Ellingson Companies

What Ellingson Companies does

Ellingson Companies is a third-generation, family-owned specialty construction firm founded in 1970 in West Concord, Minnesota, that delivers end-to-end water management and underground infrastructure solutions across the agriculture, commercial/industrial infrastructure, underground utilities, pipeline and distribution, and environmental remediation verticals. Its core offering is project-based construction services spanning agricultural drainage (design, installation, controlled drainage, subsurface irrigation, specialty drainage for applications like cranberry bogs, lift stations, and field assessments), trenchless underground construction (horizontal directional drilling capable of 54-inch diameter bores over 8,000 feet, plowing/trenching, pipe bursting, pipe ramming, and slip lining), and commercial pipe rehabilitation (CIPP lining from 4–96 inches, CCTV inspection, NASSCO-certified condition reports, and GIS-based infrastructure mapping portals).

Underlying technical assets include proprietary Ellingson Drainage Design Software (EDDS), a patented custom Cranberry Plow and Stringer system for specialty drainage, GPS-guided installation methodology used exclusively since 2006, and a proprietary Drainage Index that aggregates satellite imagery, soil-moisture monitoring, and aerial drone data to forecast field-level ROI. The firm also operates a remote-monitoring capability on lift stations and drainage control structures that supports recurring service revenue.

Revenue is generated primarily through project-based construction contracts and professional-services consulting engagements priced per project on a quote basis, with a smaller recurring revenue stream from maintenance contracts and remote monitoring. Customer acquisition relies on direct enterprise field sales, industry events (e.g., Big Iron Farm Show), field-day demonstrations with partner farms, and regional chamber/safety council participation across 12 Midwest and Plains states, with consulting engagements extending to 48 US states and select international projects.

Name

Ellingson Companies

Legal name

Ellingson Companies

Website

https://ellingsoncompanies.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Ellingson Companies is a third-generation, family-owned construction firm delivering end-to-end water management and trenchless infrastructure solutions—including agricultural drainage, HDD, CIPP, and pipeline services—across 12 US Midwest and Plains states.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Underground Infrastructure and Water Management Construction Services

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

Underground transmission & distribution cable EPC (civil + cable install) (EUADAKAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Underground Distribution (Cable, Duct Bank & Vault) EPC (EUAEACAB), Mine Infrastructure & Utilities EPC (Power, Water, Comms, Camps, Roads, Airstrips) (IMAKAOAB)

Keywords

• Agricultural drainage
• Underground utilities
• Trenchless construction
• Water management
• Pipe rehabilitation

Headquarters

HQ city

West Concord

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Construction Services: Project-based construction services for agricultural drainage, underground utilities, commercial infrastructure, pipeline distribution, and environmental projects. Services include installation, maintenance, repairs, and system upgrades.
2. Consulting Services: Water management and drainage consulting services delivered by experts with experience in 48 US states and international projects. Includes site evaluations, custom system design, and project logistics planning.
3. Service Department: Ongoing preventative maintenance, repairs and upgrades to keep drainage systems operating optimally. Includes remote monitoring capabilities and maintenance contracts.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Ellingson Companies is a third-generation, family-owned construction firm that delivers end-to-end subsurface drainage, water management, and trenchless underground infrastructure services across North America. Core offerings include agricultural drainage design and installation, controlled drainage, subsurface irrigation, specialty drainage (e.g., cranberry bogs), lift stations and pumps, drainage assessments, consulting, and design/engineering — supported by the proprietary Ellingson Drainage Design Software (EDDS). The company also performs horizontal directional drilling, plowing and trenching, pipe bursting, pipe ramming, slip lining, CIPP pipe rehabilitation, GIS mapping, certified condition reporting, and environmental remediation services for utilities, municipalities, food and beverage processors, and pipeline operators.

