IB&T Ingenieurbüro Basedow & Tornow

Name

IB&T Ingenieurbüro Basedow & Tornow

Legal name

IB&T Software GmbH

Website

https://card-1.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Engineering CAD Software

NAICS

Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Engineering Services (54133)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

iBPMS (Intelligent BPM Suites) & Process Automation Suites (HDAEAHAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Transportation & Infrastructure Planning (BPAHAKAF)

Keywords

• Civil engineering software
• Infrastructure planning software
• CAD software surveying
• BIM infrastructure solutions
• Transportation route design

Headquarters

HQ city

Norderstedt

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses: Sale of card_1 software licenses with modules for surveying, road design, railway design, water management, BIM, and related applications. Software sold with optional service agreements for updates and support.
2. Service Agreements: Annual service agreements providing regular program updates (Freshups), access to Support Centre, hotline support, live support, training discounts, and sample/demo projects.
3. Training Services: Fee-based training courses covering card_1 modules, BIM methodologies, and specialized applications. Includes individual coaching, on-site training, and public seminar sessions.
4. Consulting Services: Project consulting services including BIM implementation support, workflow optimization, and strategic advisory for infrastructure planning projects.
5. Rental Model for DESITE BIM: Rental model for DESITE BIM as certified reseller, offering Named-User-Lizenz or Concurrent-User-Lizenz options.
6. Student/Education Licenses: Special licensing program for students and educational institutions providing reduced-cost access to card_1 software.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

IB&T Ingenieurbüro Basedow & Tornow develops and distributes the card_1 CAD software platform for surveying, planning, and construction of transportation infrastructure. The platform comprises 125+ specialized modules for road design, railway planning, canal/sewer planning, surveying, digital terrain modeling, and BIM workflows. IB&T also resells DESITE BIM (from thinkproject), offers the IB&T Hub cloud collaboration solution, and provides training, consulting, and service agreements to engineering firms and public infrastructure clients.

Product overview

IB&T Software GmbH offers a comprehensive product family centered on card_1, a professional CAD software solution for civil engineering and surveying. The core card_1 platform comprises approximately 125 modules covering surveying, road design, railway planning, sewer systems, digital terrain modeling, BIM workflows, cost calculation (AKVS/elKe), and drawing creation. The product portfolio includes complementary tools like DESITE BIM and VDC Manager for BIM coordination and management (offered through the thinkproject partnership), the IB&T Hub cloud solution for collaborative project work, CardScript for automation, and smartTurn for specialized design tasks. IB&T also provides solutions on partner CAD platforms including BricsCAD, AutoCAD, and EliteCAD, as well as integration with Bluebeam Revu for documentation workflows.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• card_1: Primary CAD/BIM software product family for surveying, road design, railway design, and infrastructure planning.
• IB&T Hub
• DESITE BIM Competence Center Verkehrswege
• VDC Manager
• smartTurn
• COLNEO infohub
• AKVS/elKe

Products and services

• card_1 Professional CAD software for surveying, planning, and construction of transportation infrastructure. Supports BIM processes for road, rail, and canal planning, surveying, and construction billing. The core platform offering approximately 125 modules and add-ons.
• DESITE BIM BIM information management solution for construction project coordination, model checking, 4D simulation, quantity calculation, and clash detection. Distributed by thinkproject and resold by IB&T as certified partner.
• VDC Manager BIM management tool for model coordination, information queries, and model analysis. Version 4.2 released at infraTag 2026 with redesigned web forms.
• AKVS/elKe Cost calculation module for infrastructure projects, including cost catalogs and calculations according to German standards.
• IB&T Hub Cloud solution by IB&T for infrastructure project collaboration and data management. Part of the complete package including software, training, and consulting.
• smartTurn Railway surveying software solution for specialized transportation design tasks.
• card_1 Freshup 10.113 Major software update of the card_1 CAD platform including new direct plotting capabilities for specialized objects in axis drawings, longitudinal and cross profiles; optimized map services with approximately 50% faster image rendering; new RAD (RasterDGM) file type; and extended GIS import and transformation capabilities.
• card_1 Service Agreement Annual subscription service agreement providing regular card_1 program updates (Freshups), access to Support Centre, hotline support, live support, training discounts, and sample/demo projects.
• card_1 Training Services Fee-based training courses covering card_1 modules, BIM methodologies, and specialized applications. Includes individual coaching, on-site training, and public seminar sessions.
• BIM Consulting Services Project consulting services including BIM implementation support, workflow optimization, and strategic advisory for infrastructure planning projects.

