Geopraevent

What Geopraevent does

Geopraevent AG is a Zürich-based engineering company that designs, manufactures, installs, and operates integrated alarm and monitoring systems for gravitational natural hazards — avalanches, rockfalls, debris flows, landslides, glacial lake outbursts, and floods. Its product stack centers on proprietary radar systems (avalanche radar with up to 5 km range and 90° horizontal aperture, interferometric radar detecting millimeter-scale movements at ~2 km, rockfall radar, person radar, level radar), high-resolution deformation cameras up to 40 megapixels with automatic image analysis, extensometers, and movement sensors, all managed through the GRAVX® online data portal that delivers real-time visualization, alerting, and remote control of traffic barriers and signals.

The company sells primarily to public-sector buyers — cantonal and municipal governments, road and rail authorities (Statens vegvesen in Norway, MoTI in British Columbia, Rhätische Bahn in Switzerland), emergency response centers (KNZ St. Gallen), geological hazard agencies, and alpine infrastructure operators (ski resorts, cable cars). Pricing is project-based, ranging from approximately CHF 10,000 for entry-level sensor configurations to several hundred thousand francs for comprehensive multi-sensor installations, supplemented by annual subscription revenue for the GRAVX portal and 24/7 managed monitoring services. Go-to-market is direct enterprise sales targeting safety and infrastructure departments, supported by conference presence (EGU, GEOSummit, ISSW), webinars, a 40+ page technology handbook, and earned Swiss media coverage.

Geopraevent has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hexagon AB (Swedish geospatial conglomerate) since an undisclosed acquisition date and operates within Hexagon's Geospatial division. Founded around 2012 and headquartered at Räffelstrasse 28 in Zürich (with a presence at Technopark Zürich), the company employs 11–50 people and runs active installations across Switzerland, Norway, Canada, Italy, China, Georgia, Greenland, and India. Notable operational milestones include accurate prediction of the 2017 Triftgletscher collapse at Weissmies, a 2012 Preonzo rockfall prediction within a 24-hour window, and 95% data quality over 2.5 years of continuous radar operation in extreme alpine conditions.

Name

Geopraevent

Legal name

GEOPRAEVENT AG

Website

https://geopraevent.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Geopraevent AG designs, installs, and operates radar-based alarm and monitoring systems for avalanches, rockfalls, debris flows, and floods, serving government transportation authorities, emergency response agencies, and alpine infrastructure operators across Europe, North America, and Asia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Zürich

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Hardware Systems Sales: Sale of integrated radar, camera, and monitoring hardware systems. Systems range from 10,000 to several 100,000 francs depending on complexity and scope. Includes avalanche radars, interferometric radars, rockfall radars, webcams, and deformation cameras.
2. Monitoring and Alarm Services: Ongoing monitoring services with real-time data transmission, 24/7 system monitoring, and automatic alarm transmission. Includes integration with local authorities' IT systems and emergency response centers.
3. GRAVX Data Portal Subscription: Online data portal providing live measurements, historical data, and event visualization. Authorized users access data anytime via PC or smartphone.
4. Installation and Commissioning: Professional installation services including site assessment, equipment deployment (often by helicopter in alpine regions), system integration, and commissioning.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Geopraevent designs, develops, manufactures, installs, and operates integrated hardware and software solutions for the alarming and monitoring of gravitative natural hazards such as avalanches, rockfalls, debris flows, landslides, glacial lake outbursts, and floods. Its offerings combine proprietary radar systems (avalanche, rockfall, interferometric, person, and level radar), deformation cameras and webcams, movement and crack sensors, alerting infrastructure (traffic lights, barriers, sirens, SMS/call), and the GRAVX® online data portal, primarily delivered to government transportation, civil protection, and geological monitoring authorities.

Product overview

Geopraevent develops, installs, and operates integrated alarm and monitoring systems for gravitational natural hazards. The product portfolio centers on radar-based detection systems (avalanche radar, rockfall radar, interferometric radar, person radar, level radar) paired with deformation cameras and webcams for visual monitoring. These hardware systems are managed through the GRAVX® Online Data Portal for real-time data access and alerting. Alerting technologies include local warning systems (traffic lights, barriers, sirens) and automated notification to authorities. The company also offers SLYX software for specialized slow movement analysis at tailing dams. Together, these products form a comprehensive natural hazard monitoring and early warning ecosystem.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GRAVX®: Online data portal for monitoring and alarm data visualization

