Socarto

What Socarto does

Socarto - Sociedade de Levantamentos Topo Cartográficos, Lda. is a Portuguese private limited company founded in 1977 and headquartered in Lisbon, with a secondary office in Maia. It provides geospatial services built around aerial survey capture (manned aircraft, UAV/VANT, and airborne LiDAR), photogrammetric processing, mobile mapping, topographic and bathymetric surveys, and downstream cartographic production including DGT-certified orthophotomaps, digital terrain models, 3D city models, and tourism maps. Its portfolio also extends to 360 photography, road and railway infrastructure registration, and planning services covering civil protection, urban resilience, municipal forest defense, and climate adaptation. The company is registered with Portugal's Direcao-Geral do Territorio (DGT) for cartography and cadastral activities and operates an Integrated Management System certified to ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and ISO/IEC 27001.

The company's technology stack centers on geographic information systems, aerial photogrammetry, LiDAR, and mobile mapping, with computer-vision-assisted orthophoto correction and multi-sensor data integration (aerial imagery, point clouds, bathymetric data). Socarto generates revenue primarily through project-based professional services sold via quote-based, multi-year contracts awarded through competitive tendering to Portuguese public-sector clients. Its customer base is almost entirely governmental: municipalities such as Oeiras, Cascais, Lousã, Coruche, Alcoutim, Faro, Olhão, and Vila Nova de Gaia; central agencies including IFAP and Infraestruturas de Portugal; intermunicipal communities such as CIM-Ave; and regional bodies such as Civil Protection of Madeira. The go-to-market is sales-led direct engagement supplemented by a multilingual website (Portuguese, English, Spanish, French) and organic social channels; the firm self-describes as the #1 aerial survey provider in Portugal, supported by 14 Level 1 and 2 Level 2 DGT-certified cartography processes and 6 BUPi cadastral projects.

Name

Socarto

Legal name

Socarto - Sociedade de Levantamentos Topo Cartográficos, Lda.

Website

https://socarto.pt

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Socarto is a Portuguese geospatial services firm founded in 1977 that delivers DGT-certified aerial surveys, LiDAR, photogrammetric cartography, mobile mapping, and urban planning services primarily to municipalities, central agencies, and intermunicipal communities in Portugal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Geospatial Services

NAICS

Surveying and Mapping (except Geophysical) Services (541370), Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services (541360)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

GIS & Spatial Data Management Platforms (BPAMANAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Satellite Imagery & Remote Sensing Geospatial Platforms (BPAMANAM), Mapping & Basemap Platforms (Tiles/SDKs) (BPAMANAB)

Keywords

• Aerial surveys
• Cartography services
• Topographic surveying
• LiDAR mapping
• Geographic information systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Lisbon

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Professional Geospatial Services: Project-based services including aerial surveys, cartographic production, topographic surveys, and infrastructure registration for government and municipal clients
2. Cartography and Mapping Products: Production and sale of orthophotomaps, digital terrain models, 3D city models, and thematic cartography

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Socarto provides project-based geospatial services for municipalities, intermunicipal communities, central government agencies, and infrastructure operators in Portugal. Its work centers on aerial surveys (manned aircraft, drones/UAV, and LiDAR), topographic and bathymetric surveying, cartographic production (orthophotomaps, digital terrain models, 3D city models, thematic and tourism maps), mobile mapping-based road/rail infrastructure registration, and urban/civil-protection planning deliverables. Outputs are DGT-certified and delivered under an ISO 9001/14001/27001 Integrated Management System.

