What CITI does

CITI, INC is a privately held industrial automation systems integrator founded in 1995 and headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, with a second office in Cary, NC serving the Research Triangle region. The firm designs, programs, and installs custom control systems for municipal water and wastewater utilities, discrete manufacturers (paint film, fiber optic cable, hazardous waste handling), electric utilities, food and agriculture processors, and life sciences facilities. Its work spans SCADA development (including early adoption of 3D graphic plant modeling and modern High-Performance HMI interfaces), PLC programming across major platforms (Rockwell, Schneider, Siemens, AutomationDirect, Square D), in-house UL 508A and UL 698A certified control panel fabrication, and industrial networking (fiber optics, telemetry, cyber security). A proprietary Mobile Data Acquisition (MDA) mobile application enables plant operators to collect field data offline and integrate with Ignition and Hach WIMS, complementing the services portfolio.

The company monetizes through project-based systems integration work (concept design through installation), hardware sales (custom panels, PLCs, networking gear), and recurring maintenance, emergency support, instrumentation calibration, and energy management services. Customer engagement is direct, project-by-project, with quote-based pricing; the firm does not disclose pricing publicly. Distribution is concentrated on the Carolinas and broader Southeast US / eastern seaboard, with certified partnership status across the major automation vendor ecosystems (Wonderware/Schneider Electric, Emerson, Inductive Automation Ignition Gold, plus Phoenix Contact, Axis Communications, and Trihedral/VTScada). Leadership is founder/management-controlled with Sam Hewson listed as Managing Director; the firm maintains a staff of over 50 engineering and project management professionals and has held 100% retention through the 2020 pandemic.

Name

CITI

Legal name

CITI, INC

Website

https://citi-inc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1995

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CITI, INC is a privately held Charlotte, NC-based systems integrator founded in 1995 that designs, programs, and installs industrial automation and control systems for municipal water/wastewater utilities, manufacturers, and utilities across the Carolinas and Southeast US.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Charlotte

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. System Integration Services: Custom control system integration services including SCADA development, PLC programming, control design, and panel fabrication. Projects range from concept design to system installation.
2. Hardware Sales: Sale of custom-built UL certified control panels, PLC hardware, and industrial control equipment as part of complete system solutions.
3. Maintenance and Support Services: Ongoing system maintenance, emergency support, instrumentation calibration, and energy management services provided on contract or on-demand basis.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

CITI is an industrial automation systems integrator that designs, programs, and installs custom control solutions combining SCADA development, PLC programming, and UL certified panel construction, primarily for water/wastewater utilities, manufacturing, electric utilities, life sciences, and government entities across the Carolinas. Its offering also includes industrial networking (fiber optics, telemetry, cybersecurity), proprietary Mobile Data Acquisition (MDA) software, and ongoing maintenance, emergency support, and energy management services.

Product overview

CITI INC is a systems integrator offering industrial automation solutions through three core product lines: Control Systems Integration (SCADA development, PLC programming, UL-certified panel construction), Network Solutions (fiber optics, telemetry, cybersecurity), and proprietary Mobile Data Acquisition (MDA) software. The company provides comprehensive services spanning emergency support, instrumentation calibration, and energy management. Their solutions serve water/wastewater, utilities, manufacturing, life sciences, and security industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Control Systems Integration End-to-end control integration solutions including industrial-grade PLC and SCADA software development, system design, control design, and UL listed panel fabrication, delivered from concept design through system installation for facilities requiring automated process control.
• Mobile Data Acquisition (MDA) Application Proprietary mobile application enabling plant operators to gather field data quickly with offline operation, reported 10x faster data acquisition than traditional methods, automatic identification of missing or corrupt data, automatic report generation, and integration with Ignition and Hach WIMS.
• Network Solutions Professional networking architecture design and deployment including high-speed communications, industrial cybersecurity, long-range telemetry, and fiber optic networking solutions for industrial facilities.
• Emergency Service and Support On-demand and contract support services including facility efficiency audits, system performance monitoring, equipment calibration, emergency field hardware repair, and urgent programming modifications, available around the clock.
• Energy Management Services High and low power energy monitoring solutions that enable plant operators and managers to make informed decisions about plant efficiency, power utilization, and chemical utilization.

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Wonderware (Schneider Electric)coreTechnology or IntegrationCertified Wonderware System Integrator Partner for InTouch and System Platform SCADA solutions. CITI provides integration services for Wonderware products as part of their automation solutions portfolio.
• Schneider ElectriccoreTechnology or IntegrationAlliance Partner providing integration services for Schneider Electric automation products including Modicon PLCs and Citect SCADA. CITI leverages Schneider products in their control system solutions.
• EmersoncoreTechnology or IntegrationCertified Emerson Discrete Automation System Integrator providing integration services for Emerson automation hardware and software solutions.
• Inductive AutomationcoreTechnology or IntegrationGold Certified Integrator for Ignition industrial automation platform. CITI provides Ignition-based SCADA and HMI solutions including the Perspective and Vision platforms.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Avid Solutions: Winston-Salem, NC-based industrial automation systems integrator serving similar Carolinas/Southeast markets with PLC, SCADA, and MES work. Most directly comparable peer given overlapping geography, vertical mix (food/bev, water, manufacturing), and integrator business model.
• Hallam-ICS: Mid-Atlantic industrial automation systems integrator providing PLC, SCADA, and control panel services to manufacturing and process industries. Closely comparable in headcount, service mix, and project-based delivery model.
• RoviSys: Independent industrial systems integrator specializing in process control, SCADA, and manufacturing execution systems across multiple verticals. Comparable in vendor-agnostic integration philosophy and reliance on major automation OEM partnerships.
• Interstates Control Systems: Midwestern industrial systems integrator with PLC, SCADA, and control panel capabilities serving food/bev, manufacturing, and utilities. Comparable as a regional integrator scaling beyond its original footprint with similar service mix.

Broad incumbents

• Burns & McDonnell: Large engineering firm with a substantial industrial automation and SCADA practice serving water/wastewater, utilities, and manufacturing clients. Competes with CITI on municipal infrastructure projects but at significantly larger scale.
• Stantec: Global engineering consultancy with a water practice that includes industrial automation and SCADA integration services. Overlaps with CITI on municipal water/wastewater modernization work as part of broader capital projects.
• Rockwell Automation: Dominant industrial automation OEM whose Logix platform is one of CITI's key integration stacks. Competes through its own Lifecycle Services arm and Certified System Integrator program, of which peers of CITI are members.
• Schneider Electric: Major automation OEM and CITI Alliance Partner. Competes through EcoStruxure and Wonderware offerings plus its own system integrator ecosystem; relevant because CITI both partners with and competes against Schneider-affiliated integrators.
• Emerson Automation Solutions: Industrial automation OEM whose discrete automation portfolio CITI integrates as a Certified System Integrator. Competitor via its own services arm and Project Certainty initiative targeting process industries.

Others

• Inductive Automation: Vendor of the Ignition SCADA platform for which CITI holds Gold Certified Integrator status. Not a direct competitor but a critical ecosystem partner whose platform decisions directly shape CITI's go-to-market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citiinc

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 CITI