Products and services

• Avalanche Radar (Lawinenradar) Radar-based autonomous detection system for avalanches, designed for transportation authorities and ski/mountain infrastructure operators to enable automatic road closure and real-time avalanche alerting across large alpine areas in all weather and visibility conditions.
• Rockfall Radar (Steinschlagradar) Radar-based detection system for rockfall events in all weather conditions, serving governments and infrastructure operators needing continuous monitoring of rockfall-prone slopes.
• Person Radar (Personenradar) Radar system for detecting persons in danger zones and triggering reliable alarms, used to protect personnel during controlled avalanche blasting and other high-risk operations in alpine environments.
• Interferometric Radar (InSAR) Interferometric radar for millimeter-precision deformation monitoring of rock, glaciers, and permafrost from distances up to 2 km, used by geological monitoring organizations to predict rockfall and glacier collapse timing.
• Level Radar (Pegelradar) and Level Measurements Water-level and discharge measurement systems using flow-height radar, laser, and pressure probes, used by emergency management and civil protection authorities for flood, flash flood, and glacial lake outburst early warning.
• Deformation Camera (Deformationskamera) High-resolution autonomous camera system (up to 40 megapixels) with automatic deformation analysis and PTZ (Pan-Tilt-Zoom) capability for remote monitoring of landslides and rock instabilities, used by geological and natural hazard monitoring organizations.
• Webcams High-resolution live and archive webcam images for visual monitoring of danger zones and for automatic deformation analysis, accessible via the GRAVX online data portal.
• Movement Sensors (Bewegungssensoren) Sensors installed in rockfall and debris flow protection nets to monitor movement and trigger alarms, reducing maintenance costs and increasing safety for infrastructure operators.
• Crack and Distance Measurements (Kluftmessungen / Distanzmessungen) Extensometers and telejointmeters for submillimeter measurement of rock fissures, providing early warning of crack widening in unstable rock faces for geological monitoring organizations.
• GRAVX® Online Data Portal Proprietary online data portal that displays live and historical measurement and event data from Geopraevent monitoring installations, with authorized-user access from PC or smartphone and remote control of alerting infrastructure such as traffic lights and barriers.
• Alerting Technologies (Alarmierung) Integrated alarm transmission and local warning system including traffic lights, barriers, sirens, flashing lights, and prioritized SMS, calls, and email notifications, with direct integration into emergency services and blue-light organizations.
• SLYX Slow Movement Analysis Software algorithm for analyzing slow ground deformation at tailing dams, integrated into IDS GeoRadar's IBIS Guardian software application for monitoring dam stability.
• AVYX Avalanche Radar System (Furuflaten, Norway) New-generation AVYX avalanche radar system deployed at Furuflaten, Norway, for autonomous avalanche detection and road safety in arctic/alpine environments.
• Bear Pass Avalanche Radar System (Canada) Avalanche radar system deployed at Bear Pass, Canada, for the BC Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure to detect avalanches and enable automated highway management on a critical transportation corridor.

Quantifiable outcome

• Highway closure duration reduced by over 40%
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability7 records

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Hexagon ABcoreOthersHexagon AB is the parent company of Geopraevent AG. Geopraevent operates within the Hexagon group matrix structure and utilizes data processing tools shared between multiple Hexagon Group entities. Hexagon AB (Swedish Company Registration Number 556190-4771) is based in Stockholm, Sweden.
• Egli Engineering AG St. GallenminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartner for flood warning system projects in St. Gallen. Collaborated on Steinach flood warning system design specifically for emergency response center and fire department requirements.
• geoformer igp AGcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on glacier monitoring interpretation and analysis. geoformer igp AG from Brig provides expert interpretation of radar and camera monitoring data for glacier movements and instability analysis. Partnered on Zermatt avalanche radar installation.
• SwisscomcoreTechnology or IntegrationSwiss mobile network provider partnership for automatic prioritized alarm SMS transmission. Provides eAlarm emergency services integration for alarm notifications to authorities.
• Prof. Martin Funk (VAW/ETH Zürich)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerExpert collaboration on glacier monitoring and interpretation. Professor at ETH Zurich's VAW (Versuchsanstalt für Wasserbau, Hydrologie und Glaziologie) provides scientific interpretation of radar monitoring data for glacier instability analysis.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• GroundProbe: A division of Orica that provides slope-stability radar and laser monitoring systems for mining and infrastructure. Closely comparable to Geopraevent in using interferometric radar to detect millimeter-scale movements for real-time safety alerting, though its primary vertical is open-pit mining.
• IDS GeoRadar: Manufacturer of IBIS interferometric radar systems used for slope, structural, and tailing-dam monitoring. Directly competes in the GB-InSAR product class that Geopraevent offers, and is also an integration partner via the SLYX Slow Movement Analysis software.
• Reutech Radar Systems: South African-based manufacturer of slope-stability radar systems (MSR) widely used in open-pit mines. Comparable to Geopraevent's rockfall and interferometric radar products in technology stack and customer use case.
• Wyssen Avalanche Control: Swiss company specializing in avalanche risk mitigation including remote avalanche control systems (avalanche towers, WAC.3). Peer by geography, customer base (transportation authorities and ski resorts), and complementary role in the avalanche safety stack.
• RST Instruments: Canadian manufacturer of geotechnical and structural monitoring instruments (MEMS inclinometers, extensometers, load cells). Comparable to Geopraevent's crack/fissure and deformation products, serving similar mining, civil, and infrastructure hazard monitoring buyers.

Broad incumbents

• Geobrugg: Swiss-headquartered global leader in rockfall, slope stabilization, and avalanche protection infrastructure. Comparable to Geopraevent as a natural hazard protection provider and frequent counterparty on joint projects, though focused on physical barriers rather than electronic monitoring.
• Hexagon Geosystems (Leica Geosystems): Sister Hexagon division providing broad geospatial measurement and monitoring technologies (laser scanners, total stations, mobile mapping). Comparable as a Hexagon Group entity with overlapping geotechnical and infrastructure-monitoring capabilities and shared go-to-market.
• Geokon: Established US manufacturer of geotechnical instrumentation (inclinometers, piezometers, extensometers) used in dam, tunnel, and slope monitoring. Comparable to Geopraevent in measurement-based natural hazard monitoring selling into government and engineering clients.

Emerging players

• Worldsensing: IoT-based monitoring infrastructure for mining, construction, and rail. Comparable to Geopraevent in using sensors and connectivity for natural hazard and structural monitoring alerts, though typically lower-cost wireless nodes rather than long-range radar.
• Senceive: UK-based provider of wireless geotechnical and structural monitoring sensors (tilt, displacement, vibration). Direct overlap with Geopraevent in landslide and rail/road corridor monitoring, though focused on short-range sensor meshes rather than radar.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/geopraevent
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/GEOPRAEVENT
• Facebookfacebook.com/Geopraevent
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/geopraevent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Geopraevent