Quantifiable outcome

• Map services rendering speed improved by approximately 50%
• +2 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

Integration9 records

AI capability3 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and regional.

• thinkproject (DESITE BIM)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2019IB&T is the certified DESITE BIM reseller and operates the only DESITE BIM Competence Center for traffic routes. DESITE BIM is offered for rental as Named-User-Lizenz or Concurrent-User-Lizenz. IB&T provides sales, training, consulting, and hotline support for DESITE BIM solutions.
• BricsCADcoreTechnology or Integrationcard_1 solutions are available on BricsCAD platform. Special version upgrade promotions offered with discounts up to 60%. 30-day free trial available for BricsCAD with card_1 integration.
• Schüßler-Plan GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing cooperation agreement signed between Schüßler-Plan and IB&T. Schüßler-Plan uses card_1 for BIM infrastructure projects including B178n and A10/A24 Havelland. Strategic collaboration on BIM methodology development.
• ceapointminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFormer DESITE BIM sales channel before transition to thinkproject.
• Xi'an CARD/1 Software Co., Ltd.regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExclusive partner in China for card_1 software sales, support, and localization.
• IGM Interaktive Grafik Milde GmbHregionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner covering Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia sales regions in Germany.
• Miklós Tok (Hungary Representative)regionalChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSales representative for Hungary market support.
• Partner firms at infraTageminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual infraTage events feature partner presentations including SPBIM4DESITE, COLNEO infohub, and other BIM solution providers.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Autodesk: AutoCAD Civil 3D and InfraWorks compete directly with card_1 in road and corridor design, while Autodesk's broader AEC portfolio (Revit, Navisworks) overlaps the wider card_1 + DESITE BIM value chain. Autodesk is the dominant global CAD incumbent.
• Trimble: Trimble Business Center, Novapoint, and Trimble Access serve the same surveying and infrastructure planning workflows as card_1's surveying modules. Trimble combines software with its own hardware (GNSS, total stations) and pursues adjacent verticals like construction.
• Nemetschek Group: Nemetschek's brands (Allplan, Graphisoft, Vectorworks, Solibri) compete in adjacent AEC and BIM coordination segments, with Solibri directly comparable to DESITE BIM. Nemetschek serves a broader architecture-led AEC market but increasingly targets infrastructure workflows.
• Hexagon (Leica Geosystems): Hexagon's Leica Geosystems division and broader geospatial portfolio overlap with card_1's surveying and infrastructure capabilities. Hexagon combines surveying hardware, software, and asset management, addressing similar enterprise customers with a wider but less specialized offering.
• RIB Software (Schneider Electric): RIB's iTWO and MTWO platforms target infrastructure and construction project management with BIM integration. RIB competes with IB&T's cost-calculation (AKVS/elKe) and DESITE BIM offerings in the infrastructure construction software segment.

Emerging players

• Topcon Positioning: Topcon's MAGNET and Pocket 3D software address surveying and infrastructure workflows that overlap with card_1's surveying modules. Topcon combines positioning hardware with software for road and rail construction, similar to Trimble.
• Carlson Software: Carlson's SurvCE, SurveyGNSS, and Carlson Civil products serve surveying and civil engineering workflows comparable to card_1's surveying and road design modules. Carlson is a smaller, US-headquartered niche player with similar vertical specialization.

Others

• thinkproject: thinkproject is both IB&T's partner for DESITE BIM and an adjacent competitor in BIM coordination and construction collaboration. It owns the DESITE IP that IB&T resells and operates broader Common Data Environment platforms.
• Bricsys (Hexagon): Bricsys's BricsCAD is a platform partner on which card_1 is distributed (with co-marketed 30-day trials), but BricsCAD also competes with AutoCAD as a general CAD platform. Bricsys was acquired by Hexagon, deepening its enterprise distribution.

Direct peers

• Bentley Systems: Bentley's OpenRoads Designer and OpenRail are direct competitors to card_1 in road and rail design. Both serve the same infrastructure engineering buyer with BIM-integrated civil design tools; Bentley targets the same enterprise/government accounts globally.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UChyGWRWb-iYRjXHcO6A45oA/featured

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

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 IB&T Ingenieurbüro Basedow & Tornow