What Cardinal Civil Contracting does

Cardinal Civil Contracting is a privately held, full-service civil contractor founded in 2013 and headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. The firm provides turnkey site development services for residential subdivisions, commercial and industrial projects, and municipal/institutional clients across North Carolina, organized into three operating divisions: Grading (clearing, excavation, utilities, retaining walls), Aviator Paving (asphalt and concrete services), and Civil Drilling & Blasting (drilling, blasting, and crushing for foundations, roadways, and infrastructure). It serves enterprise customers that include national production homebuilders such as Pulte Homes, Mungo Homes, Meritage Homes, KB Home, Baker Residential, and Forestar Group, along with commercial developers such as Frampton Construction, ARCO Design/Build, and McKinley Construction.

The company runs its own fleets of GPS-equipped Caterpillar and Komatsu heavy equipment and employs VDC (Virtual Design and Construction) tools for estimating and project management, with drilling and blasting performed in-house for rock-bearing sites. Operations are organized across three regional offices covering the Raleigh/Triangle, Charlotte Metro, and Triad (Greensboro) areas, with workforce in the 1001-5000 band. The 2024 acquisition of Pineville, NC-based Red Clay Industries by its Aviator Paving subsidiary extended asphalt and concrete capabilities into the Charlotte market and South Carolina.

Cardinal generates revenue through project-based, bid-priced civil construction contracts (fixed-price or cost-plus) with developers, homebuilders, and general contractors. Sales are conducted via direct field and enterprise engagement, with the firm emphasizing early-stage planning collaboration as a differentiator. Ownership remains with the founding partners, with no VC or PE sponsorship indicated.

Name

Cardinal Civil Contracting

Legal name

Cardinal Civil Contracting

Website

https://cardinalcivil.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Cardinal Civil Contracting is a privately held, full-service civil contractor in Raleigh, North Carolina delivering turnkey site development, paving, drilling, and blasting services to residential homebuilders and commercial developers across the Carolinas.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Construction Services

NAICS

Site Preparation Contractors (23891), Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction (237), Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction (237310), Commercial and Institutional Building Construction (23622)

SIC

Heavy Construction Other Than Bldg Const - Contractors (1600), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623), Operative Builders (1531)

akta.pro primary industry

Commercial General Contracting (New Build) (IMAFAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Industrial/Process Plant General Contracting (IMAFAAAH), Public Works General Contracting (IMAFAAAG), Heavy Civil Construction Trades (Roads, Bridges & Utilities) (EDAOAAAN)

Keywords

• Civil construction services
• Site preparation
• Grading excavation
• Asphalt paving services
• Drilling blasting services

Headquarters

HQ city

Raleigh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Civil Construction Services: Project-based revenue from providing full-scale site development services including clearing and erosion control, drilling and blasting, grading and retaining walls, utilities installation, and paving. Revenue is generated through fixed-price contracts or cost-plus arrangements with developers, homebuilders, and general contractors for residential and commercial projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Cardinal Civil Contracting provides turn-key civil construction services focused on site preparation and infrastructure for large-scale residential, commercial, industrial, municipal, and institutional projects across North Carolina. Its three integrated divisions — the Grading Division (grading and excavation), Aviator Paving, LLC (asphalt paving and related services), and Civil Drilling and Blasting (drilling, blasting, and crushing) — deliver clearing, erosion control, grading and retaining walls, utilities installation, drilling and blasting, and paving through in-house crews and owned equipment.

