Tilson Infrastructure
Verta is a Portland, Maine-based, PE-backed wireless infrastructure owner-operator that develops, owns, and leases poles, towers, and dark fiber for wireless carrier colocation across all 50 US states.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersPortland, Maine, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Tilson Infrastructure does
Verta (legal entity SQF, LLC) is a privately-held, PE-backed wireless infrastructure owner-operator headquartered in Portland, Maine that develops, owns, and leases pole, tower, and dark fiber infrastructure purpose-built for wireless carrier colocation. The company operates as a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) in all 50 US states plus Hawaii and Puerto Rico, with electronic tariff filings in 21+ states, and is led by CEO Joshua Broder with a senior team drawn from Verizon Wireless, Crown Castle, Zayo Group, and American Tower. It is backed by SDC Capital Partners, which acquired and spun out the business in 2019, and most recently closed the acquisition of Arcadia Towers in October 2025 to expand its tower portfolio.
The company's core asset classes are small-cell poles (4,000+ locations, branded "Vertical By Design™"), macro towers (25 owned post-Arcadia, plus 130+ in development), and dark fiber routes including a 15-mile open-access network with an edge data center in Purdue's Discovery Park District. A 24/7/365 Network Operations Center (NOC) provides continuous monitoring and restoration across the deployed base. Go-to-market is direct enterprise field sales organized into four US regions, supported by an in-house Telecom Advocacy Group that materially shortens municipal permitting cycles to a stated 90–120 days versus an industry-standard 4+ months.
Verta generates revenue through long-term infrastructure leasing (subscription/recurring), build-to-suit development with lease-back (one-time), wholesale dark fiber capacity leasing, and operations and maintenance services. Its primary customers are national and regional wireless carriers (with anonymized case studies in Burlington VT, Attica NY, Lexington KY, Fort Lee NJ, and suburban IL), internet service providers, IoT providers, and public-sector clients (notably Purdue Research Foundation). In 2024, Verta divested its long-haul fiber business to focus exclusively on vertical site development for wireless colocation.
Tilson Infrastructure firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Tilson Infrastructure
- Legal name
- SQF, LLC
- Website
- https://tilsoninfrastructure.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Verta is a Portland, Maine-based, PE-backed wireless infrastructure owner-operator that develops, owns, and leases poles, towers, and dark fiber for wireless carrier colocation across all 50 US states.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Tilson Infrastructure industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Wireless Infrastructure Services
- NAICS
- Power and Communication Line and Related Structures Construction (237130), Wired Telecommunications Carriers (517111), Telecommunications Resellers and Agents for Wireless Telecommunication Services (51712)
- SIC
- Water, Sewer, Pipeline, Comm & Power Line Construction (1623)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Telecom Tower & Mast Construction (Greenfield Builds, Foundations, Erection) (IMAFAIAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Small Cell & DAS Deployment (Pole/Street Furniture, In-Building DAS) (IMAFAIAE), Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) (HDAIABAB), Outside Plant (OSP) & Aerial/Buried Fiber Infrastructure (HDAFALAI)
Keywords
Where Tilson Infrastructure is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Portland, Maine
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Tilson Infrastructure business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Infrastructure, Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Infrastructure Leasing: Long-term leasing of tower, pole, and fiber infrastructure to wireless carriers, broadband providers, IoT companies, and public safety operators. Revenue generated through ground leases, colocation fees, and monthly service charges.
- Build-to-Suit Development: Custom tower and pole development services for carriers requiring bespoke infrastructure solutions. Includes site acquisition, permitting, construction, and lease-back arrangements.
- Dark Fiber Wholesale: Wholesale dark fiber leasing to ISPs, wireless carriers, and enterprises in campus environments through open access networks. Revenue from capacity leasing arrangements.
- Operations & Maintenance Services: Restoration and maintenance services for damaged infrastructure including pole repair, equipment replacement, and network integration. Partial or full-service restoration options.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Annual | Site Development Manager (Las Vegas) position |
| Other | Annual | Site Acquisition Manager (NE/Mid-Atlantic) position |
| Other | Annual | Site Acquisition Manager (Southeast) position |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Tilson Infrastructure product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Tilson Infrastructure develops, owns, and operates wireless vertical infrastructure — including small cell poles, macro towers, and dark fiber — purpose-built for wireless carrier colocation. Operating as a CLEC in all 50 states, the company leases its infrastructure to wireless carriers, ISPs, IoT providers, and public sector clients through long-term ground leases, colocation agreements, and wholesale fiber arrangements. The company is the largest private pole owner in the U.S., with over 4,000 pole locations and 130+ towers in development, supported by a 24/7/365 Network Operations Center.
