CEI

What CEI does

CEI (Comprehensive Environmental Inc.) is an employee-owned civil engineering and environmental consulting firm founded in 1987 and headquartered in Bolton, Massachusetts. The firm delivers multi-disciplinary services — environmental management and remediation, civil and geotechnical engineering, drinking water/wastewater/stormwater design, asset management, and FAA-certified drone (sUAS) survey and LIDAR — to municipal, state, federal, and commercial/industrial clients across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic United States. Its service portfolio is supported by a credentialed staff that includes Professional Engineers across multiple disciplines, Licensed Site Professionals, Geologists, Scientists, and GIS/CAD Specialists, with notable proprietary tooling including the M$4CASTER™ MS4 NPDES cost-estimation platform and an integrated sUAS drone capability with GeoHECRAS compatibility.

CEI generates revenue through professional services engagements (project sizes ranging from less than $1,000 to tens of millions of dollars), delivered under direct contracts, on-call master service agreements, and subcontractor relationships. The firm is prequalified with numerous state and federal agencies, certified as a Small Business and Women-Owned Business Enterprise, and derives more than 70% of revenue from public-sector clients. Its go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with 90% repeat business, active participation in industry associations, and an educational webinar program covering topics such as AWIA, PFAS, and MS4 compliance. The firm operates from six offices in Massachusetts (Bolton, Hyannis), New Hampshire (Merrimack, Portsmouth), Connecticut (New Britain), and Maryland (Baltimore), and has been recognized on Zweig Group's Best Firms to Work For list for 15 consecutive years.

Name

CEI

Legal name

Comprehensive Environmental Inc.

Website

https://ceiengineers.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CEI (Comprehensive Environmental Inc.) is an employee-owned civil engineering and environmental consulting firm founded in 1987, serving municipal, state, federal, and commercial clients across the US Northeast and Mid-Atlantic with environmental remediation, civil and water infrastructure design, asset management, and FAA-certified drone survey services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Engineering Consulting

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)

akta.pro primary industry

All Appropriate Inquiries (AAI) & ASTM Phase I ESA (EUAHAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Construction Environmental Management Plans (CEMP) & Permit Compliance Support (EUAHAAAF)

Keywords

• Civil engineering services
• Environmental consulting
• Hazardous waste remediation
• Water resources engineering
• Stormwater management services

Headquarters

HQ city

Bolton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 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 and Environmental Consulting Services: CEI generates revenue through providing civil engineering and environmental consulting services to municipal, state, federal agencies and private sector clients. Services include environmental remediation, civil engineering design, drinking water/wastewater services, stormwater management, and asset management. Project sizes range from less than $1,000 to tens of millions.
2. Drone/Survey Services: Revenue generated from FAA-certified drone survey and LIDAR services for site inspections, topographic surveys, and environmental assessments.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CEI provides multi-disciplinary civil engineering and environmental consulting services to municipal, state, federal, and commercial/industrial clients, including environmental management and remediation (hazardous waste, water resources, wetlands restoration), civil engineering (geotechnical, transportation, culvert hydraulics), drinking water/wastewater/stormwater treatment design and NPDES permitting, asset management for municipal infrastructure, and FAA-certified drone (sUAS) survey and LIDAR services. Project sizes range from less than $1,000 to tens of millions, delivered through six offices across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.

