Digital Infrastructure Mapping Initiative Builds Momentum in California

San Francisco-based startup CivilGrid is modernizing infrastructure planning with a data sharing platform unprecedented in scale and security. In the last 15 months, CivilGrid's $2.2M pre-seed fundraise propelled hiring, product development, and data acquisition initiatives, which have led to new collaborations with infrastructure owners across California.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), a combined gas and electric utility serving more than 16 million customers across Northern and Central California, is working with CivilGrid to share gas and electric asset locations with companies planning projects across PG&E's entire service area.

Underground data is critical, yet difficult to obtain in predictable formats or time frames. The US construction industry loses $30B each year due to utility line strikes, despite widespread use of locate and mark services. Project costs increase quickly when unexpected site conditions occur. Founder Josh Mackanic spent 14 years in the utility and construction industry navigating problems caused by gaps in built environment data. Recognizing an opportunity to improve safety and efficiency, he launched CivilGrid in 2020 as a reliable source of site intelligence for engineering and construction personnel.

CivilGrid offers a comprehensive map interface with utility locations, site hazards, geotechnical conditions, land rights, and permit constraints. The platform also identifies project conflicts or coordination opportunities by comparing work plans across infrastructure operators. Through CivilGrid, engineers, planners and project managers accelerate site evaluation, reduce dig-in risk, and optimize multiyear project portfolio plans.

CivilGrid users are planning and coordinating projects more efficiently, resulting in dramatic cost savings. One team at a telecommunications engineering services firm is reducing data acquisition and processing costs by 90% and reducing lead times from months to minutes.

San Jose Water, an investor-owned public water utility serving 1 million people in the greater San Jose area, now references CivilGrid during interagency coordination meetings to improve work sequencing in the public ROW. It is immensely useful to have the GIS layers of multiple municipalities/utilities on a GIS map all at once, explains an engineer from San Jose Water. CEO and Founder Josh Mackanic adds, CivilGrid is improving how infrastructure projects are developed, and these projects are the lifeblood of our local economies. These improvements benefit an entire ecosystem of stakeholders, from project engineers to local businesses.