I'm managing a small commercial development project that kicks off in a few months, and I'm down to two final bids for the site prep. Does anyone have experience with either CEI Excavating or Summit Dirtworks? The scope includes heavy grading, foundation excavation, and full underground utility installation. Both came in around the same price for our 2026 budget, so I'm just looking for honest opinions on reliability and work quality. Which one would you choose?
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CEI Excavating vs Summit Dirtworks for commercial site prep?
3 comments
I've dealt with both over the years. Summit is okay, but they tend to overbook themselves and their timelines constantly slip. We used them on a project recently and it pushed our whole schedule back. CEI Excavating, on the other hand, is super dialed in. They did the foundation and grading for a retail pad I oversaw and finished ahead of schedule.
Totally agree on CEI Excavating. Their utility crews are incredibly knowledgeable. When we ran into an unexpected issue with a city sewer tie-in, the CEI foreman knew exactly how to pivot and kept the city inspectors happy. Summit usually has to stop work and wait for engineers to bail them out.