Product overview

Cardinal Civil Contracting is a full-service civil contractor offering a platform of site preparation and infrastructure services through three integrated divisions: the Grading Division (grading and excavation), Aviator Paving, LLC (asphalt paving and related services), and Civil Drilling and Blasting (specialized drilling, blasting, and crushing). The company uses in-house crews and owned equipment to deliver complete site development services including clearing, erosion control, utilities installation, and paving across North Carolina. Clients engage primarily for the Grading division as the core offering, with Aviator Paving and Civil Drilling and Blasting serving as complementary specializations that provide end-to-end civil contracting solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Aviator Paving, LLC: Grading, paving and asphalt services including fine grading, curb, stone, and paving operations. Has over 10 years of experience in the grading and paving industry.
• Civil Drilling and Blasting

Products and services

• Grading Division Top-notch grading and excavation services for projects ranging from site preparation for residential developments to large-scale commercial undertakings, employing advanced equipment and skilled personnel. Serves developers, homebuilders, and general contractors across North Carolina.
• Aviator Paving, LLC Superior paving solutions including fine grading, asphalt paving, repairs, crack sealing, refurbishing, and maintenance for private, commercial, and public projects. Serves clients across North and South Carolina through the Aviator Paving subsidiary.
• Civil Drilling and Blasting Specialized drilling, blasting, and crushing services for commercial, residential, and Department of Transportation projects, including building foundations, roadways, infrastructure installation, and retaining walls. Uses state-of-the-art drilling and blasting equipment and techniques for precise and controlled removal of rock.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 80 years of combined partner experience managing approximately $1.5 billion worth of civil projects
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Red Clay Industries Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Aviator Paving Company, LLC, a subsidiary of Cardinal Civil Contracting, acquired Red Clay Industries Inc., a highly respected asphalt contracting firm based in Pineville, NC. Founded in 1996, Red Clay Industries had built a solid reputation for delivering high-quality projects and exceptional customer service in the Charlotte asphalt industry. This strategic acquisition strengthens Aviator Paving's presence in the Charlotte area and reinforces its position as a leading provider of asphalt and concrete services across North and South Carolina.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• MasTec: Large publicly-traded (NYSE: MTZ) infrastructure construction firm spanning utility T&D, communications, pipeline, and heavy civil. Broad incumbent — overlaps on utility/right-of-way civil works adjacent to Cardinal's wet utilities scope.
• Sterling Infrastructure: Publicly-traded heavy civil platform (NASDAQ: STRL) with large-scale site development, transportation, and building solutions nationwide. Broad incumbent — much larger, publicly held, but directly competitive on site development work in growth markets.
• Granite Construction: Publicly-traded (NYSE: GVA) heavy civil contractor with major site development, transportation, and water resources operations across the U.S. Broad incumbent — represents the scaled national competitor that may increasingly bid into Carolinas work.

Others

• Tetra Tech: Publicly-traded engineering and consulting firm (NASDAQ: TTEK) deeply involved in water, environmental, and civil infrastructure design. Adjacent peer — not a contractor, but influences the design/spec side of projects Cardinal bids on and is a common counterpart on Carolinas civil work.

Direct peers

• S.T. Wooten Corporation: North Carolina-based heavy civil and site development contractor offering grading, utilities, paving, and site prep across the Carolinas. Direct peer — overlaps almost exactly on services, geography, and customer base (residential developers, commercial/industrial, NCDOT).
• Fred Smith Company: Raleigh-based site development and heavy highway contractor serving the Triangle and Eastern NC. Direct peer — comparable in size, scope (grading, utilities, paving), and focus on residential/commercial land development.
• Crowder Constructors: Charlotte, NC-based heavy civil and infrastructure contractor with grading, utilities, and structural capabilities. Direct peer — competes for the same industrial, commercial, and DOT-driven site work in the Carolinas.
• Barnhill Contracting Company: Rocky Mount, NC-based site development, heavy civil, and paving contractor operating across the Carolinas. Direct peer — same integrated service lines (grading, utilities, paving, drilling) for residential and commercial developers.

Regional players

• W.M. Jordan Company: Virginia-based construction services firm with site development, utility, and building construction capabilities. Regional peer — comparable on integrated civil/site work for large residential and commercial developments in the Mid-Atlantic/Southeast.
• Blythe Construction: Charlotte-based heavy civil, grading, and asphalt contractor serving the Carolinas and Southeast. Regional peer — overlapping capabilities in grading, utilities, and paving for site development and highway work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/cardinalcivilcontracting
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cardinal-civil-contracting-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

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 Cardinal Civil Contracting