Product overview

Ellingson Companies is a third-generation, family-owned construction company (founded 1970) providing end-to-end water management and infrastructure solutions across North America. The company operates as a single unified service provider rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Its core offerings span agricultural drainage services (including Agricultural Drainage, Controlled Drainage, Subsurface Irrigation, Specialty Drainage, Lift Stations/Pumps, Drainage Assessments, Consulting, and Design & Engineering using proprietary Ellingson Drainage Design Software), underground utility trenchless solutions (Horizontal Directional Drilling, Plowing & Trenching, On-site Wastewater Collection & Treatment, Pipe Bursting, Pipe Ramming, Slip Lining), and commercial/industrial infrastructure services (Pipe Inspection & Assessments, Certified Condition Reports, CIPP Pipe Rehabilitation, GIS Mapping & Portal). In June 2026, the company launched a new ag technology venture called Terrain with its TerrainIQ product, designed to make engineering software and water management products available to all growers beyond existing Ellingson customers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Agricultural Drainage Full-range agricultural drainage service covering system design, installation, maintenance, and upgrades for farms seeking to improve drainage, reduce risk, and maximize crop yields.
• Controlled Drainage Water management service using control structures to actively manage the water table level in agricultural fields, enabling variable water control for different cropping cycles and conditions.
• Subsurface Irrigation Irrigation service that delivers water directly to crop root zones through buried tubes/pipes, emitters, and driplines installed below the soil surface.
• Specialty Drainage Custom drainage service for unique applications including cranberry bogs, nurseries, orchards, and other specialty crops requiring customized subsurface drainage solutions.
• Lift Stations / Pumps Turnkey lift station and pump service including wet wells, pumps, valves, controls, and remote monitoring capabilities for agricultural water management operations.
• Drainage Assessments Field-by-field drainage evaluation service using Ellingson's proprietary drainage index to compare projected return on investment across properties and inform drainage design decisions.
• Consulting Water management and drainage consulting service delivering site evaluations, system design recommendations, and project logistics planning to agricultural producers.
• Design & Engineering Custom drainage system engineering service using the proprietary Ellingson Drainage Design Software (EDDS) and GPS equipment to deliver drainage designs aimed at maximizing crop yield increases.
• Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) Trenchless installation service for underground utilities such as pipes, conduits, and cables in a shallow arc using surface-launched equipment; capable of projects up to 54 inches in diameter and 8,000 feet in length.
• Plowing & Trenching Minimal-impact installation service using static plowing and trenching for pipe up to 14 inches in diameter and unlimited lengths.
• On-site Wastewater Collection & Treatment Advanced and scalable wastewater collection and treatment service designed to replace failing septic systems and meet current regulatory codes.
• Pipe Bursting Trenchless replacement service for failing, outdated, or undersized pipe infrastructure using fusible pipe material to upsize or renew existing pipelines.
• Pipe Ramming Pipe installation service using a pneumatic hammer to install steel pipe for distances up to 150 feet, ideal for casing pipe and culverts.
• Slip Lining Trenchless rehabilitation service for repairing leaks or restoring structural stability in water, sewer, and storm sewer pipelines for diameters from 4 to 42 inches.
• Pipe Inspection & Assessments Underground pipe inspection service using CCTV cameras, robotic crawlers, and engineering software to evaluate the condition of underground pipes for commercial and industrial clients.
• Certified Condition Reports Detailed pipe condition analysis service performed by NASSCO-certified technicians using Direct Visual Examination (DVE) and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) for commercial and industrial clients.
• CIPP Pipe Rehabilitation Cured-in-Place Pipe rehabilitation service using resin-saturated liner cured with hot water or steam to create a new pipe within the existing pipe, sized for 4 to 96 inch diameter pipes.
• GIS Mapping & Portal Geographic Information System (GIS) service that visually maps and analyzes underground infrastructure systems, compiling GPS data and pipe information into interactive digital maps for comprehensive infrastructure network overview.
• Terrain / TerrainIQ Separately launched ag-technology venture (Terrain) and product (TerrainIQ) that makes Ellingson's drainage engineering software and water management products available to all growers nationally, addressing water management as one of the biggest challenges facing agriculture.

Quantifiable outcome

• 100 miles of agricultural drain tile installed in under 90 days on a 10,000-acre farm
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Direct Technology Drilling (DTD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2019Acquired in 2019, Direct Technology Drilling (DTD) was added to Ellingson's portfolio, bringing industry-leading environmental remediation capabilities to the company's growing trenchless construction services.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Michels Corporation: Large, privately held infrastructure construction firm specializing in trenchless technology, HDD, pipeline construction, and utility installation across North America. Comparable for the breadth of trenchless services, large HDD fleet, and contractor scale, though it is substantially larger and more geographically diversified than Ellingson.
• MasTec: Diversified public infrastructure contractor serving power, communications, oil & gas, and utility markets with HDD and trenchless capabilities. Comparable in the underground utility, pipeline distribution, and HDD services segments where it overlaps with Ellingson's offerings, despite operating at much larger scale.
• Quanta Services: Public infrastructure-services platform providing electric, gas, communications, and underground utility construction across North America. Comparable because it competes with Ellingson on large HDD and pipeline-distribution projects and is the most relevant public proxy for the utility-installation business model.
• Advanced Drainage Systems: Leading North American manufacturer of water management products including corrugated HDPE drainage pipe and stormwater chambers serving agricultural, residential, and infrastructure markets. Comparable because it sits directly on the agricultural and infrastructure drainage value chain in which Ellingson installs its projects, and increasingly competes with integrated design-build drainage providers.

Direct peers

• Prinsco: Manufacturer and supplier of HDPE drainage tile and water-management products for agricultural, commercial, and residential applications across the Midwest. Highly comparable to Ellingson's agricultural drainage and water management business, both in product category and geographic focus.
• Veit & Company: Mid-sized private specialty contractor providing site work, underground utilities, pipeline rehabilitation, and environmental remediation in the Upper Midwest. Comparable in size, regional focus, and the breadth of services spanning underground utilities, pipe rehab, and environmental work that Ellingson also serves.
• ADS (Advanced Drainage Systems) - Construction Services: The installation services arm of ADS delivers integrated drainage solutions for agricultural, residential, and infrastructure customers across the Midwest. Directly comparable in service offering (drainage design + installation), customer type (large growers, municipalities), and geography.
• Mears Group: Provides horizontal directional drilling, pipeline installation, and underground infrastructure services to utility and energy customers across the U.S. Highly comparable because of the shared trenchless construction capabilities, similar HDD scale, and energy/utility customer overlap with Ellingson's Underground Utilities and Pipeline & Distribution segments.
• National Trenchless LLC: Specialty trenchless construction contractor offering HDD, pipe bursting, CIPP, slip lining, and pipe rehabilitation for municipal and utility clients. Highly comparable to Ellingson's underground utilities and CIPP service lines across overlapping customer segments.

Emerging players

• Hydromax USA: Hydro-excavation, CCTV inspection, and trenchless rehabilitation provider for utilities and municipalities. Comparable as a peer in commercial/industrial infrastructure and underground utility inspection and rehabilitation services where Ellingson also operates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights8 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ellingsonco
• Facebookfacebook.com/ellingsoncompanies
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ellingson-companies

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Ellingson Companies