AGTEK software aids solar earthworks

AGTEK said on June 1 that contractors are using its DirtSimple software on solar and wind projects to plan earthwork, underground utilities and site risk controls as renewable construction scales. The company tied that pitch to a broader argument it has been making in recent product and industry posts: on utility-scale renewable sites, the earliest civil scopes often determine whether later electrical work can proceed on time. AGTEK said those jobs are large, geographically spread out and frequently bid before engineering is complete. The company said that combination makes grading, trenching and utility coordination a primary source of schedule and cost risk. ### Why would earthwork software matter on a solar or wind site? AGTEK said renewable projects can look similar to standard heavy civil work because they include grading, access roads, utilities and foundations, but “operate very differently” in practice. In its June 2026 renewables materials, the company said those sites involve evolving designs, broad footprints and sequencing challenges that require contractors to keep updating terrain, utility and production assumptions as work advances. (agtek.com) The company’s renewables page says its Gradework tools are used to analyze terrain and slope, model grading changes and accommodate design revisions as projects evolve. AGTEK says those capabilities help contractors prepare sites for solar panel and wind turbine installation, where grade, drainage and access conditions affect later construction packages. ### Where does the risk build up first? AGTEK said in a June article that “earthwork and utilities sit at the center of that uncertainty, where risk accumulates fastest.” The company said renewable jobs are often priced and planned before final engineering is complete, leaving contractors to manage incomplete information on subsurface conditions, trench layouts, drainage and changing quantities. (agtek.com 1) (agtek.com 2) AGTEK made a similar point in a separate post on underground work, saying utility scopes are often incomplete, missing depth information or contain conflicts that surface only after crews begin digging. The company said its Underground program is designed to calculate pipe lengths, trench volumes and bedding quantities and to integrate that information with its Gradework model so earthwork and utilities are planned together rather than as separate scopes. (agtek.com) ### How does AGTEK say the software reduces uncertainty? AGTEK says its software is used to create takeoffs, estimate quantities, build machine-control models and track progress through the construction life cycle. On its main product pages, the company says contractors can use the same model from bid stage into job execution, which it says reduces duplicate data entry and improves continuity between estimating and field operations. (agtek.com) In its June 1 social post and related web materials, AGTEK linked that continuity to risk control. The company said contractors can stay “agile and in control” by tying site plans to modeled quantities, trench details and documented field communication. That is the basis for AGTEK’s claim that the software can reduce rework and help crews maintain momentum as civil packages move toward electrical handoffs and vendor mobilization. That handoff benefit is an inference drawn from AGTEK’s descriptions of integrated earthwork and underground planning, not a quantified performance figure released by the company. (agtek.com) ### What does AGTEK actually sell into this workflow? AGTEK describes itself as a construction estimating and takeoff software provider and says it is part of Hexagon. Its site says the product set includes Gradework for earthwork takeoff and modeling, Underground for utility takeoff, and related tools for materials, progress measurement and machine-control workflows. AGTEK’s current news and blog pages show the company has recently published separate pieces on renewable energy, underground risk and critical infrastructure workflows. (agtek.com) Those posts frame the same message across markets: early-phase dirt and utility decisions shape downstream execution. ### Where can contractors see the next step in AGTEK’s pitch? AGTEK’s June 2026 renewables and underground pages remain the clearest public source for how the company is presenting the workflow to contractors. (agtek.com) The company’s current news page and product pages list additional materials, downloads and support resources for users evaluating Gradework and Underground on renewable and other infrastructure projects. (agtek.com)