Product overview

Socarto is a geospatial services company offering a comprehensive portfolio of products centered around geographic information technologies. The core offerings include six main product categories: Aerial Surveys (with LiDAR capability), Mapping and Spatial Data, Topography and Bathymetry, 360 Photography and Videography, Road Registration, and Planning services. These products integrate through shared geographic data collection technologies—LiDAR, aerial photography, mobile mapping, and bathymetric surveys—that feed into downstream mapping, modeling, and planning applications. Sub-products include orthophotomaps, digital terrain models, 3D city models, tourism maps, and a recently launched Tree Registry service for environmental conservation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Aerial Surveys (Levantamentos Aéreos) Acquisition of vertical and oblique aerial photographs from manned aircraft or drone (UAV), and LiDAR aerial surveys for topographic and terrain data collection, for municipalities, central agencies, and infrastructure operators in Portugal.
• Mapping and Spatial Data (Cartografia e Dados Geográficos) Topographic and thematic mapping, orthophotomaps, digital terrain models, 3D city models, and tourism maps for urban planning and land management customers.
• Topography and Bathymetry (Topografia e Batimetria) Topographic, bathymetric, and laser scanner surveys to support architectural and engineering projects.
• 360 Photography and Videography (Fotografia 360 e Videografia) High-resolution georeferenced spherical photographs and videography production for documentation and visualization.
• Road Registration (Cadastro Rodoviário) Identification of vertical and horizontal road signage and mobile mapping system for road infrastructure documentation, including road and railway registration.
• Planning (Planeamento) Urban resilience plans for disaster risk reduction, civil protection emergency plans, municipal forest defense plans, and climate change adaptation plans.
• Tree Registry (Cadastro de Arvoredo) Environmental conservation service for cataloguing trees using advanced georeferencing technology, generating detailed reports for biodiversity conservation and climate action, for environmental managers and urban planners.

Quantifiable outcome

• Leader in aerial surveys in Portugal
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• BlueSky International: UK-based aerial survey company producing LiDAR, orthophotos, and national aerial coverage — directly comparable in service mix to Socarto, but focused primarily on UK/Irish markets rather than Iberia.
• Aerodata International Surveys: Belgian-headquartered aerial survey and remote sensing firm offering LiDAR, photogrammetry, and orthophoto production across Europe; comparable to Socarto in service mix but operates in different European geographies.

Broad incumbents

• Hexagon (Leica Geosystems): Global surveying and geospatial technology and services provider; competes with Socarto through airborne LiDAR capture services and GIS/surveying platforms used by municipal and infrastructure clients across Europe.
• Trimble: Global surveying, mapping, and GIS technology vendor with aerial imaging (Trimble Applanix/Trimble Mapping) offerings that overlap with Socarto's mobile mapping and aerial survey services, though Trimble is primarily a software/hardware provider.
• Esri: Dominant GIS software platform used by the same municipal and government customers Socarto serves; Esri's ArcGIS platform underpins much of Socarto's cartographic production, making it both a partner and an indirect competitive substitute for in-house GIS delivery.
• Fugro: Global leader in geo-data services for infrastructure, energy, and government clients; offers aerial, LiDAR, hydrographic, and cadastral surveys at much larger scale than Socarto, with overlapping capabilities in mapping and infrastructure documentation.
• Cyient: Engineering and geospatial services firm offering LiDAR, photogrammetry, and GIS data production for utilities, governments, and infrastructure operators — overlapping with Socarto's aerial survey and mapping service lines at larger scale.

Others

• Riegl: Austrian manufacturer of airborne and terrestrial LiDAR scanning systems; comparable because Riegl's sensors are a key technology input for Socarto's LiDAR-based aerial and mobile mapping services, making it a critical supplier rather than a direct competitor.

Direct peers

• IIC Technologies: Global hydrographic, surveying, and geospatial services provider delivering LiDAR, aerial survey, and cartographic production for governments and infrastructure operators — overlapping closely with Socarto's core aerial and mapping service lines.
• Topgeo: Portuguese surveying, cartography, and GIS services firm competing directly with Socarto for municipal and government tenders in Portugal, offering similar aerial, topographic, and cadastral mapping capabilities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/socartoportugal
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/socarto
• Instagraminstagram.com/socartoportugal

Compliance3 records

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 Socarto