipal clients.

Direct peers

• HDR, Inc. Large national engineering consulting firm with a substantial water/wastewater practice serving municipal clients. Directly comparable as a peer offering full-service water engineering to the same municipal, regional, and tribal segments AE2S serves, but at significantly larger scale.
• Brown and Caldwell: Privately held environmental engineering firm focused on water, wastewater, and stormwater for municipal clients. Directly comparable as a peer in the same water-utility engineering niche with similar project-based consulting model.
• Carollo Engineers: Employee-owned engineering firm specializing exclusively in water and wastewater. Highly comparable business model (ESOP), client base (municipal utilities), and service portfolio (water treatment, wastewater, SCADA), making it the closest direct peer to AE2S.

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting firm with substantial water and environmental engineering capabilities. Comparable peer in serving large municipal water authorities, but operates as a broad multi-sector incumbent.
• Stantec: Global engineering, architecture, and environmental services firm with a sizable North American water practice. Comparable as a peer serving municipal water clients, but operates across many other sectors (buildings, transportation, energy) beyond AE2S's water focus.
• Tetra Tech: International consulting and engineering firm with a strong water and environmental practice. Overlaps with AE2S on water resources, wastewater, and municipal infrastructure but operates globally and across multiple end markets.
• Burns & McDonnell: 100% employee-owned engineering firm (like AE2S) with significant water and environmental practices. Comparable as a peer on ESOP structure and water/industrial client work, though broader across power, infrastructure, and oil & gas.
• Black & Veatch: Global engineering, procurement, and construction firm with a major water business. Overlaps with AE2S on municipal water/wastewater design and SCADA but operates as a much larger EPC-style incumbent.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/AE2S
• Facebookfacebook.com/ae2s-112624763638
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ae2s
• Instagraminstagram.com/ae2s1
• Xx.com/ae2s1

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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 AE2S (Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services, Inc.)