What Safe Water Commission does

Safe Water Commission LLC is a privately held Minnesota-based technology and services company founded in 2016 that operates a dual-platform business around drinking water protection. Its Backflow Prevention Software is a cloud-based platform with three distinct portals (City Portal for water purveyors, Tester Portal for ASSE-certified backflow testers, and a property owner-facing portal) that manages backflow device inventories, test submissions, automated reminders, and compliance reporting using USPS address validation and the USC Foundation cross-connection control database. The company contracts with municipalities to administer full backflow testing programs, including owner notification and enforcement of annual testing requirements driven by state plumbing codes.

The second product line is the Residential Smart Irrigation Program (SIP), a managed water conservation service delivered in partnership with municipal water purveyors. The SIP combines a Simple Yard Audit (soil, shade, vegetation, water pressure assessment) with the installation of a Hunter Industries Hydrawise WeatherSense-certified smart controller that adjusts irrigation schedules using Weather Underground hyperlocal forecast data. Safe Water Commission publishes proprietary water savings calculation algorithms and a 2023 white paper documenting approximately 58% annual irrigation water savings across the Twin Cities pilots.

The business model blends managed services to cities (backflow program administration), professional services to homeowners (SIP installations at $228-$570 depending on zone count, with cities subsidizing a portion via rebates and Metropolitan Council grants), and a smaller recurring software subscription ($2.50 per test submission via the Tester Portal for cities not under direct management). The go-to-market is sales-led into municipal water purveyors, augmented by self-serve online portals for testers and property owners, and channel partnerships with Hunter Industries and certified irrigation contractors. Named customers include the City of Eagan (four-year Smart Irrigation partner, 250+ households, 23 million gallons saved) and the Stillwater Board of Water Commissioners (2020 pilot, 100 controllers, ~10 million gallons saved).

Name

Safe Water Commission

Legal name

Safe Water Commission LLC

Website

https://safewatercommission.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Safe Water Commission provides a cloud-based backflow prevention management platform and a residential Smart Irrigation Program for municipal water purveyors, certified backflow testers, and homeowners in the Minnesota Twin Cities, integrating Hunter Hydrawise controllers and Weather Underground data to deliver compliant, water-conserving programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Management Software

NAICS

Water Supply and Irrigation Systems (221310), Water, Sewage and Other Systems (2213)

SIC

Water Supply (4941), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Auto Controls For Regulating Residential & Comml Environments (3822)

akta.pro primary industry

Backflow Prevention & Cross-Connection Control (EUANAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water Quality Monitoring, Compliance & Reporting (Sampling, Lab, Regulatory) (EUANAAAG), Backflow Preventer Installation, Testing & Repair (HSAIAEAG), Water Supply & Wastewater Utilities Administration (BPAIACAG)

Keywords

• Backflow prevention software
• Smart irrigation programs
• Water conservation services
• Municipal water management
• Backflow testing compliance

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Smart Irrigation Program (SIP) Services: Professional installation of smart irrigation controllers, yard evaluations, and related services. Residents pay $228-$570 depending on irrigation system zone count. Cities reimburse Safe Water $80 for controller and $170 for audit, with partial reimbursement available through Metropolitan Council grants.
2. Backflow Testing Management Services: Managed services for cities including device inventory, test tracking, compliance reporting, and owner notifications. Revenue generated through city contracts with setup and ongoing management fees.
3. Software Portal Subscription: $2.50 per test submission fee for backflow testers using the SWC portal for cities not managed by Safe Water Commission. Limited time promotional pricing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Safe Water Commission provides cloud-based backflow prevention management software and managed services for municipalities, plus a Smart Irrigation Program (SIP) for residential water conservation. The company contracts with cities/water purveyors to manage annual backflow device testing compliance through a SaaS portal, and partners with cities to deliver professional installation of Hunter Hydrawise weather-based smart irrigation controllers, yard audits, and rebate programs to homeowners.

Product overview

Safe Water Commission offers a dual-platform solution consisting of (1) a Smart Irrigation Program (SIP) for water conservation featuring Hunter Hydrawise weather-based smart controllers, Simple Yard Audits, and professional installation services, and (2) a comprehensive Backflow Prevention Software platform with separate City Portal, Tester Portal, and Property Owner portals for managing backflow device testing compliance. The SIP program includes zone-based pricing (6-zone system at $228, with incremental costs for larger systems) and has partnered with cities like Eagan and Stillwater. The backflow software enables device inventory management, test result tracking, automated notifications, and compliance reporting using USC Foundation databases and USPS address validation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Residential Smart Irrigation Program (SIP) A turnkey residential water conservation program offered through partner cities that includes professional installation of a Hunter Hydrawise weather-based smart controller, a Simple Yard Audit, controller programming based on soil type, shade, and vegetation, homeowner education, and a detailed savings report. Typically saves 50,000-70,000 gallons per participant per season (50-60% reduction in irrigation water use). Pricing is zone-based ($228 for 6 zones or less, up to $570 for 13-16 zones), with cities subsidizing via rebates and Metropolitan Council grant reimbursements.
• Backflow Prevention Software Platform Cloud-based software platform for municipalities and certified testers to manage backflow prevention programs. Includes device inventory, test result tracking, automated property owner notifications, compliance reporting, and USPS-validated addresses with latitude, longitude, county, and commercial/residential status. Used by contracted cities and by certified backflow testers ($2.50 per test submission for non-managed cities).
• Backflow Device Testing Program (Managed Service) Managed service contracted by cities to ensure all backflow devices are tested annually. Includes tracking device locations, certified testers, and providing compliance reports on passed, failed, and untested devices. Cities contract with Safe Water Commission for setup and ongoing management fees.
• Online Rebate Management Program Service enabling cities to manage water conservation rebates, including processing monthly client lists and facilitating Metropolitan Council grant reimbursements for SWC programs.
• Simple Yard Audit (Irrigation Audit Service) Professional evaluation of residential irrigation systems performed by Certified Landscape Irrigation Auditors. Includes soil analysis, head type assessment, water pressure measurement, and recommendations for system improvements. Offered as part of the SIP and independently.