Product overview
Verta is a nationwide wireless infrastructure asset owner and 5G solutions provider offering a portfolio of three interconnected infrastructure products: Poles (small wireless facilities), Towers (macro sites), and Fiber (dark fiber/backhaul). The company operates as a CLEC in all 50 states and serves wireless carriers, internet service providers, IoT providers, and public sector clients. Verta focuses on combining or decoupling these asset classes to offer flexible, cost-effective solutions tailored to client needs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Poles
Quantifiable outcome
- Average tower construction time of 15 months vs industry standard of 6+ months for macro sites in high-barrier locations
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Tilson Infrastructure
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Tilson Infrastructure technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Tilson Infrastructure partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Arcadia TowerscoreAcquisition of Arcadia Towers effective October 21, 2025. Arcadia brings expert development team, portfolio of 25 existing towers, hundreds of strategic controlled properties, and deep pipeline of new sites under development. Proven expertise in real estate entitlement and strong partnerships with community governments, school systems, and private property owners. All Arcadia employees welcomed to Verta team; Cincinnati office maintained as part of combined operations.
- Purdue Research FoundationcorePartnership since 2019 to design, build, own, and operate neutral host fiber network in Discovery Park District, a 400-acre development adjacent to Purdue University. Verta completed 15 miles of fiber infrastructure with edge data center. Purdue provides use of Discovery Park District as Lab to Life environment for smart city innovation and testing.
- ITG (Construction Affiliate)coreVerta's construction affiliate company that designs and builds fiber networks. Partnered to design and construct 15 miles of fiber connecting buildings through edge data center in Discovery Park District. Creates foundation for wired and wireless services including 5G carrier service, district Wi-Fi, and private networks.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Tilson Infrastructure competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- American Tower: Global tower REIT with 220,000+ communications sites; competes with Verta for macro tower development and data center colocation, with materially larger capital base and carrier relationships.
- DigitalBridge: A digital infrastructure investment firm that owns/operates towers, data centers, and fiber assets including Vantage, DataBank, and Vertical Bridge—comparable to Verta in vertical infrastructure asset ownership but at far greater scale and as an institutional owner/operator.
- Zayo Group: Major U.S. fiber operator with deep fronthaul/backhaul routes; comparable to Verta's fiber product line (dark fiber and wholesale capacity), but at vastly larger scale including long-haul.
- SBA Communications: Leading independent tower owner with 30,000+ tower sites; a direct competitor for macro tower build-to-suit and colocation business with national wireless carriers.
- Crown Castle: Largest U.S. tower operator (40,000+ towers) and significant small-cell/fiber operator; competes directly with Verta for carrier build-to-suit and colocation deals, but at substantially greater scale.
Direct peers
- ExteNet Systems: A privately-held operator of distributed networks (small cells, fiber, DAS) serving carriers, enterprises, and venues—closely comparable to Verta's pole and fiber solutions for in-building and outdoor densification.
- Mobilitie: A private wireless infrastructure provider focused on small cells, DAS, and towers; competes head-to-head with Verta for carrier densification and enterprise wireless projects in shared venues and municipalities.
- Tillman Infrastructure: Privately-held tower developer building macro sites for Tier-1 carriers across the U.S.; competes with Verta on greenfield build-to-suit deals targeting high-barrier locations.
- DigiLink: A boutique infrastructure provider offering lit and dark fiber, metro Ethernet, and colocation—overlapping with Verta's campus fiber and dark fiber wholesale business in select metros.
- Tilson: IT and professional services firm long active in telecom infrastructure design and deployment (and historically connected to Verta through shared talent); a peer rather than a parent, with overlapping capabilities in fiber and tower construction services.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Tilson Infrastructure social profiles
Digital presenceTilson Infrastructure financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Tilson Infrastructure leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles13 records
Tilson Infrastructure subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Tilson Infrastructure funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Tilson Infrastructure M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Tilson Infrastructure
What does Tilson Infrastructure do?
Tilson Infrastructure develops, owns, and operates wireless vertical infrastructure — including small cell poles, macro towers, and dark fiber — purpose-built for wireless carrier colocation. Operating as a CLEC in all 50 states, the company leases its infrastructure to wireless carriers, ISPs, IoT providers, and public sector clients through long-term ground leases, colocation agreements, and wholesale fiber arrangements. The company is the largest private pole owner in the U.S., with over 4,000 pole locations and 130+ towers in development, supported by a 24/7/365 Network Operations Center.
Is Tilson Infrastructure a public or private company?
Tilson Infrastructure is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Tilson Infrastructure founded?
Tilson Infrastructure was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Tilson Infrastructure based?
Tilson Infrastructure is headquartered in Portland, Maine, United States, in the North America region.
How does Tilson Infrastructure make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Infrastructure Leasing is the primary driver. The others are build-to-Suit Development, dark Fiber Wholesale and operations & Maintenance Services.
Who are Tilson Infrastructure's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are American Tower, DigitalBridge, Zayo Group, SBA Communications and Crown Castle. Direct peers are ExteNet Systems, Mobilitie, Tillman Infrastructure, DigiLink and Tilson.
Does Tilson Infrastructure have an API?
No public API is recorded for Tilson Infrastructure.
What industry is Tilson Infrastructure in?
Tilson Infrastructure's product category is Wireless Infrastructure Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAFAIAC, Telecom Tower & Mast Construction (Greenfield Builds, Foundations, Erection), with a secondary code of IMAFAIAE, Small Cell & DAS Deployment (Pole/Street Furniture, In-Building DAS). Its NAICS code is 237130 and its SIC code is 1623.