Dry Utility Consulting
Dry utility coordination is one of the most underestimated timelines in site development. It touches every discipline, involves multiple utility providers who don’t talk to each other, and when it goes wrong, it delays your building permit by months. CaliChi’s dry utility team manages this entire process — from the first will-serve letter request through composite drawing approval and construction coordination.
We handle the planning, design, and management of non-water utilities: electrical, telecommunications, gas, and cable. Our team coordinates directly with PG&E, PGE (Portland), Hawaiian Electric, AT&T, Comcast, and every other provider your project needs. We act as your single point of contact so you’re not chasing six different companies with six different timelines.
Why Dry Utility Coordination Matters
Most developers don’t think about dry utilities until they’re already in the permit process — and that’s when it becomes a problem. PG&E’s joint trench design process alone can take 8-16 weeks. If you haven’t started early, that timeline lands squarely on your critical path. We’ve seen projects delayed 3-6 months because dry utility coordination started too late.
The other issue is cost. Transformer pads, switchgear, pull boxes, and vault locations all need to be designed into your site plan from the beginning. Retrofitting them after civil drawings are complete means redesign fees, re-permitting, and construction change orders. Our timeline guide breaks down exactly when to start each step.
Our Dry Utility Services
Dry Utility Due Diligence
We assess existing utility infrastructure — gas, electricity, telecom — and identify what new services are needed, where conflicts exist, and what challenges will affect distribution to your site. This happens during pre-design and directly informs your site plan layout.
Will-Serve Letters
We research every utility provider serving your project location, submit formal requests, and obtain will-serve letters confirming service availability and connection requirements. What is a will-serve letter and why does it matter?
Rule 16 Service Line Extensions
When new electrical service requires a line extension, we navigate PG&E’s Rule 16 process — determining cost allocation, designing the most cost-effective route, and managing the application through approval. This applies to residential subdivisions, commercial developments, and industrial facilities.
Rule 20A, B, & C Undergrounding Projects
Rule 20 provides three tiers of ratepayer funding for converting overhead power lines to underground. We determine your project’s eligibility, work with the utility on cost allocation, and manage the conversion design. Our PG&E Green Book guide translates the technical requirements into plain English.
Joint Trench Design
We prepare the joint trench intent drawing and submit it to all utility providers — PG&E, AT&T, Comcast, and others — to determine who will participate in the shared trench. Each provider specifies their conduit count, size, and technical requirements. We then coordinate all responses into a unified design. Our developer’s guide to PG&E joint trench walks through the full process.
Composite Construction Drawings
The composite drawing combines all joint trench participants’ requirements into a single, buildable set of construction documents. This is where most coordination breakdowns happen — conflicting clearances, mismatched alignments, and missing details. We resolve every conflict before submitting for formal utility approval. How composite utility plans work.
Transformer Pads & Equipment Placement
Transformer pads, switchgear, pull boxes, and electrical vaults all require specific clearances, access paths, and setbacks that directly affect your site layout. We design these into the civil drawings from day one so there are no surprises during plan check. PG&E transformer pad requirements and switchgear placement guide.
Onsite Coordination Meetings
Pre-construction utility coordination prevents the delays and cost overruns that come from conflicts between existing infrastructure and planned construction. We schedule and manage the entire process — utility locates, pre-construction meetings, and field coordination.
Construction Documents
Our engineers integrate dry utility designs with the civil, architectural, and MEP disciplines to produce a comprehensive and coordinated set of construction drawings. The result: fewer RFIs, fewer change orders, and a buildable set of plans.
Markets We Serve
We provide dry utility consulting for every project type that needs utility infrastructure:
- Multifamily housing — subdivisions, apartments, condos. Dry utility design for multifamily projects
- Industrial & warehouse — high power demand, large transformer pads. Industrial dry utility power demand guide
- Commercial & retail — tenant improvement, mixed-use, restaurants
- K-12 schools — DSA compliance, campus utility upgrades
- Public infrastructure — streetscape, undergrounding, utility relocations
Where We Work
We’re licensed and experienced in dry utility coordination across California, Oregon, and Hawaii — each with different utility providers, standards, and timelines:
- Bay Area, CA — PG&E, AT&T, Comcast. We know the Green Book process inside and out.
- Portland, OR — PGE, Pacific Power. Joint trench design in Portland
- Hood River, OR — Pacific Power, Hood River Electric
- Maui, HI — Hawaiian Electric (HECO), Hawaiian Telcom
The CaliChi Difference
Most civil engineering firms treat dry utility as an afterthought — something they coordinate reluctantly after the site plan is done. We lead with it. Our team has managed dry utility coordination on hundreds of projects and we’ve built direct relationships with the utility providers your project depends on. When PG&E needs clarification on your joint trench submittal, they call us — not your general contractor.
Thanks for directing and addressing the site/traffic questions/discussion. The city reps clearly loved the site plan design. Great job!”
JASON SHEETS, MODA4 Design
Ready to Start?
Whether you’re in pre-design and need to understand your utility timeline, or you’re mid-permit and need composite drawings approved, we can step in at any phase. Request a proposal or call us at (510) 250-7877.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is dry utility coordination?
Dry utility coordination manages the design and installation of underground electrical, gas, telecom, and cable infrastructure for new development. In California, this means coordinating joint trench design with PG&E (or other IOUs), AT&T, Comcast, and any other franchise utilities in the project area. The civil engineer prepares a composite utility plan, coordinates conduit routing with each utility, and manages the design approval process so installation can proceed on the construction schedule.
How long does PG&E joint trench design and approval typically take?
Plan-to-construction for a PG&E joint trench design runs six to twelve months for a typical commercial or multifamily project in Northern California. PG&E design queues are long, and revision cycles add time. For projects on a tight schedule, we start the PG&E application at design development before construction documents are complete, to avoid delays at permit issuance. Projects in Enhanced Powerline Safety Settings zones or near transmission infrastructure have additional review layers.
What is included in a composite utility plan?
A composite utility plan overlays all proposed underground utilities on a single drawing to identify conflicts and establish a coordinated installation sequence. It shows conduit sizing and routing, pull box and handhole locations, separation distances from wet utilities, and clearances from structures. Most jurisdictions require composite plans as part of the permit submittal, and PG&E distribution standards specify minimum separation distances the composite plan must satisfy.
When should dry utility coordination start in the project timeline?
Start at design development, no later than 50% construction documents. PG&E design timeline is the longest leg on most projects, and submitting the application late pushes utility installation past your target construction start. For projects requiring undergrounding of existing overhead lines under Rule 20A, 20B, or 20C, add three to six months for PG&E planning review. We have seen projects delayed six months at the construction phase because dry utilities were not ordered early enough.
What most commonly causes delays in dry utility approvals?
The three biggest delay drivers are: first, PG&E design backlog measured in months where revisions reset the clock; second, conflicting utility routing requiring coordination between PG&E, AT&T, and telecom providers who do not always communicate with each other; and third, late discovery of existing underground infrastructure that forces rerouting. We request as-built records from all utilities at project kickoff and build a base map before committing to routing, which catches the third issue early.
Is a licensed civil engineer required for dry utility coordination in California?
PG&E requires joint trench plans and composite utility plans to be prepared or reviewed by a licensed civil or electrical engineer. The encroachment permit application for work in the public right-of-way also requires a licensed engineer stamp. Utility coordination firms that are not licensed can handle the administrative logistics, but the engineering documents must be stamped by a California PE. We handle both the engineering and the direct coordination with utility companies.