Quantifiable outcome

• 58% annual water savings through Smart Irrigation Program (9.75M gallons baseline reduced to 4.09M gallons)
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bryan Davis / Metropolitan CouncilcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2024Bryan Davis facilitates Metropolitan Council water conservation grant reimbursement for SWC programs. SWC has been approved for reimbursement due to EPA WaterSense approval and certification, enabling cities to offer subsidized program pricing.
• City of Eagan, MinnesotacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021Four-year partnership (2021-2024) for Residential Smart Irrigation Program. City provides joint advertising, customer rebates, and program promotion. SWC performs yard evaluations, installs controllers, and provides detailed reporting. City has received Vanguard Award recognition for the program.
• Hunter IndustriescoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2020Hunter Industries provides Hydrawise Water-Sense certified smart irrigation controllers for the Smart Irrigation Program. Steve Pallas, CLIA Midwest Sales Manager from Hunter, helped determine best programming practices and interface with Hunter IT specialists for data integration. Hunter provides ongoing customer technical support.
• Stillwater Board of Water CommissionerscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Partnered with SWC and Hunter Industries for 2020 residential pilot program providing 100 smart irrigation controllers. Board sponsored the program and facilitated participant recruitment.
• Brown's Creek Watershed DistrictminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Co-sponsored the 2020 Stillwater Smart Irrigation Pilot Program alongside the Stillwater Board of Water Commissioners.
• nobackflow.comminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2017SWC's backflow prevention software added to nobackflow.com web directory, increasing visibility and customer acquisition for the software platform.
• CapterraminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2017SWC's backflow prevention software submitted to Capterra software directory to reach software buyers searching for backflow prevention solutions.
• Superior Landscape & IrrigationminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerCertified irrigation contractor that performed irrigation assessments and installations for the 2020 Stillwater pilot program. Works with SWC for Smart Irrigation Program installations.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Watts Water Technologies: Watts manufactures backflow preventers, valves, and water safety products for plumbing and utility markets. Comparable as an incumbent backflow hardware supplier whose devices are inventoried and tested within SWC's software platform.
• Badger Meter: Badger Meter offers water metering and AMI/analytics solutions for utilities. Comparable as an incumbent water-utility data platform that competes for municipal software budgets adjacent to backflow management and conservation programs.
• Itron: Itron provides metering and utility-network software for water, electric, and gas utilities, including compliance and AMI capabilities. Comparable as a broad incumbent that water purveyors may already use for AMI and that could expand into or absorb cross-connection compliance tracking.
• Mueller Water Products: Mueller Water Products manufactures water infrastructure including backflow prevention assemblies and hydrant components used by utilities. Comparable as a broader incumbent in the backflow prevention hardware space that SWC's software platform indirectly touches.

Direct peers

• Banyan Water: Banyan Water offers smart irrigation and water management software for commercial and multifamily properties. Comparable to SWC's SIP for the water-savings algorithms and audit-driven controller programming, though Banyan focuses on commercial rather than municipal residential programs.
• Rachio: Rachio makes consumer-focused Wi-Fi smart irrigation controllers and an app for residential water savings. Comparable to SWC's Hunter Hydrawise-based SIP but targets homeowners directly rather than through municipal partnership programs.
• HydroCorp: HydroCorp delivers cross-connection control and backflow prevention program management services to water utilities. Comparable to SWC's managed-services approach to municipal backflow compliance, though HydroCorp's model is more inspection-heavy and field-services oriented.
• HydroPoint Data Systems: HydroPoint's WeatherTRAK platform delivers weather-based smart irrigation controllers and water-management analytics for municipalities and utilities. Closely comparable to SWC's SIP/Hunter Hydrawise integration for utility-driven residential conservation programs.
• Backflow Solutions LLC: Backflow Solutions provides backflow testing management software for water utilities, including device tracking, test submissions, and compliance reporting. Directly comparable to SWC's City Portal and Tester Portal offerings for municipal backflow programs.

Emerging players

• Hunter Industries: Hunter Industries manufactures the Hydrawise smart irrigation controllers that power SWC's SIP and is also a technology partner. Comparable as a competing smart-controller vendor and an emerging platform play via Hydrawise, though primarily a hardware manufacturer rather than a software/services provider.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/safewatercomm
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/safe-water-commission

Compliance1 record

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 Safe Water Commission