The 2.3 million miles of drinking water pipe and 1.8 million miles of wastewater pipe installed across the U.S. vary significantly in age and material type. With current annual water & wastewater pipe replacement rates averaging less than 1.0%, utilities are increasingly turning to alternative methods and technologies to maximize the useful life of their buried assets.

As trenchless technologies become more advanced, they become more readily accepted as a project option alongside dig and replace. Furthermore, trenchless solution providers promote faster timelines and reduced costs compared to dig-and-replace projects.

As demand for trenchless solutions continues to scale, a growing roster of firms are carving out competitive positions in the market, including vertically integrated trenchless pure-plays, diversified chemical companies, specialty service providers, and private equity (PE) investors. These players face a dynamic market landscape, shaped by labor and supply chain shortages, record inflationary pressures, and an influx of federal and state infrastructure funding, such as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

In this report, Bluefield’s team of water experts revisits the U.S. trenchless market, evaluating the impact of current supply and demand dynamics on the trenchless market outlook and competitive landscape from 2022 to 2030.