Product overview

CEI (Comprehensive Environmental Inc.) is a civil engineering and environmental consulting firm providing multi-disciplinary services primarily to municipal, state, federal, and commercial/industrial clients. The company's service portfolio includes Environmental Services (hazardous waste remediation, water resources, wetlands restorations), Civil Engineering Services (geotechnical, transportation, culvert designs, construction inspection), Drinking Water/Wastewater/Stormwater Services (treatment facilities design, NPDES permitting), Asset Management Services (GIS-based infrastructure management, field data collection, valve turning programs), and CEI Drone Services (sUAS survey, LIDAR, thermal imaging, video inspections). These services are delivered through their engineering and environmental consulting teams working across Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Maine.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Environmental Services Comprehensive environmental management and remediation preparation services for industries, corporations, cities, towns, and state agencies, including hazardous waste remediation, water resources investigations, and ecological projects such as wetlands restorations. For municipal, industrial, and agency clients.
• Civil Engineering Services Civil engineering services ranging from geotechnical designs and analysis to transportation-related work such as culvert hydraulic designs, plus full or part-time construction services during the building phase. For municipal, state, federal, and commercial clients.
• Drinking Water/Wastewater/Stormwater Services Study, design and engineering services for drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater, including treatment facilities and NPDES permitting. For municipal, state, federal, and commercial clients.
• Stormwater Management and MS4 NPDES Compliance Services Stormwater management services including MS4 NPDES permit compliance support, stormwater master planning, BMP design and construction oversight, GIS mapping, and proprietary M$4CASTER™ cost-estimation modeling for municipalities. For municipal, state, and federal clients.
• Asset Management Services Municipal asset management services including web-based field data collection, asset inventorying, inspection and maintenance tracking systems, and asset management plans for wastewater, drinking water, stormwater, and transportation infrastructure. For municipal water/wastewater utilities, DPWs, and similar agencies.
• CEI Drone Services (sUAS) FAA-certified drone survey and LIDAR services using small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS) platforms, including LIDAR, thermal imaging, orthophoto mosaic generation, 3D modeling, distance/area/volume measurements, GIS data export, AutoCAD compatibility, and GeoHECRAS integration. For engineering, environmental, municipal, state, federal, and commercial clients requiring site assessment, inspections, and topographic mapping.

Quantifiable outcome

• Served over ¼ of Massachusetts towns (approximately 400 towns)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers15 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

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• M$4CASTER™ (Proprietary Tool)coreOthersCEI developed M$4CASTER™ as an internal proprietary tool for pricing MS4 NPDES Phase II Permit compliance costs. This is a proprietary software tool used to provide cost estimation services to municipalities.
• State and Federal Agencies (Teaming Partners)coreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCEI is prequalified with numerous state and federal agencies for various contracting set-asides. The company regularly pursues teaming opportunities throughout the U.S. to jointly pursue new opportunities and provide comprehensive engineering and environmental services.
• NH DES (New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEI has worked with NH DES on watershed restoration projects, receiving s.319 grant funding for implementation. The partnership has developed innovative quantitative watershed restoration plans.
• Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation (MassDCR)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEI serves as principal environmental engineer for MassDCR on projects like North Point Park reclamation, developing new policies for direct contact soils and asbestos remediation standards.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• GHD: Global engineering, architecture, and environmental consulting firm with significant New England operations. Competes with CEI for municipal water/wastewater and environmental compliance work, but offers broader multidisciplinary capabilities.
• Stantec: Global engineering and environmental services firm with extensive municipal water and environmental practice in North America. Competes for larger multi-state municipal and federal infrastructure contracts that CEI often accesses via subcontracting.
• TRC Companies: Publicly-traded environmental, engineering, and construction services firm with deep Northeast presence and federal contracting credentials. Overlaps directly with CEI's environmental site assessment, remediation, and infrastructure service lines.
• Kleinfelder: Large national engineering, science, and construction services firm with strong environmental consulting practice. Competes with CEI for federal contracts (USACE, NAVFAC) and state DOT work, but operates at materially greater scale and geographic breadth.
• CDM Smith: Global engineering and construction firm with strong water, environment, and transportation practices. Direct overlap with CEI's municipal water/wastewater and federal environmental remediation work, but at substantially larger scale.

Direct peers

• Tighe & Bond: New England-based multi-disciplinary engineering and environmental consulting firm serving municipal, state, and federal clients. Closely comparable to CEI in service mix (civil, environmental, water/wastewater) and regional footprint across MA, CT, and NY.
• Weston & Sampson: Massachusetts-based civil and environmental engineering firm serving municipal, state, and federal clients in the Northeast. Highly comparable in size, ownership structure (employee-owned), and service offerings.
• Woodard & Curran: New England-headquartered engineering, science, and operations firm focused on water, environmental, and infrastructure work for municipalities. Direct competitor in CEI's core drinking water/wastewater and asset management service lines.
• Beta Group: New England civil and environmental engineering firm serving municipalities in MA, RI, CT, NH, and ME. Comparable regional footprint, similar client base, and overlapping stormwater/civil/environmental service lines.
• Sanborn, Head & Associates: New Hampshire/ Vermont-based geotechnical, civil, and environmental engineering firm serving the same Northern New England municipal market as CEI. Comparable size, multi-disciplinary model, and public-sector client base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ceiengineers
• Facebookfacebook.com/ceiengineers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/comprehensive-environmental-inc-

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 CEI